Reconnecting Battery for Dashboard Lights

Video Transcript

"Today, we're changing instrument cluster lights on a 96' Ford Explorer. In this clip, I'm going to demonstrate the proper service procedure for reinstalling your headlight and four-wheel drive knobs, shifting the vehicle back into park, connecting your battery, and removal of your wheel chock. The first thing I have here is my headlight knob. The headlight knob is indicated by the little light bulb on it. Aside from that, you can see they're virtually identical. This has a D style connector. If you look down inside here, you can see it's got that flat spot which actually makes it a D, not a whole circle. You're going to line that flat spot up with the corresponding flat spot on the switch knob, and give it a push right there. You're going to verify the operation of your switch. You're going to perform the same operation for your four wheel drive switch. It's located over here. Take and slip that guy on; just like so, and work it through its course of action. From here, we're going to go ahead, and depress the brake, and shift the vehicle up into park. You were inside the dashboard, so you're going to want to verify that the needle indicates the appropriate point for your shift. It is possible for that small wire to have become disconnected during service. Before you're all done, you're going to want to make sure that the shift indicator operates correctly. From there, I'm going to step to the front of the vehicle, and reconnect our electronic system by hooking up the negative battery cable. I'm going to go ahead, and do that right now. I have my negative battery terminal here. I'm going to take, and slip it on to the negative post of the battery. As you can see, we have some electrical function. I'm going to go ahead and tighten the bolt down; just to the point that the battery terminal ceases to spin. If you can see, it will turn right there, and right there. From here, I'm going to go to the back of the vehicle, and remove the wheel chock from behind the tire. Now remember, we blocked the wheel, so we could shift it into gear, and keep the vehicle from rolling away. I'm going to remove that chock. Now, if your vehicle is rolled back onto the chock; as this one has, you can get a great mechanical advantage by just turning the tire like so. You can see how easily I move the whole vehicle. I'm just going to roll it forward, slip our chock out, and let it roll back into park. That is the proper service procedure for reinstalling your dash switch knobs, hooking your battery terminal back up, putting it in park, and removing your wheel chock."