1981 vette fusebox location

[hdkeno]

Greetings All,

am new to this forum,and the proud owner of a 1981 beige/dark bronze L81 with 40k original miles.

Car is in great shape,everthing seems to work good,except no dash or interior lights,come on when engine is on and headlights are on.

Even the dome light dose not come on when turning the headlight knob,but does come on when opening the door.

Im suspecting a blown fuse. Just got the car,and am awaiting the owners manual to come anyday,which I got on ebay.

In the meantime can anyone tell me where the fuse box is located and maybe which fuse controls the interior lights?

I find it really hard to believe that all the bulbs could be blown. Thanks Ken

 

[Yoda]

hdkeno ~ Welcome to The Corvette Action Center Community ~

Ken,

It's great seeing another L81 here at Corvette Action Center

Your fuse panel is up under the dash on the drivers side. Look up under the dash and you'll see it up there on the left hand side of the drivers side

I scanned the fuse panel from my GM Shop Manual and I have it around here somewhere and can post it if you need it.

Welcome aboard and enjoy the

Bud

 

[hdkeno]

Thanks Bud,found the panel. It would be great if you could scan the panel and post it. I think the fuse is a 20amp but not sure,cant quite make out the lettering perfectly. Many Thanks again Ken

 

[bill81vette]

Hey there,hdkeno,welcome to CAC!!!

if the fuse is a yellow colored fuse it is a 20 amp.
I have blown more 20 amp fuses in my vette than i care to count :ugh

anyway,glad to see another'81
where about in ct are you???
enjoy the vette and the forums
PS.be sure to register your '81 on the L-81 registry

 

[Yoda]

Here ya go

Ken I highly recommend the purchase of the GM Shop Manual (ST-364-81) great information and help when working on our 81's. They usually are available on Ebay and you can pick one up for around $35 ~ $75 depending on the bidding I also have and recommend the 1981 Corvette Assembly Manual, same thing (Ebay) and usually for somewhere around $20 ~ $25.
Ebay 1981 Corvette
&
Ebay '81 Corvette

We have a lot of L81'ers onboard so don't be bashful about asking questions. I'm not much of an engine person, but the rest of the car I would probably have something to say

Again, Welcome aboard..... enjoy

Bud

 

[Dave L.]

I second the motion on the GM shop manual...invaluable information for your 81'.

 

[hdkeno]

Thanks to Bud,for posting the great scan,and to the rest of you fine folks here on the forum for the welcome.

I did change the fuse(it is the 7.5 amp one just below the flasher) and the old one was not blown.

A friend of mine whom is more mechanically adept then me noticed that when i turned the headlight switch to activate the interior dome light it did not go on.

But when you open the door the light functions fine.so i know that is not the bulb.
He suggested it could be a bad dimmer switch. And if so, how difficult is it to change?
I hope that it isnt all of the bulbs burned out,and I am going to get one of the shop manuals as suggested on ebay.

The wife and I took the newly aquired Vette out today to show it off to some friends,and racked up about 100 miles and other then the interior light issue,the car runs perfect. I love it.

Again the car is bone stock,purchased from the Corvette Center In Newington,Ct at a good price,one owner all matching #'s and only 40k on the odomenter.
It is the rare beige over dark bronze one of the first out of BG,and has the also rare 4 speed gearbox that i wanted.
The car has all 4 new brakes,power steering hoses and valve,new plugs and oil change,wipers,and seats recovered.
The stock am fm stereo works good,ac was converted to r134a and it works good,and the tires are even original (250/60r/15) no dry rot and still decent tread left. Also have the nice glass tops.

I would like to post some pics,but cant get the pics to fit under the sites size requirments. Would welcome any suggestions.

Thanks again,in advance. Until later. Ken

 

[Yoda]

Ken,

Sent me your photos at RareL81 @ hotmail.com and I'll size them for you as a signature and avatar, then ones that will fit the text boxes in the general text section

Bud

 

[blackandredvette]

... A friend of mine whom is more mechanically adept then me noticed that when i turned the headlight switch to activate the interior dome light it did not go on.

But when you open the door the light functions fine.so i know that is not the bulb.
He suggested it could be a bad dimmer switch. And if so, how difficult is it to change?...

I found this thread and was wondering how the story ended for I have the same problem. Is it a bad dimmer switch?

 

[6880 Mike]

Test the rheostat in headlight switch. This allows the gauge lights to dim up and down. A bad rheostat could leave you with no dash lights while the headlights work fine.

 

[blackandredvette]

The rheostat works fine but no dome light when turned all the way. The dome light works when the car door is open but not on the rheostat.

 

[bill81vette]

sounds like the problem is in the switch....

 

[LannyL81]

Changing out the headlight switch is not alot of fun, but can be done. Requires removal of the tach and speedo and figuring out how the handle comes out. If I remember correctly, isn't there a release pin on the switch??? Also getting a tool to unscrew the nut with the two opposite slots took me awhile to find.

Good luck and enjoy that car.

 

[LanceB]

I had a fuse blowing to the tail lights/dash lights and we searched for a short forever. Ended up replacing the green circuit board thingy behind the center bezel cluster. Fixed! Not the same problem as yours but there is a lot going on in that area. Connections get coroded, etc. If you have fixed give me an update!

 

[mljones13]

Fuse Block

Thanks Bud,found the panel. It would be great if you could scan the panel and post it. I think the fuse is a 20amp but not sure,cant quite make out the lettering perfectly. Many Thanks again Ken

Here is a photo of mine. I just had to change the 20 amp fuse on mine too.
The one you want is just above and to the left of the yellow capacitor.