© 1999 Directed Electronics, Inc. Vista, CA 9
4. Turn the ignition key switch to the run position. If your meter reads (+)12V, go to the next step. If it doesn’t,
probe another wire.
5. Now turn the key to the start position. The meter display should stay steady, not dropping by more than a
few tenths of a volt. If it drops close to or all the way to zero, go back to step 3. If it stays steady at (+)12V,
you have found an ignition wire.
you have found an ignition wire.
The (+) parking light wire is often found near the switch. Many cars have the switch built into the turn signal
lever, and in these cars the parking light wire can be found in the steering column. The same wire is often avail-
able in the kick panel or running board.
How to find a (+) parking light flash wire with your multimeter:
1. Set to DCV or DC voltage (12V or 20V is fine).
2. Attach the (-) probe of the meter to chassis ground.
3. Probe the wire you suspect of being the parking light wire.
Usually, the area near the headlight/parking light switch is an
excellent area to start, as is the kick panel.
4. Turn on the parking lights. If your meter shows (+)12V, turn off
the parking lights and make sure it goes back to zero.
5. If it does return to zero, turn the parking lights back on and,
using the dash light dimmer control, turn the brightness of the
dash lights up and down. If the meter changes more than a volt
when using the dimmer, look for another wire. If it stays rela-
tively close to (+)12V, you have found your parking light wire.
The best places to find the door switch wire are:
■ At the pin switch: When testing at the pin switch, check the wire to ensure that it “sees” all the doors. Often,
the passenger switch will cover all the doors even if the driver’s switch will not.
■ At the dome light: This may not be your best choice if the vehicle has delayed domelight supervision, but it
will work in vehicles with completely diode-isolated pin switches.
Once you have determined the wire color, the easiest place to connect to the wire is often at the kick panel, at
the windshield pillar, or in the running board. When an easy location is not available, running a wire to the dome-
light itself is often the best solution.
finding the door pin switch circuit
finding a (+) parking light wire