Several questions about Battery Gauge removal, Headlight switch replacement and a random capacitor that is mounted in a clip under the Battery Gauge

1. Is it possible to remove the Battery Gauge without removing the cluster?
Do I also have to disconnect the Fuel gauge to get the Battery/Fuel backing plate out?
I tested the gauge using a known good AA battery and got no needle movement at all

2. When I was testing the Battery Gauge, then attempting to remove it, I needed to move the capacitor shown in my pics and it fell out. Where does the clamp end go? Unfortunately I didn't look closely enough at it.

3. I have also attempted to work on my headlight switch as the dimmer and all dash lights do not work. The Courtesy lights, headlights, parking lights, brake lights, rear lights and turn signals all work fine. I'm suspecting that the switch is toast and I've ordered a reproduction replacement.
The Headlight switch connector shows that it was partially melted once upon a time and full of old grease. I find that I can purchase a new connector but it comes with wires. Would it be advisable to purchase this but remove the new wires and insert my existing to avoid cut and splice?

 

It appears the black wires (or black now) on the light switch connector have bubbled insulation from the short of some type, if it is not my dilated eyes. If they have indeed been hot enough to melt the insulation, I would trace them thru the harness to assure no further damage. If the damage is local, you might decide to splice the new wires in at those locations. Or if you find significant damage replacement of the harness may be the answer.
The capacitor is to minimize the radio interference on the AM band. It is not needed if you are using resistor spark plugs and wires. The capacitor has what is called a 'flag' connector that wraps over the male lug of the device (e.g., the battery gauge, brake light switch, etc.). The female contact of the device connector is generally expanded due to the flag connector and thus you need to squeeze it back in shape to assure a good electrical connection. My battery gauge was not working until I removed the flag connector and adjusted the contact in the connector.
I think you can remove the battery gauge without removing any other components, but I'll let someone confirm that.

 

I've traced the wires and all looks good. There is no indication of melt on the wire ends however the connector itself is in poor condition. My best guess is that this compromise or melting of the connector happened years ago.

There are no black wires involved
There are 7 wires total and the wire colors are:
One Red
One Green
One Brown
One Yellow
Two Orange
One Blue but the Blue has been spliced into the purple seen in my pic

I'm not ready to get into an entire harness replacement yet, just wanting to replace the Battery Gauge and Headlight switch and connector at this time

Thanks,
Rick


got it on the capacitor - thanks

 

It would be nice if you mentioned the year of the car in your question, but your profile says 65, so I'll go with that.
The third fuse from the bottom marked "inst lps" or similar feeds the voltage to the instrument lamps. Measure on the fuse and rotate the headlight dimmer **** both ways and see if you are getting any voltage. If not, the rheostat in the headlight switch is probably bad, or one of those brown wires on the headlight plug you're holding is not making connection. If the second fuse from the bottom marked "tail" is blown you also will not get instrument lamps, but the tail lamps will not work either. All other (brake, turn, etc) will work with that fuse blown, but not the tail or instrument lights. So, you need BOTH fuses to be good to get instrument lights. Measuring the voltage on both sides of the tail fuse (12v on both sides with the headlights in ON or Park) and inst fuse (voltage dependent on position of dimmer) will tell you.

 

Thanks 65GGvert! I've poured through the forum and see you are the go to for anything electrical - It's very nice to meet you!

Sorry, YES, it's a 65!

I'm getting a multimeter tonight, till then testing is very limited :-(

I visually checked for blown fuses 3rd from bottom and second from bottom prior to pulling the switch. At that time tail lights worked but dash light don't. I've since pulled the switch and now it's apart (forever) . I had reinserted the **** to test while in my hand then the **** would not come out when depressing the spring (no matter what). Since I purchased a replacement (on its way) I disassembled the switch to get the **** post out.

My main question on the switch is do I splice the new wires that come with the new connector or is it better to remove the wires from the existing connector and insert them into the new connector? If splicing, what is the best process to use?

Regarding the Battery gauge, I was successful in removing it without having to remove the entire cluster. Was a tight fit, my back is unhappy but it's out ! Now getting those 1/4 hex screws back in will be another challenge!

 

Another observation. My Battery Gauge is missing that 3rd center screw with nut. The housing retainer has the hole for it and the Fuel Gauge has the 3rd leg but this Battery Gauge that I just removed does not have it. Does it matter or have impact if not there? I've attached pics of front and rear of mine and a previous post showing the cluster with the 3rd stud and nut.



I've attached

 

UPDATE and still need help! I replaced the headlight switch and that solved all of my lighting issues. Dash lights now work and all other lighting works as it should.

BUT- I replaced my BATTERY gauge with a new reproduction one and this still does not work. I would expect with the car off and when I pull the light switch that I would see the needle go negative but it does not move. The old one failed the AA bench test while the new one, now in the dash passes the AA bench test. My Multimeter shows just under 12V to the 2 prong connector. Can I get some guidance on where to check next?

Thank you,
Rick

 

Do you have 12vdc at both terminals in the connector? Both should be powered, one from the horn relay and the other from the starter solenoid. IF you measure 12vdc at both sides of the connector, remove the female terminals and squeeze the side to obtain a tight fit on the male lugs of the gauge. Then reinstall them in the connector and try again. You had a flag capacitor on one of the male lugs causing the female terminal to be spread is my guess.

 

I do have 12V on both ends of the connector. I did indeed have the capacitor there and when I was putting it back in the copper spade of the capacitor that was in on the end of the capacitor wire fell off. Having learned that I did not need the capacitor I left it off. I will try your suggestion now and provide an update!

Thanks,
Rick

 

If you have 12vdc at both terminals of the connector and the gauge worked per the test, it is a bad electrical connection problem - e.g. loose lug.

 

Back at it and I found that one wire connector end had the tang that clips it in place in the plastic connector completely mushed down resulting in it not staying in place. I corrected that but still no joy. When I removed the wires and connected them to the gauge post it works. So I admit I'm a rookie on this stuff but perhaps I'm assembling the conductors wrong? I'm placing the insulator on first up against the gauge, then sliding the copper conductors on and then the lock washers and nuts. Picture attached.

 

Here is the tang or thing,
There is a tang on the female terminal that you bend in to remove it from the connector. When re-assembling the terminal in the connector you have to bend it back out and then slip the terminal in the connector

female terminal with tang

slot in connector for terminal

Align the tang with the square channel in the connector and push in. It will then lock in place.

Sorry about the blurry photos. Don't know how to use the phone yet
Ron

 

Thanks Ron but I was not clear. I know how the connectors work and slip into the housing and snap in place. I was trying to say that yes, on of the connectors wasn't fastened to the housing because the "TANG" was mushed down from the Capacitor spade. I corrected that but it still doesn't solve the issue. It's become really strange. My pics above show the insulator and the copper connectors that get assembled on the rear of the gage for the electrical connector.

What is happening is that when these parts are assembled on the rear of the gage the workable connections to the copper are non existent. What I mean is that if I put my alligator clips on the copper connectors shown above and use my AA battery I get nothing. If I move the alligator clips to the actual threaded posts coming off the back of the gage, the same posts that the insulator and copper connectors mount on, then the AA Battery moves the needle.

So I need to figure out, how to get good and solid connections on the copper male spades that mount to the back of the gage.

It seems like it should be simple but the parts on the rear of the gage are not making the connections that they should and I can prove the gage works by bypassing these parts and connecting directly to the 2 threaded studs

Am I making sense?

 

It sounds like the oxidation on the copper parts of the terminal board with the two male lugs need a serious cleaning as they are not making good contact with the studs which they mount to. Are there any plastic washers that insulate the studs from the housing? Clean the copper contact points and male lugs and if they still don't have good contact, something is assembled wrong.
Edit: Did you squeeze the female terminals to fit tightly on the male lugs prior to putting them back in the plastic connector? If not, that will prevent you from getting a connection and was my problem on R66.

 

Hi Ron,

I have taken my wheel to the copper contacts that mount over the insulator, cleaned really well and reassembled. I now get a successful AA battery test with allegator clips on the very end of the copper contacts.

I have removed the plug connectors from the GM housing and checked for voltage. 12.43 volts on the Black Wire and 12.43 volts on the Black with white stripe. I then pressed the unhoused connectors onto the copper spades that are correctly mounted to the gauge. The Black/White is connected to the Silver stud of the gauge and Black wire is connected to the Gold stud of the gauge. In this state with the factory spades connected and the main 12volt battery disconnected the AA battery test passes so I am now sure that I have solid connections.

I then reconnected the 12V main battery and again the AA battery test passes. The needle moves as expected. BUT... when I pull the headlight switch the needle doesn't move. I'm now confident that all connections to the gauge are solid and I am getting 12.43 volts to both sides of the gauge. It looks like more troubleshooting is in order :-(

 

I don't think you will see much movement with just the headlights, but I could be wrong. IF it works with the 1.5 vdc battery, there must be a connection issue. Try removing the female terminals from the plastic connector and put them on the male lugs of the gauge. Also inspect for broken strands of wire at the female lugs.
If you turn on the headlights on bright, turn on the ignition and heater fan motor, and hit the headlight bucket switch, you should see the needle move to the negative side without the engine running.
Have parts to clean and errands to run most of the day, but I'll try to watch for your results. Maybe Gary or one of the other members can give you some ideas.

 

Holy Moly - You are correct. Once I turned everything on creating a huge draw the gauge needle move to the left of center. In all my years with 9 different 67 Chevelles with gauges the headlight draw was enough to move the needle. I now get it that this is not an AMP gauge. so now I know all is well!

Thanks Ron