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Tail light issue (after market)

Discussion in '1st Gen. Tacomas (1995-2004)' started by El_Best_Hamon79, Jul 19, 2022.

  1. Jul 19, 2022 at 7:45 PM
    #1
    El_Best_Hamon79

    El_Best_Hamon79 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Abraham
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    Rear bed lights
    So I recently bought some new tail lights for the taco. They are on Amazon. Though they had 5 male butt connectors instead of the OEM 6. So I did some research online and then re wired it and now this is happening. I do have an after market stereo system in it if that helps. I think it may be a battery issue or an alternator issue. But I wanted your guys opinions and experts.

    I don’t think I could upload the video so I’ll describe It the best I can. When I signal to turn left, it works fine. But when I signal to turn left, the whole dash blinks on and off at a faster speed than normal. It does signal though and the lighting of the left bulb is lower than the right. I also used the emergency lights and the dash did the same thing just at the normal speed now. Also the running lights don’t work but the brake lights do. I’ll send the link if you guys need it too.




    Update: I put my old tail lights back on and now my dash won’t come on when I turn the head lights on. I guess the running lights stage of it. I’m going to do a battery test and an alternator test to see if they are bad or just are outputting enough volts.
     
    Last edited: Jul 20, 2022
  2. Jul 19, 2022 at 9:47 PM
    #2
    homegrown_xt

    homegrown_xt Well-Known Member

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    Did you get the taillights for the 95 to 2000 Tacoma's? I just got a pair for my 96, the wiring is different for the '01 to' 04 Taco's.
    Check out Austin Niemela YouTube page and check out the '04 he built, he used the earlier tail lights on his and had to do some rewiring to get them to work properly.
    Good luck with yours and keep us posted.
     
    Last edited: Jul 21, 2022
  3. Jul 20, 2022 at 8:44 AM
    #3
    Bivouac

    Bivouac Well-Known Member

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    Northern Lehigh Valley Pa
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    Remains to be seen I bought the tires and wheels the rest came along
    Just what lights did you buy?

    Sounds like a ground issue or your lights are of questionable quality.

    Did you solder and heat shrink your new lights to the Toyota light plugs.
     
  4. Jul 20, 2022 at 8:48 AM
    #4
    manapiko

    manapiko Well-Known Member

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    There don't seem to be that many options for the 01-04 crowd. What did you buy?
     
  5. Jul 20, 2022 at 10:28 AM
    #5
    DashMaple

    DashMaple Well-Known Member

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  6. Jul 20, 2022 at 12:04 PM
    #6
    El_Best_Hamon79

    El_Best_Hamon79 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Rear bed lights
  7. Jul 20, 2022 at 12:06 PM
    #7
    El_Best_Hamon79

    El_Best_Hamon79 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Rear bed lights
  8. Jul 20, 2022 at 12:06 PM
    #8
    DashMaple

    DashMaple Well-Known Member

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    Just some cheap quick splice connectors. I’ve had some for my camper shell 3rd brake light for a while now and never had an issue. Although soldering is a better method.
     
  9. Jul 20, 2022 at 12:06 PM
    #9
    El_Best_Hamon79

    El_Best_Hamon79 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Rear bed lights
  10. Jul 20, 2022 at 12:08 PM
    #10
    El_Best_Hamon79

    El_Best_Hamon79 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Rear bed lights
    also, is soldering better than just heat shrinking then together? I crimped them together then used a heat gun to shrink it.
     
  11. Jul 20, 2022 at 3:09 PM
    #11
    Kevins60

    Kevins60 axle wrap tells me my rear brakes are working

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    Soldering provides a better electrical connection. Heat shrink is really just insulation.
     
  12. Sep 10, 2022 at 2:34 PM
    #12
    El_Best_Hamon79

    El_Best_Hamon79 [OP] Well-Known Member

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    04’ Tacoma Prerunner
    Rear bed lights
    Update: so the fuse was busted for the dash. So I just put a new fuse in it, then for the taillights, I had the connections wrong but made it work with the video that was sent here. So all is fixed and running good.
     
    Kevins60 likes this.

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