Why no mkr/pos. lights on my 740?

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geronimo - 23 Apr 2007 20:21 GMT

My 92 740 turbo wagon seems to have a strange configuration on the
light switch.....

I thought there was a wiring error (someone screwed it up) because
when I go to the middle switch position, which seems to be for
marker/position lights, those lights do not come on. If I go to the
righthand/clockwise switch position, then the headlights come on, and
also the pos/mkr lights come on. So I looked this up in the Chilton
manual, and it shows that the mkr/pos lights are hot at all times when
the headlights are on! I checked the light switch and there is one
white wire that, sure enough, turns on all lights together...
headlights, and pos/mkr lights. Well, I can mod the wiring easy
enough by separating the marker light power wires out on the bottom
side of the fuse panel, and running them separately to the middle
contact on the switch.... but I just wanted to know if all the 740s
were made this way, and why an why on earth not be able to turn on
mkr/pos lights only? I go through a security checkpoint every night,
and I need to be able to turn the headlights off, but keep marker
lights on.

Thanks, Geronimo

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Andy - 24 Apr 2007 07:50 GMT

Hi Geronomo,

Does the middle switch position give you "pos/mkr" (parking) lights alone
(no headlights) with ignition turned off?

Andy I.

: My 92 740 turbo wagon seems to have a strange configuration on the
: light switch.....
[quoted text clipped - 17 lines]
:
: Thanks, Geronimo

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Mike F - 24 Apr 2007 13:37 GMT

> My 92 740 turbo wagon seems to have a strange configuration on the
> light switch.....
[quoted text clipped - 17 lines]
>
> Thanks, Geronimo

The middle position should be live at all times. The power for this
comes from a different place than when they're on in the headlight
position. Look for a wire at the headlight switch that has power at all
times.

Signature

Mike F.
Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
(But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)

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geronimo - 24 Apr 2007 19:27 GMT

Oh.....OK, then the middle position is supposed to give you marker
lights even with ign switch off. Should be simple to wire that up, now
that I know what normal is supposed to be. Guess I will just
round-file the Chiltons' manual ;-)

On second thought....that is an invitation for a dead battery.
Maybe I won't. thanks geronimo

>> My 92 740 turbo wagon seems to have a strange configuration on the
>> light switch.....
[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
>position. Look for a wire at the headlight switch that has power at all
>times.

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Richard Polhill - 25 Apr 2007 08:05 GMT

> Oh.....OK, then the middle position is supposed to give you marker
> lights even with ign switch off. Should be simple to wire that up, now
> that I know what normal is supposed to be. Guess I will just
> round-file the Chiltons' manual ;-)

> On second thought....that is an invitation for a dead battery.
> Maybe I won't. thanks geronimo

Well if you don't there's no way to leave the parking lights on when parked on
dark roads at night, which is why the switch position exists.

Admittedly, more than a couple of hours will probably flatten the battery.

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Richard Polhill - 25 Apr 2007 08:08 GMT

> My 92 740 turbo wagon seems to have a strange configuration on the
> light switch.....
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
> and I need to be able to turn the headlights off, but keep marker
> lights on.

If you turn the switch off, you'll get marker lights and the headlights on
dim, which may be ideal for your purposes. Or do you need to cut the engine, too?

Has somebody really gone to that much effort to mess up the wiring? There are
no wires on the parking light switch contacts? Have you checked that there
isn't a fuse out that would normally power the parking lamps?

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