I'm installing a trio of Autometer gauges, and I need to connect the illumination wire to the power wire controlled by the dash light dimmer switch. According to Helms, the dimmer switch is a three prong one, with a ground (black), a power from the under-dash fuse box (red/black), and a third red wire that looks to be coming back from the dash lights. Which one do I want to use, the red one, or the red/black one? I'm thinking it will be the red one, since the red/black one appears to come directly from the fuse box, but I don't want to cut extra wires if I don't have to. Exploratory surgery is out of the question. Thanks for any help!

 

Ok, the red/black comes from the fuse block but it has to pass throught the switch after that. You can use it if you don't need to dim your trio gauges. Now, if you want to use the dimmer on them, then use the red. Also, be aware of how much current those little bulbs draw from the circuit. Maybe you need to mod the fuse, or install a relay.

 

Just the info I needed, thanks! I would like to keep the dimming option for two reasons...I don't like having lights shining in my face at night so I keep things very dim, and I don't really need to keep an eye on the gauges at night, since I haven't gotten my invite to any 24 hour races yet

I'll bump up the fuse either way, and if the max illumination of all of my gauges is a little lower than stock it's no big deal since they're already 2/3 down anyway. However, for future reference, if I were to use a relay to insure proper voltage, what type would I need to work properly with the dimmer? I'm not too familiar with rheastats.

 

This didn't work.

If I plug the gauge power wire into the red/black wire, the gauge lights come on full. If I plug the gauge power wire into the red wire, I get nothing. Both times the dash gauge lights are working properly, and dimming properly. When I turn the dimmer all the way up, I get nothing from the autometer gauges if they're connected to the red wire. However, if I unplug the dimmer (at this point I lose the regular dash lights), I can connect the gauge power wire to EITHER red or red/black, and they come on full. What am I doing wrong? Please help soon! Thanks!!

BTW, I increased the size of the fuse, and haven't blown anything.