PT Cruiser lighting

Joined
May 16, 2010
Messages
159
Location
Southern Illinois
All,
My wife recently purchased an 2005 PT Cruiser with 76K miles. Tonight when she turned on her headlights, the headlights came on but no rear taillights/brake lights (except high rear 3rd light) or turn signals. Any starting points would be appreciated. That’s in advance
 
...recently purchased an 2005 PT Cruiser..
Sorry to hear that... To each his own, America, Freedom of choice etc. LOL. ~2003 we bought one new, it was hot stuff at the time, kind of cool/kitchy. LOADED, good for a family of 4 and when the rear seats were [easily] removed would hold a very large amount of volume. Surprisingly, it was pretty darn quick (Abet violentish with LOTs torque steer). Spouse drove it ~10 years then passed it down to 2 daughters. It was mercy totaled around the 15 year / 200k mark after a hotel caught fire and melted the front.

Anyway:
- Replaced all bulbs a few times. IIRC the rears were accessed thru the inside and the compartment was full of road dust. I want to say at least once socket was badly corroded. Took some TLC + Deoxit to get it working, but not too bad. I would be suspect of some corroded connections.


- Suggest set aside some funds for odd not cheap things that failed more than once: Motor Mounts, suspension parts, p/s pump. Chewed thru brakes like crazy, but maybe that was operator error IDK.

- After about year 6 the a/c became a real pain, dumped thousands into it over the next 9 years and never really worked great or lasted.

- Does yours have the fancy chrome mags? Ours did and weird problem: it was actually a chrome facade welded on a plain steel wheel... They would corrode at the (Hidden) welds and sloooowly leak a few lbs a week. Only fix was replacement... Went thru 5-6 wheels in 15 years this way.
 
Yes, first start by replacing both bulbs and then test to see if they work. If so, replace any other bulbs in those lenses as long as everything is all apart for easy access.

Quick story...
A driver on the road tells my buddy that his rear brake lights don't work. So my buddy asks me for help.
He says; "How can both lights be burnt out"? He's thinking that there is an electrical problem.
I tell him; "One bulb must have burnt out and no body made any mention of it. How many times have you ever told someone that only one light is working on their vehicle"? Now that both bulbs are burnt out, drivers on the road are letting you know.
"Hey buddy, you don't have any brake lights!
I replaced both bulbs.
 
Bad ground. You will likely find a convoluted harness that eventually ends in a self-tapping screw that's gone bad. Test the reverse lamps and rear wiper to get a better feel for what's up.

For testing or a permanent fix, you can find a ground wire in the harness, Tee in another wire to another ground and see if it all comes back.
 
Sorry to hear that... To each his own, America, Freedom of choice etc. LOL. ~2003 we bought one new, it was hot stuff at the time, kind of cool/kitchy. LOADED, good for a family of 4 and when the rear seats were [easily] removed would hold a very large amount of volume. Surprisingly, it was pretty darn quick (Abet violentish with LOTs torque steer). Spouse drove it ~10 years then passed it down to 2 daughters. It was mercy totaled around the 15 year / 200k mark after a hotel caught fire and melted the front.

Anyway:
- Replaced all bulbs a few times. IIRC the rears were accessed thru the inside and the compartment was full of road dust. I want to say at least once socket was badly corroded. Took some TLC + Deoxit to get it working, but not too bad. I would be suspect of some corroded connections.


- Suggest set aside some funds for odd not cheap things that failed more than once: Motor Mounts, suspension parts, p/s pump. Chewed thru brakes like crazy, but maybe that was operator error IDK.

- After about year 6 the a/c became a real pain, dumped thousands into it over the next 9 years and never really worked great or lasted.

- Does yours have the fancy chrome mags? Ours did and weird problem: it was actually a chrome facade welded on a plain steel wheel... They would corrode at the (Hidden) welds and sloooowly leak a few lbs a week. Only fix was replacement... Went thru 5-6 wheels in 15 years this way.
Ours has after-market wheels on it. It was a one owner and in great conjunction. My wife loves them so I told her it’s your car, drive what you want…lol.
 
My wife misses the one she had. I don't miss the maintenance/repairs.

BTW, have these stashed away in my workshop:

PTwheelsinside.webp
 
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