New method for 63/64 courtesy light door switches

[BamaWildcat]

On full-size 1964 Buicks, it is very common for the switch boot to disintegrate over time allowing water and dirt into the courtesy light switch. Once this happens, the dome and courtesy light will come on intermittently when the door is opened and is an annoyance. There are a few ways to correct the problem.

The one I will show off in this post I did today, which was modifying an aftermarket switch that looks very close to the Buick switch to work. The best part is a pair of the switches shipped only costs $10, whereas to get your switches rebuilt, it is nearly a $70 ordeal.

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<font size="1" face="Verdana">Non-functioning factory switch with bad switch boot</font></p>

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Looking through eBay, the switch I found that had the closest external look to a GM switch was this Scott Drake C3AZ-13713-A. Nobody throw a fit, but these are made to fit 65-66 Mustangs. The best part? The price. If you only need driver quality, here is a solution for $10, if you have basic soldering skills.

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This is the backside of the Scott Drake switch. As you will notice, it has round female connectors instead of female spade connectors. Also, the switch retaining fingers do not connect the switch to ground, like the Buick switches do.

Why is this a good thing?

Because now the switch can be wired to a good, solid ground, instead of a simple body to switch press-fit.

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Here is the procedure: Acquire two female spade connectors and one ring connector from your parts bin, Home Depot, Radio Shack, etc. Solder the ring connector to a 7 inch piece of at least #14 wire for your ground connection. Push the other end of the wire into one of the round connectors on the door switch, and crimp down on the connectors with pliers.

Now, solder the wire to the female terminal. Be careful here as too long of a soldering job will melt the switch. Now position two female spade connectors back to back in the other connector. Crimp the connector around them, then carefully solder them to the connector. It may take two passes to alleviate heat to be able to get a great connection for each terminal.

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Snap the switch in the factory hole. Even though it is longer than the factory switch, it will not come in contact with anything. Connect the factory dome light and courtesy light spade connector into the spade connectors. Remove the closest vent screw, place the ring terminal behind it after cleaning it, and torque the screw down tight enough to hold the ring terminal tightly to the screw head, as the vent is plastic and does not conduct.

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Finished product. The O.D. of the Scott Drake switches are a little less than the Buick switches, but I would bet if a factory switch boot was installed, no one would notice.

I'd love any questions or comments.

[Guest imported_Thriller]

Great post Joe...thanks for taking the time to document it.

[NTX5467]

By decoding the Ford part number listed, the orig use of the switch was in 1963, plus Mustang-only parts are "ZZ" rather than "AZ". Be that as it may . . . Seems that Ford did a pretty good job of using some common parts across all of their vehicle lines back then.

If the size of the plunger and cosmetic issues are not an issue, AND the hole size is about the same, there are some GM switches for later-model vehicles that are also "two-wire", with a plastic divider between the two terminals . . . in a plastic body that snaps into a particular hole size. The ones for the 1998-style C/K Silverado pickups has a larger flange on it, plus a longer plunger, if that matters. Last time I looked (about 18 months ago), they were inexpensive. Some of them might now be available on the Help Rack at the auto supply stores.

Yet, the ones you found probably will look "the vintage" that matches the vehicle. The wiring adaptations you show are good, too. Sometimes, items we might need can be found for other vehicle applications that are no where near what we might have or suspect might work. Good job on the investigation! Thanks for the great pictures, too!

Enjoy!

NTX5467