Help needed, tail light wiring harness- 53 Victoria

[53vicki]

53 Victoria. Car does not have back up lights. Tail lights come on with headlights but car has no brake lights.

Here's what it looks like at the tail light housings-
Drivers side tail light harness has;
- wire with single female bullet connector
- wire with double female connector
- thick white wire that has been cut, not connected to anything now.

2 Wires from Drivers side tail light housing are connected to -
Green is connected to the single female bullet connector
Black is connected to one of the openings in the double female connector, other opening has no wire going into it.

Passenger side harness is same as drivers except it does not have the thick white wire that the drivers side harness has.

I don't see any grounds on either tail light housing. Do I need to plug a wire into the 2nd opening on the double bullet connector then ground it ? Also where is the thick white wire on the drivers side harness supposed to connect ?

Many thanks, trying to get this vicky roadworthy so my Dad can finally put some miles on it before our short driving season here in MI ends.

[TJ]

First check all your fuses to make sure they are O.K. No brake lights could mean a bad switch. Get a test light and check the wires at the switch. One should be hot and when the pedal is depressed the other wire should also become hot. If the test light does not light up on the second wire then you have a bad switch. Do you have turn signals? The brake circuit feeds through the turn switch so it's possible the turn switch could have a problem. Usually they are not the problem, but if you have the original wiring on that switch it could be a bad connection.
To check the tailamps pull the headlamp switch on to the parking light position. Check to see if you have parking lights. Then take the test light to the back to see if you have fire to the back wires. The ones that light the test lamp are the tailamp wires. The wire that has two connections should be for the tailamps and license plate light. You should have a crossover harness for the right side lights that connects into the dual connection. If you do not have fire to the rear wires you may have a bad connection at the headlamp switch or a bad switch. If you have the old original wiring you could have a bad connection or no connection.
It would be good to know if you have a new or the original wiring harness and if any modifications (splices, etc. ) have been made to the harness.

[53vicki]

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TJ,

Thanks for your reply. To answer your questions;
- this car has all original wiring.
- turn signals are not working.

We converted it to 12v. I'm going to buy a 12v brake stop light switch & turn signal flasher, provided ones for a 56 Ford (12v) will work in our 53.

You mention a cross over wire that runs to the passenger side and plugs into the dual female bullet connector there. Would that be the thick white wire at the drivers side that has been cut and is hanging free without a home ?

Will do what you've suggested tonite and see what we find out.

thanks again-