1999 Ford Tarus Tail Lights & dash lights Wont Work

[krista]

hi i am buying this car off of my parents and they have been having problems with the lights not working at night.my dad knows its not the switch because he bought a new one and their still not working.and since it cant be driven at night at the moment i need to figure out what it is before i sell my car and buy theirs.sooo if any of you know of what the problem could be PLEASE let me know!! thanks..

& sorry if this has already been asked and answered..im not sure how to use this really..

[sunnyford]

when you say the "lights don't work at night", what exactly do you mean:

1) do they work at any time (e.g., never, sometimes)?

2) is it all exterior lights (e.g., headlights, tail lights, side-lights)?

3) what about interior lights--do they work?

If the switch was replaced, did someone make sure the fuses were good before AND after they put the new switch in?

[krista]

uh im not sure exactly what lights work. i know the tail lights do not work at night. the break lights do but thats it for the back, besides turn signals.but ill ask tomorrow for sure on what all works. but he checked the fuses.

[sunnyford]

You also said the dash lights don't work. On my 1999 Taurus, just to the right of the headlight switch, there are 2 "wheel-type" switches/dimmers. One functions to control the brightness of the dashboard. If it's rolled all the way down, it will actually switch the dash lights completely off.

You might want to go out after dark, start the car, and play with these dimmers to see if it's as simple as that.