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4 Wheel Drive/SUVs/94 Jeep tail light prob

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Expert: - 10/5/2004


Question
I have a 94 Jeep Grand Cherokee v8 5.2l and all three of my tail lights have all of a sudden stopped working.  I checked the bulbs and they are fine.  I checked the fuse and its fine.  I replaced the brake switch at the top of the brake pedal.  I unhooked all the wire connectors that I could find and hooked them back again.  Then after hours of messing with the tail lights I notice they started working again.  I was happy and left.  Not more that a half mile away from my home, my tail lights go out again.  Any ideas what I can check next.  The bulbs installed are 1157 are they the right bulbs?  I have not had this problem until today.  Help!

Answer
Chris,

How about the turn signals, backup lights, and tail lights.  If they are all having problems, I would suspect a bad ground, or loose wiring connection.  Try tracing out the wiring from the tail lights working forward.  You can do this with a test light, or voltmeter.  Sometimes you can find the bad connection by, simply pulling, and pushing on the wiring.  When you do this, don't pull so hard that you break a wire.  Make sure that all the wiring connectors are pushed tightly together when your checking the wiring out.  Also, check out all the wiring connectors under the dash, and on the fire wall.

I would suggest that you purchase a repair manual for the Jeep.  A Chilton's or a Hayne's manual can be purchased at most auto parts stores for $20.  They have a lot of information on basic trouble shooting, and repairs, including electrical diagrams, along with wiring color codes.  These manuals are designed for a year or range of years for specific vehicles, and are invaluable if you are planning on doing any repairs, or maintenance yourself.  To trace out the wiring, you may need to purchase a cheap voltmeter, or test light also.

Carl

4 Wheel Drive/SUVs

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Carl Brandt

Expertise

Will discuss suspensions, lifts, lockers along with tire suggestions. Trail ratings and possible requirements needed for specific type of trails. Safety equipment and what you should carry with you. Certified off-road instructor. I am not a mechanic, and 4-Wheeling is a hobby, so if I can't answer a technical question it is due to my mechanical knowledge being related to vehicles that I have owned, or have worked on. I do not have manuals on all vehicles.

Experience

40 plus years of 4 wheeling in a variety of vehicles. At the present time, my major off-road rig is a 94 Jeep Wrangler with a spring over and a 1 1/2" suspension lift. This gives me a total lift of 7" or so. I have lockers front and rear. I have removed the track bars, and sway bar for maximum articulation. I am running a stock 2.5 ltr 4 cylinder with a Jacobs ignition along with a cold air high flow filter. It has 4.56:1 gears with a Dodge NV4500 transmission along with a 3.8:1 Atlas II transfer case. This gives me a final ratio of 105:1 in low gear/low range. Other vehicles I own, are a 96 Ford F-250 with a 6" lift, posi rear end, 36" Hummer tires, 5 speed with a fuel injected 460 ci engine, an 87 Samurai with an 8" lift, Ford 9" rear end with a spool, Chevy Dana 44 front end with an electric locker, 5.88 gears, 16% reduction in high range and a 6.5:1 low range with 35" Baja Claws, and a stock 2003 Grand Cherokee Overland. Trails I have run are the Rubicon (10 times), Dusey Ershim, Fordyce Creek trail, McGrew trail, several trails in Moab, Utah along with local monthly runs.

Organizations
Lost Coast 4x4's Cal 4-Wheel Corva UFWDA Blue Ribbon Coalition

Education/Credentials
Certified off-road instructor - Certificates in engineering/electronics

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