Mystery Wires and Plug

[TheBMan]

Pictures attached. Dash work on my 72 Monte Carlo continues. Found this wire and plug that I need info on.

The first picture is looking down from the top, just above the ashtray, lighter and HVAC controls. The second picture is looking up, into the ashtray housing.

The black wire with the light socket is a single wire that comes out of the top of the ashtray. There is no power source. Looking at the other end of the wire where it comes through the top of the ashtray housing, it looks like something is supposed to continue from that wire but perhaps has been cut off?

Any ideas what the plug is for?

For reference, the car has the ZJ9 Lighting Group. There are courtesy lights in the glove box and at both sides of the dash at the bottom, all of which work. The ashtray light is a mystery.

 

 

[jft69z]

It's a fiber optic cable. It uses the light from that bulb/socket to bring light to the ashtray. Turn the lights on and look in the ashtray, you should see light. It's not very bright, but you will see it.

[TheBMan]

12 minutes ago, jft69z said:

It's a fiber optic cable. It uses the light from that bulb/socket to bring light to the ashtray. Turn the lights on and look in the ashtray, you should see light. It's not very bright, but you will see it.

@jft69z Ah! Makes sense! Fiber optics in the 70s. Who knew?! But where does the light socket plug in? Obviously it's a twist-in and getting its power from the point of attachment but I have no unused sockets on my dash cluster and see no other light socket holes.

[jft69z]

It goes on the gauge pod, one of the ones that light up the right side I think. I'll dig up the page from the assembly manual, and post it in a bit.

EDIT: Here's a .jpg and a .pdf file of the light and how it attaches to the gauges. Look at the one on the Left (13857 Only, which is the Monte Carlo platform).

Ash tray light.pdf

[TheBMan]

1 hour ago, jft69z said:

It goes on the gauge pod, one of the ones that light up the right side I think. I'll dig up the page from the assembly manual, and post it in a bit.

EDIT: Here's a .jpg and a .pdf file of the light and how it attaches to the gauges. Look at the one on the Left (13857 Only, which is the Monte Carlo platform).

Ash tray light.pdf 782.09 kB · 0 downloads

Ah, so it will replace one of the existing clock bulbs in the cluster. Someone has clearly been in this dash before, based on some of the things I'm finding.

I can't thank you enough for this information. I've been taking a lot of pictures and will document a lot of the things I've done when I have it all back together and working, probably a week or two at most.

Thanks again @jft69z!!

[jft69z]

You're welcome!