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Dash lights back on--it was the rheostat 200

posted by  someone claiming to be Dharvey on  Sat Nov 16 15:37 CST 2002 [RELATED]

Thanks to the guys who said, check that anyway. Swapped in another rheostat, got lights again.

One other question: are everyone's dash lights dim? My 1980 wagon has always been this way, so I don't think it's a low battery or weak alternator or bad connections. It seems more like really bad engineering.

Doug Harvey







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Dash lights back on--it was the rheostat

posted by  someone claiming to be Al A. on  Sun Nov 17 12:33 CST 2002 [RELATED]

Ditto all the other replies, plus: the nature of a rheostat is to add resistance. If you omit the rheostat from the circuit, the lights will be fully bright. You may shorten the service life of the bulbs, however.








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Dash lights back on--it was the rheostat 200

posted by  someone claiming to be 245BOY on  Sun Nov 17 11:06 CST 2002 [RELATED]


I also have a 1980 245. When my rhostat went bad I took it apart and discovered that the resistance "spring" had broken due to corrosion where the switch wiper had been parked (in a former life with another owner). I now try to remember to turn the dash lights off with the rheostat so that the wiper is parked off of the spring.








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Dash lights back on--it was the rheostat 200

posted by  Jim Holst on  Sun Nov 17 06:18 CST 2002
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last visit: Tue Jan 4 11:05 CST 2011
[RELATED]

Dim is relative but, even at their best, the Volvo dash lights are not as bright as most cars I've owned. I'd still check those ground and battery connections.








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Dash lights back on--it was the rheostat 200

posted by  John.a on  Sat Nov 16 19:16 CST 2002
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last visit: Wed Mar 12 23:00 CST 2014
[RELATED]

You asked..

One other question: are everyone's dash lights dim? My 1980 wagon has always been this way, so I don't think it's a low battery or weak alternator or bad connections..
Check the ground all of them and the one at the alt. Also, check the fuses' clean and make sure of you have a good connection x2
--
john,,1985, 245:GLTi 241k mi..so.california







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