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Hi all,

I sorted an ignition coil wire short today and while I was contorted under the dash it got me wondering about the vanity lights, cigarette lighter, and switch supplying power to the rear of the passenger compartment. I am still analyzing the wiring diagram, but since none of these things work in my car and I’m not going to rip apart the headliner, I was hoping to disconnect the power and ideally decrease further short risk. There’s this one bigger wire that seems to go up to the rear loom, is that what provides the power to the interior lights etc? I’ve paralleled it with a red line, it also seems someone has put tape on the connector.

Edit: sorry this is a 49 deluxe 2262, no OD/EC

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You are on the right track. The body feed wire comes off the accessory circuit breaker which in a 22nd series is toward the top of the cluster above the clock and goes over the headliner along with fuel sender, tail light and turn signal wires going to the trunk. If it is not hopelessly faded the body feed is a red wire with white tracer and goes to the rear courtesy light where it stops. If you have a model with lights and a cigar lighter in the front seat back, there is a splice above the center pillar and a wire drops down the center pillar just behind the front seat and feeds those too. Power is supplied directly from the BAT terminal at starter solenoid and via a couple of splices that wire feeds the breaker, ign sw, and headlight sw so the breaker and body feed wire should be powered at all times.

The front courtesy or vanity lights also are fed by that accessory breaker so should always be hot too. The front cigar lighter is fed from the wire supplying the breaker and headlight sw via a splice or connection near the headlight sw but it does not go thru the breaker.

Thanks Howard. So is that “61-rw” on the diagram? I think the color threw me off, I know it’s faded but it really looks like it’s a yellow or white wire with red marks, not a red wire… but maybe that’s the fading? All of them look yellow really except the dark ones. I’d really like to disconnect it for now so there’s not power shorting out somewhere.

There should be no problem in disconnecting that wire at the breaker. As I recall it is a straight shot from the breaker to an opening below the windshield where it joins other wires in finding their way into the left pillar to go over the headliner If everything is stock all you will lose is the rear courtesy light and anything that might be on the front seat back such as a rear seat cigar lighter if you have one.

If you have other things not working and any are under the dash then I would look more into the breaker. If you don't have any issues with headlights or ign switch and items fed from them which are fed direct and do not go thru the breaker, then age does take a toll on breakers. Napa should have a replacement for the stud type breaker although you might need to come up with a different way of mounting the new breaker. A failed front cigar lighter could have a burned out element or be making poor contact with the socket