I have an 87 245 gl. I grounded a wire the other day. It was a wire that connects to the light that illuminates the top half of the center console. I grounded it and the rest of the instrument lights stopped working (the ones illuminating the speedo and tach, and the little one in the shifter and in the center console but not the idiot lights). I checked the fuse but its fine. What's going on here? Any help would be great, cause i can't see how fast im going at night.
Thanks, Nick

Like the other posts said, check the fuse first. If it's not blown, try replacing the rheostat. It's easy to remove. Pull off the headlight and the light dimmer knobs, pry/pop off the black backing plate and just let it dangle -- no need to disconnect/remove the rear fog switch. You'll see two screws (I believe) holding the rheostat/dimmer in place. Pull it out, replace the wires, tighten the screws and then put everything back and you should be good to go.

The rheostat that I've fried was pretty messed up. I looked at the metal coils of the rheostat (at brightest position) and it was black/burnt. Should cost you no more than about $5 at a yard and probably will take about 5-10 minutes to get it fully replaced.

You could just connect both black wires together to bypass the rheostat entirely, but I prefer to keep my car with it installed.
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Regards,
Eric Staufer,
'89 244DL 118k
My 240 Page

The illuminating lights are not related to the warning lights, thus one set can work with the others out.

All the illuminating lights go through fuse #16 and the rheostat up by the headlight switch.

The control panel lights are connected together, brown (BN) is hot side, black (SB) is ground. If you grounded a BN wire, and the fuse #16 is still good, there's a chance that the resistor in the rheostat blew.

Fuses can be sneaky. I have removed a fuse that looked OK, only to have the lead element come out in 2 pieces. Check there first, then the rheostat.

Good Luck,

Bob

:>)


PS If you intend to keep the car several years, the Volvo Service Manuals are a great resource. The wiring diagram books provide information not shown in Haunes, Bentley, or elsewhere. Mine is TP31076/1 www.volvocars.com/lit

If the fuse and fuse clips are OK, then I'd check the dimmer. It's a wirewound rheostat, and the dead short might have burned a winding.

You can usually find a good one on a junked car -- they don't often go bad, though they're not indestructable.
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Don Foster (near Cape Cod, MA)

Terminator, transformer, equalizer. Good terms snapped up by marketeers. How about Rheostat AD?
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

Sorry, Art. You lost me there. What, eaxactly, are you driving at?
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Don Foster (near Cape Cod, MA)

That's my fault, Don. No one here has been driving at all for two days except emergency crews and fools. Soon, if not already, to inundate you too if you didn't fly south for the winter. Stir crazy and time to grab the shovel for another go at it.

Rheostat. Just sounds like a good name for an over the counter recipe to regulate flow.

We have about 1/2 that now, but it's coming down hard and will continue 'til tomorrow morning sometime. I expect we'll have 15"-18" by tomorrow, maybe more.

So much for the drought.

Love my snowblower!
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Don Foster (near Cape Cod, MA)

Every year I've said aloud, "Next year I'm getting a machine", except for last year. Last year we had 2" all winter, in one snowfall.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

I turned 55 a few years back and decided I owed it to my heart.

Screw the exercise value.
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Don Foster (near Cape Cod, MA)

Sound thinking. A 42y.o. died today while shoveling in the next town. He never knew he had a heart problem. I'm 51; I wanna be having more fun than that when my heart gives out.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore