HELP! I'm out of town with no tail lights!

[GTX_Joel]

Hi everybody. I am out of town pulling my trailer. The 3rd night when I turned on the lights, smoke came out from under the dash. No tail lights. I ripped into it and found that the connector onto the headlight switch was all melted. There is a pink wire from the tail light fuse in the fuse panel to the switch, and a brown with white stripe wire from the switch to the tail light curcuit. These connectors are the ones that got hot, the insulation on the wires is partly melted. These are just thin little 18 gauge or so. How can they carry the current for a 20 amp light circuit for all the tail, clearance, and tralier lights?? When I twist the two wires together, I get lights but the wires get hot. Also there is a little round metal can that looks like a flasher but smaller diameter that is really hot all the time. I has a 3 terminal connector on it. The 2 wires get hotter if the round flasher looking thing is plugged in. I have determined that the harness to the back of the truck is free from shorts. Must be under the dash or in front. What is going on here? What is the round thing, is this common and what is the cure? Thanks, Joel

 

[GTX_Joel]

OK, I did a TDR search, found the tail light problem is common and the part #s to fix it. Sorry, should ahve done that first. But what is the round hot thing??

 

[Philip]

They can't carry the load as you and many of us has found out. You need to install a relay into the circuit and split the load off to it. Then just use the switch to turn on the relay. This will stop the problem forever.



The melted connector can be boughten from any dealer. It and a new switch runs around $60 or so.



Here is a link with some numbers.



https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=68685&highlight=headlight+relay

But what is the round hot thing??

Not sure get a pic of it and post it.

 

[paccool]

According to the Dodge manual, the only two "round" things on the fuse block are the turn signal flasher and the other is the emergency flasher, The large rectangular box is the horn relay and the small rectangular box is a 30 amp circut breaker that looks to be for the power windows.



Tried to help out on your 911 post before I came to here and saw this one.

 

[Hutchew]

Little round thingy.........

Is the "timer" for the light that comes on around the key switch.

Straight from Ripleys- Believe it or not... ... . LOL