1956 Buick Century dash lights

[radionut98]

Apparently my thermal relay for dash lights on headlight switch

is gone (not working) can I bypass it with just a piece of wire

without doing any damage to dash lights?. Or should i replace it

with 10 amp fuse? Loren

[Guest imported_bjr]

The thermal relay is a circuit breaker for the headlights and dash llights. On my 54 Buick the headlights would blink off and on after being on for a while. I jumped the thermal relay with a 30 amp circuit breaker and it works fine now. If you use a fuse and it blows you have no lights at all, with a circuit breaker they will go off and on so you can limp to a safe place to fix the problem. Brian

[JohnD1956]

I did this on my Super. The dashboard lights only worked in one position on the rheostat, and after several years it became touchy on this spot. I had a spare switch, so upon disassembly and inspection, I did exactly as you suggested. I put a jumper wire between the two contacts where the rehostat would have made contact, and I bent the rheostat contacts so I could keep it in the switch for structural integrity.

Dash lights are still protected by the original fuse, and work great, as long as you don't mind having the lights as bright as they can go.

John D

[Guest imported_NikeAjax]

I pulled the switch out of mine and ?re-built? the rheostat. I found a spring that looked close, then I drilled out the old rivets, and replaced them with some tiny nuts and bolts. You could also, if you?re good at it, solder the new spring onto the rivets.

Just a thought,

Jaybird

[JohnD1956]

Wow!!! I never thought of doing that. I may take a new look at my spare switch.

Thanks