First check fuse #8 in the fuse panel under dash, a yellow 20amp fuse for the tail lights.
Are you sure it is not a bulb burnt out? You know, it is a two filament bulb, one filament for the tail lights, and one for brakes and turns. On a wiring diagram, it shows a common ground for each rear light socket, so if the ground is bad at the rear (the ground is at left rear inner fender panel), then would have no turns or brakes either.
Do this: turn park lights on and check tail lights, front park lights, front side marker lamps, and rear license plate lights. All of these come off the same black wire with yellow stripe out of the light switch. If the license plate lights work, it is definitely not a ground problem at the rear. Also, the back up lights share this common ground. Turn key on, put transmission in reverse. Do the back up lights come on? If so, not a ground problem with tails.
If still no help, buy an inexpensive test light ($5), you will need to start checking for power and where it is lost. pull apart the 4 wire connector at one of the rear light sockets. Turn park lights on, ground the test light to a good ground-may need to clean off a piece of metal back there so ground is good for tester-then in the harness side of connector, probe the black/yellow terminal, should have power. If so, check the bulb. If no power, move under the instrument panel, left side, and find the 8 wire blue connector. Pull it apart. On one side of connector, the black/yellow wire comes right from fuse #8. Check if that terminal at connector has power. You will need to ground your test light under dash and turn the park lights on to check for power at the connector. If no power, check fuse. If fuse is good, pull fuse and probe both terminals where fuse plugs in. One terminal should have power. If neither terminal has power, the feed from the power distribution box under hood is lost for that part of fuse panel.
If the black/yellow wire terminal at 8 wire connector does have power, but you found no power at the rear light socket connector, then the wire must have a short between the 8 wire conn. and the rear light sockets.
Sorry so lengthy, but just don't believe a new ground wire for the tail lights will help. If tail light ground is bad, you would have no brakes or turns either. Of course, it would not be the first time I was wrong...well, cheers. Hope you find it.
Blinkers and stop lights are on the same circuit-tail lamps are on another circuit-i'm going to start from zero so please be patient-do the front park lamps come on with the headlamps-have you checked the fuses-have you checked at the rear lamps with a volt meter-take the rear bulb out and try in front if fronts working-as far as the ground at the rear there should be a screw in the frame where the ground should be and there should be a ground wire coming out of the harness in the area where the harness from the front plugs into the turn signal harnesses-otherwise-you can driill a small hole in the frame and one in the truck bed underneath and run a wire between them-the bed is not grounded by being bolted onto the truck-cheers Denny
SOURCE: 1993 Dodge Dakota tail lights dead
dose it have a trailer package? If so check the plugs that go to the trailer plug that was the problem for my truck to goog luck.
SOURCE: need help with the wiring diagram for my 92 Dakota, has not brake lights or blinkers
www.wiring-diagram.com
You can get any wiring diagram for any vehicle. It will cost about $12 and it's well worth it. It will give you the complete diagram bumper to bumper.
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