1967 Caprice front parking light don't work

Having some issues with my front parking lights, they are dead. Everything else works but not them. Could it be the headlight switch circuit breaker?

 

If the rear lights work, it's not a fuse (the headlights have the circuit breaker in the switch). Likely, since it's almost my age, there's a problem in the wiring from the switch through the bulkhead connector to the front end of the under hood harness. You need to check the bulbs (do the turn signals flash up front?) and the grounds at each corner, especially if the bodywork has rust damage. Then, if the bulbs are good and the grounds are clean and tight, you need to take a 12 volt test light and, with a wiring diagram, start probing for power in the wire that feeds the front markers.

 

If you have 12V to the parking lights, it is usually a grounding issue, I have had many 60's and 70's GM products that the original sockets start to wear or corrode and cause bad grounds. All the other lights work. I even had a 69 GTO that the tail light grounds were so bad I only had FRONT Brake Lights!!! No rear brake lights. I noticed that one day when I pulled into a dark garage!

 

Do the bumper mounted parking lights work or do just the fender mounted parking lights work are are both out?

 

Stupid question: do they work when you have the headlight switch on the first position and not on the second (headlights fully on)? Because if so, that's how they worked back then (no parking lights on with headlights on).

 

Interesting. I was going to flag that play, but I did some on-line research and found that marker/parking lamps and retroreflectors are covered by FMVSS 108, originally enacted 1 January 1968, and amended two years later. Sonofagun, I've seen older cars without parking lights on, but I thought they had blown a fuse!

 

Lots of vehicles are that way. No need for parking lites when not parked.

I don't believe on newer cars they are called parking lites or parking brake. Please check your on board monitor and Wi-Fi for more information. Or go directly to your Blue Tooth device next to the auto hill climb brake button.

 

On most newer cars, they double as running lights. That's why they stay on when the headlights come on. But I was gonna call bull because I remember Grandma and Grandpa Ring's '66 Delta 88 having all the lights lit when the headlights were on.

 

The only other ones in my childhood would be our '66 Bug Cabrio, our '66 Galaxie 500 and our '59 Chebby 4-door Dad bought for $55 when we moved to Western Washington after he got back from Viet Nam. But of the 3, I can only remember the VW having the running lights on when the headlights were on, as well as having separate turn signals (amber section of the top of the tail light) and back-up lights, mounted to the bumper. The other two I just cannot remember.

 

Now that you mention it, my 67 Lemans Parking lights also would go out with the head lights on. I forgot about that feature in GM Cars, I think 68 was the last year of that feature

 

I think '67 was the last year, my '68 GTO has wrap around front markers that act as the side markers and they're on with the headlights. I think everything after 1/1/68 they did that even with side markers, the feds wanted the park/driving lights on in case a headlight went out so a car didn't look like motorcycle headed for you in the dark.

 

Sorry, but your memory is now 0 for 2.

I just bought a 1967 Delta 88, and the parking lights are NOT on with the headlights. Same for the 66 Olds 442 that I own. Both of these cars take the same headlight switch. 1968-newer Oldsmobiles that have the front park lights on with the headlights use a different headlight switch (and I own a bunch of those also, as well as all the factory manuals and wiring diagrams).

 

No, Joe, I had corrected myself earlier in the thread. I also admitted I could not remember if Grandpa's Delta 88 or our Galaxie sedan had running lights on. But reading about FMVSS 108 was an eye-opener.

 

It's why I said I was going to call BS, but did the research, leading to the Wiki page on FMVSS 108.