My 1997 LR Discovery is experiencing some electrical issues. The side marker and tail lights have suddenly stopped working. I checked the fuses and all seem to be in good shape. I'm not sure if it's the switch, a relay or something else. Any ideas??

 

I would start by checking with a voltmeter to see if you have 12 volts present at the bulbs when you should, also look at the ground connections for corrosion. My 97 DI had corrosion on a variety of electrical grounds.

Check the RAVE cd for the schematic and work your way thru the circuit with a voltmeter to determine what/where trhe problem is.

 

I did some more research on this problem. I had also discovered that not only did the side marker lights and tail lights stop working, but also the day-time running lights and the chime (the one that indicates that the lights have been left on after the ignition is turned off) stopped working as well. My issue with this was that the head lights still worked perfectly fine. I had no idea what to look for.

I contacted a few people and this is what I was told to look at: Pull the fuses from F2 and F8, turn the light switch on and use a test light on the empty fuse slots to see if there was any power running to them. If there was no current, the light switch would need to be replaced.

I bought a new switch and was unsure if I need to remove the steering wheel. I took the cover off the steering column. I found that if I turned the steer wheel 90 degrees that I was able to access the 2 screws that held the switch in place. After I replaced the switch I turned the lights on and all the lighting problems and been solved.

 

THANK YOU for reporting back on what the cure was!!!!

 

I love it when problems are solved

 

If anyone out there is as cheap as me, the switch is cleanable.

Same problem - disassembled & cleaned switch

luck,greg

 

Same problem here caused by the trailer lights drawing too much amperage.
It's the springs that push on the sliders: they are weak!
Clean the contacts, lube with vaseline and stretch the springs by 1 to 2 mm (whatever that's in inches).
Also, when suspecting the switch, the telltale sign is in the connector: if it's yellowed, ok. If it's orange: too much heat at the contacts so the lube cakes up and causes sparks that weld the contacts together.
I now use a trailer light conversion (cheater) that uses an additional power supply (12V) and so doesn't taxi the light switch

SD