Stereo Installation - problem with instrument panel lights

I installed a new aftermarket CD player in my 2000 Rodeo (of course the Factory CD player crapped out for the second time (out of warranty this time)), and used a wiring diagram that I found on the internet to match up the factory wires to the wires on my new stereo. Unfortunately, the wiring diagram from the internet that showed the factory wiring didn't show the wire for the "illumination" wire (Green with Red Stripe), so I didn't connect it to the aftermarket stereo. Of course, I discovered the problem the next evening when my instrument panel was pitch black. So, after a little more poking around on the internet, I found a wiring diagram that showed the Green with Red Stripe wire as the Illumination wire for the Rodeo, but after connecting it to the corresponding wire on the aftermarket stereo (Orange with White Stripe), I still don't have any lights on my instrument panel. I checked the fuse and it does not appear to have blown, but I should point out that I did not disconnect the Neg. terminal on the battery when I connected the two wires.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks,

Mark.

P.S. In case it will help someone else out with their installation here is a link to the site with the wiring diagram for the 2000 Rodeo: http://www.the12volt.com/installbay/stereodetail/1174.html

P.S. I have a couple of leftover modules for the Intermittent Wiper Board if anyones interested in them.

They have a mistake on that list. They show the dimmer power as red/yellow, it should be red/green. Red/yellow is switched power.

Here is what I have..

switched power - red/yellow
constant power - red/white
ground - black
lights - green/red
lights / dimmer - red/green
right frt spkr + - green
right frt spkr - - grey
left frt spkr + - blue
left frt spkr - - yellow
right rr spkr + - orange/blue
right rr spkr - - orange/white
left rr spkr + - orange
left rr spkr - - white

Since my aftermarket stereo doesnt have wires for illumination those 2 wires arent connected on mine and it always worked fine.

Dave,

Currently I have the Red/Yellow hooked up to the Red on my aftermarket Stereo which say "to an accessory terminal in the fuse block" (this was based on the original wiring diagram I had). And I have the Red/White going to the Yellow on the aftermarket Stereo "To a live terminal in the fuse block". If I'm understanding you correctly, you're saying you're red/green and green/red aren't connected to anything and its working fine. When I first installed my stereo I had that setup (neither of those wires connected) and I still didn't have any lights on my dash.

Did I miss something in my understanding?

Did you have the 6 disc changer in your Rodeo?

Thanks for the quick response,

Mark

I wonder what would happen if I attached the "Illumination" wire from the aftermarket stereo to the Red/Yellow (so I would have both the illumination and the Red Switched 12V going to the Red/Yellow).

THanks,

Mark

And the answer is....

Nothing. I switched the wires to no effect.

Mark

that shouldnt happen with ur instrument panel. i have been installing stereos for a good 3 years now, and that never popped up on me. double check the fuse for your instrument panel. also, what couldhave happened is that you shorted the circuit board on the panel and fried the copper traces. I doubt it though because the fuse should have blown first.

Make sure the dimmer isnt turned down first (obvious but it happens lol). The wiring sounds fine the way you have it. My aftermarket stereo doesnt have wires for illumination so thats why mine arent connected.

As said, check the fuse again. Then start tracing back power on red/green and green/red till you find where it disappears.

I think I've been pretty thorough in checking the fuses. I believe the manual says the fuse in question is number 4, but I've pulled them all just to be sure and they all APPEAR to be OK. I sure hope I haven't blown the circuit board.

Dave, you mentioned that you left the red/green and green/red "unassigned" in your installation, so I'm a little confused about the tracing of the power on these two wires. I'm getting the impression that it shouldn't really matter if they aren't connected to anything, but I may have missed something. Could you be more specific on how I can go about tracing the power on these two wires? I have a digital multimeter, but I use it for very very basic stuff, so if you can spare the time to give me some detailed instruction I would really appreciate it.

Thanks for all the time you've spent on these replies guys,

Mark

P.S. I was pretty pleased with my stereo installation until the sun went down!

Maybe it would help if I described the wiring diagram for the Stereo I installed (I'm presuming I've got the speakers right so I'll leave them out):

Black - To Metallic Body (connected to Rodeo's Black)
Yellow - To a live terminal in the Fuse Block (connected to the Rodeo's Red/White)
Red - To an accessory terminal in the fuse block (connected to the Rodeo's Red/Yellow)
Blue/White - To remote lead of other equipment (unconnected)
Orange/White - To car light control switch (this is the one that I believe is giving me the trouble. It was originally unconnected, then connected to Green/Red, then to Red/Yellow, now back to Green/Red (I'm sure I threw in a Red/Green somewhere too))
Brown - To Cellular Phone System (unconnected)

What do you think? Should I just sell the truck?

Thanks again,

Mark

P.S. I'm confident that the dimmer knob isn't the problem.

OK Guys. I received an email from a guy who told me I had shorted out my Dimmer circuits. The only way I can guess that I did this was by somehow inadvertantly allowing the Red/Green Green/Red wires from the Rodeo to come into contact when I did the initial installation and this shorted the Dimmer Circuit. Well, as luck would have it, someone was parting out their '99 Rodeo on Ebay and I managed to pick up their Dimmer Circuit for $25 including shipping. When it arrives I will make darned sure that the Red/Green and Green/Red are individually taped off and then both are taped off to seperate locations. Then I'll disconnect the Neg. Terminal and install hte new Dimmer. If this is the fix, then I'll post the procedure on this board and hopefully we can come up with some way to let people know of the hazard BEFORE they install a new stereo. I really thought I'd been pretty careful though.

Mark

Wouldn't it have been easier to just buy a wire harness for the aftermarket stereo? Just solder the wires from the harness to the aftermarket stereo wires and then snap into the Rodeo's OEM harness. I've installed 2 new stereos in the last year and never had any issues. It was a 10 min install. I went to Best Buy and picked up a harness for $14.

Yes, you're absolutely right. Buying the wiring harness would almost certainly have prevented the problem altogether. In researching the problem I had, I came across at least 8 or 9 other posts (on various boards) with exactly the same problem though, so I think the information is worth posting at least for those who have already blown their Dimmer Circuit. But you're right, the best way to prevent this problem is to get the wiring harness in the first place.

Thanks,

Mark