why dont my tail lights works?

Asked by hoaksy Mar 01, 2011 at 05:35 PM about the 2002 Dodge RAM 1500 SLT Quad Cab LB 4WD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

My trucks tail lights do not work, my brake lights and turn signals work but my tail lights do not.  I have no power going to the left or right tail tail light fuse, and i have already went and got a new switch for it but still not tail lights?

37 Answers

2,985

check all of your fuses, in the dash and under the hood, make sure the bulbs dont need replaced?

52 people found this helpful.
780

I am having the same issue . i had to run a wire from the right side to power the lights now they just are on all the time. If you have found a fix please let me know. If you have not found one i will let you know if i do.

78 people found this helpful.
540

How do you go about running this wire from the right side ?

54 people found this helpful.
810

check the trl hitch wires they may be pinched together,I had the same problem never thought I would figure it out.

81 people found this helpful.
1,325

I just had the same thing happen! All of my lights have never had problems. I tried to connect a trailer to the trailer hitch connector and lost all of my marker lights. Brake, signal, hazard and reverse lights all still work...but no markers/park lights. It has to be the trailer wiring.

81 people found this helpful.
1,325

Checked all fuses and relays...they are all good. Checked all bulbs...they are also good. Has to be something with the trailer wiring. That's when I lost my lights...when I plugged in the trailer wiring connector.

51 people found this helpful.
210

maybe this will help I had no left rear running, brake and blinker and changed the bulb socket for about $16.00 from dodge parts. so far do good.

21 people found this helpful.
280

what color is the reverse light on 1997 dodge Cummins 2500 turbo diesel

28 people found this helpful.
540

Why on my 2001 dodge ram 1500 the parking lights are hooked in my radio wiring? Unplug the radio and the parking lights go off plug it back in the parking lights come.even though the switch is turned off.

54 people found this helpful.
565

On my 2013 dodge ram 1500 my trailer receptical has no power. I have changed fuse but still nothing. All lights work on my truck still. I cannot find the problem. Can someone please help? Thanks

56 people found this helpful.
460

On my 2001 Dodge Ram 1500 there is a fuse/circuit breaker box just behind the battery. I had a blown 15A mini fuse (location F). Replaced it- tail-lights & dash-lights back in business! Voltman3

46 people found this helpful.
650

My blinker and my brake lights work but not my back tail lights dont and i have switch the light bulbs from the stop lights but it still doesn't work

65 people found this helpful.
160

Change fuse panel or quick fix use paper clip as a jumper in the relay

16 people found this helpful.
770

After months of intermittent electrical issue. It started off small with just losing one brake light then got progressively worse, I've lost about every light in the rear end and gained it back and even had lights not turn off after shutting off the truck, I had to unplug my battery after parking for about a month. I finally found the issue. From factory, the wiring harness had been strapped up against a sharp part of the frame. Anyone who has a 2002- 2005 gen dodge ram, check wiring harness beside your spare tire to make sure this is not happening to you. I was lucky that the constant shorting did not cause issues with the computer. Others may not be so lucky. This is a major design flaw, check your trucks.

77 people found this helpful.
790

This problem happens to a lot of dodge rams of these years due to the poorly designed fuse box. Moisture and other various things get in there and corrode the connection for the tail light relay. I believe it is # 73 if you turn the switch in the truck on you should have power at 3 of the 4 terminals. If you only have power at 2 of them with the switch on then its probably a bad fuse box. I got a new fuse box for my 02 1500 for about $130 used from a scrap yard. But make sure you dont get one that is on a truck with a lot of miles as this box could very well have the same problem. I will try to find a link to the video on how to jump the terminals in the box with a wire to turn on the lights

47 people found this helpful.
790

https://youtu.be/788-yq3dtEM Here is another solution to this problem that may work if you have alright skills with a soldering iron and a lot of patience

22 people found this helpful.
790

https://youtu.be/cIF5SiVGpPE This video shows a fix that I personally used for a while on my truck before i got a new fuse box i just used a good powerful switch and some good wire to run a separate switch in the truck. It was a pain to use a second switch though so after awhile i just broke and got a new box

10 people found this helpful.
110

My 2013 Ram Laramie park lights stay on when in gear. This happen to anyone else? Also my trailer brake lights and signals work but with lights on, none of my boat lights illuminate. All help is appreciated!

11 people found this helpful.
240

2017 dodge 1500 ram..lost parking lights. Brake lights..tow lights on driver side. Checked fuse not the problem so what could be the problem??

24 people found this helpful.
180

i had the same problem on my 2004 dodge ram rumble bee. i did not have rear running lights, but the brake light and turn signal lights functioned normally. I checked the fuse, and observed it had not failed. I checked the power coming in and out going out the fuse and there was none. i checked the tail lamp relay and found that the ground on the relay was not properly grounded. the relay is grounded by the FCM. I did not verify continuity from the ground connector at the fuse box to the FCM. There are only 2 possible options at this point, and that would be to verify if the ground wire is broken, and if not, the FCM has failed internally. My fix was hard wiring the ground portion of the relay using a wire which was fuse protected to the negative side of the battery lol. the only down side is that it must be plugged in and unplugged every time, or it will drain the battery by leaving your running lights on since they are no longer operated of the FCM. follow me at QuantumMotorWorks

18 people found this helpful.
80

Break lights2005ram1500 not working l fixed mine withWD40. Remove grey bar that bulbs clip onto,remove bulbs, them hose it down with WD49, shake out extra oil, reassemble. Do both sides, they may talk to each other (I wouldn't be surprised !).

8 people found this helpful.
200

I had this same issue. Turns out the sockets had to be replaced. The sockets aren't straight wired. There is a a plug, like the plug for a sensor. Just unplug it and replace the socket. At $7 each on Rockauto, it is worth giving it a shot. Don't make the same mistake as me and pay $400.00 for labor for someone to tell you this.

20 people found this helpful.
90

On the dash computer says I have a tail light out but tail light working

9 people found this helpful.
100

07 dakota 3.7v6 with the getrag238 6speed, okay so had truck for several months and I never had the 3rd/cab brake light ever work, I have changed the bulbs and nothing well now it’s winter and my passenger tail light has been getting slowly dimmer and now today no tail light on that side, I still have flasher brake light back up light just no running light... I have wiggles the trailer lights, nothing, I am thinking of running the hot from the driver side over to passenger side, question is will this work? Hypothetically I’d think it would work right but I’m just wondering if it will get the wire to hot I have done this on older trucks but this is my first newer vehicle passed 1995... yeah this be my last newer than 90s vehicle, I’m gonna gonack to old vehicles if I can fix this truck and sell it

4 people found this helpful.
30

If it is a 2005 you may have to replace the whole fuse box as 2005-2006 did not have changeable fuses or relays for the lights.

3 people found this helpful.
130

Its a wire from the tipm to the power module if you are good you can fix it with a soldering iron after you pull the tipm apart or just get a whole new tipm

13 people found this helpful.
70

We checked fuses, replaced light bulbs, clean contacts and ,still, the left turn signal warning would pop-up on the dash warning. We looked for worn wiring harness and found no issues. We cleaned contacts inside the turn signal\brake light receptacle with CRC and a wire brush. Then we would get a few hours or maybe even days without loss of contact and dashboard warning. Finally, after weeks of trouble-shooting, we pulled off the tail- light\brake light assembly, removed the brake\turn signal bulb and FOUND that one of the contacts had broken it's support and was not making a hard pressure contact any longer. With a jewelers screwdriver, that I was going to really scrape those contacts, we found that the brass contact was just kind of flopping around in there. This explained the intermittent problem. We bought a new fixture harness from the dealer, unplugged the old one, put in the new one and lived happily ever after. We probably saved about a million dollars in troubleshooting costs at the dealership. Hope you save millions also.

7 people found this helpful.
10

Happened yesterday, checked all fuses and bulbs. It was the simplest thing, hazzard button wasn't pushed down to off position completely.

1 people found this helpful.
30

So i had an issue with brake lights not brightning, and turnsignals in back not working when lights were on. Everything worked when lights were off though. Spent 3 full days fixing the multifunctioning switch and looking for frayed or scortched wire. Couldnt find anything. So, i regrounded the light fixtures on my flatbed 97 dodge, and the lights got brighter but still no signals or brake lights. Turns out, 1157 wasnt even the right bulb. 1176 was. Now the lights seem to work. Havent had prollems yet but ill keep you posted. If you have a flatbed, try 1176 bulbs in the back and maybe ive saved you money.

3 people found this helpful.
140

I have a 2011 Ram 1500 just switched my taillights to LED I have turn,brake lights but my taillights don’t come on please help me I’m going nuts here the wires are all connected correctly I’m so lost can’t afford a ticket

14 people found this helpful.
130

I have a 99 dodge ram 1500 sport with 5.9 4x4. All my blinkers, 4ways, headlights, brights, reverse light and brake lights work fine. I have all new bulbs and fuses. Problem is i started off with no tail lights 1 day. After messing with it for a bit with no success now all off a sudden my front and rear running lights both dont work!!! I checked the wiring from front to back and its all good except the last owner cut off the connectors to the tail lights and hand wired them back in along with a trailer plug and also the licence plate lights...now i cant figure out how to get my running lights for both the front and the back to work again...any help would be great!!! Im about to take it to a shop but i dont really have any money to do so.

13 people found this helpful.
90

please tell me which fuse is responsible for the right rear light? I can not figure out the explication.

9 people found this helpful.
20

I ran a new ground from light to frame now my left side works!

2 people found this helpful.
40

Hi Eric are you talking about a 3rd gen 4wd 5.7K 1500? I am having noo parking lamps are trailer or License Plate marker lights and it seems to be connected all off the tail lights or license plate lights but I beleive it’s the taillights. I checked power at the left lamp assembly which is a brand new assembly that worked in this summer of 2020 than I seen no marker lights also . If u have a wiring schematic please send me a picture of diagram for the 2095 4wd 5.7L 1500.

4 people found this helpful.
10

1998 Dodge Ram 1500 - both tail lights (running lights) were not working. I fixed it in about 15 minutes. Opened the fuse and relay box that is located under the hood nearby the firewall, found the trailer hookup relay (location was clearly marked on the inside of the box cover), pressed down to make sure it was securely inserted and in place. It moved just a slight bit and did a little click (a sound that I was happy to hear). I then turned on the headlights, looked at the rear tail lights and they were now on. Checked them also in parking lights mode. A-Okay. Hope this helps anyone who has the same problem (or something similar) to find the answer and fix the problem. It might be a time-saver for you to try what I tried.

1 people found this helpful.

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