Dash illumination on S2

[jim290s]

Hi all,

I'm a few months into ownership of my first S2 now, and so far, so good. The other day I ended up driving home in the dark for the first time and noticed that I had no idea how fast I was going, and more importantly - how much fuel was left!
Seems none of the lights on my dash are working, but all of the dials and instruments are.

I found the fuse box yesterday and checked every fuse, but couldn't see a dead one. Is there a diagram of an S2 fuse box anywhere which I could use to check which fuse is supposed to be for the dash illumination?
Can anyone suggest the next best place to check as i'm not sure if this is a common fault? How many bulbs illuminate the dash in total? Am I missing any other obvious checks before I have to start taking the entire dash apart?
Taa, Jim

[tvrgit]

Erm... you do know that there is a switch that switches the instrument illumination on and off, yes? I would start by checking to see if there is power into there.

[Deeman]

Agree - there is a rotary switch usually, that turns them on and off. on The V8 its to the right of the steering wheel below the dash. On an S2 you'll find the instruments will nicely reflect off your windscreen at night too!

[phillpot]

If you have this style of dash it should be No. 9

Off - Dim - Dimmer !

[glenrobbo]

Deeman said:

Agree - there is a rotary switch usually, that turns them on and off. on The V8 its to the right of the steering wheel below the dash. On an S2 you'll find the instruments will nicely reflect off your windscreen at night too!

Top Tip No.46.

I found the "head up display" on my S1 at night rather distracting, so I fashioned a simple half kidney-shaped shield that fits between the top of the dash and the coaming. Works a treat,
I should have been awarded a Blue Peter badge really.

Jim,
I'm surprised nobody has thus far answered one of your original questions about the fuse identification diagram.
If I get a little time later, I'll dig out my 'Bible' & do a screen grab
If you haven't got you the driver's handbook for your S2, I would recommend that you get hold of a copy.
The TVR S Series by Steve Heath.
2nd Edition is best. Out of print at the moment, but they come up now & again on fleabay ..

Edited by glenrobbo on Monday 30th June 09:35

[jwigglesworth]

glenrobbo said:

Jim,
I'm surprised nobody has thus far answered one of your original questions about the fuse identification diagram.
If I get a little time later, I'll dig out my 'Bible' & do a screen grab
If you haven't got you the driver's handbook for your S2, I would recommend that you get hold of a copy.
The TVR S Series by Steve Heath.
2nd Edition is best. Out of print at the moment, but they come up now & again on fleabay ..

Edited by glenrobbo on Monday 30th June 09:35

Jim, if you haven't got a driver's handbook let me know as I have got a copy buried somewhere and will happily post it to you.

Cheers,
Jeremy

[glenrobbo]

As promised....



HTH,
Glen

[v8s4me]

glenrobbo said:

... so I fashioned a simple half kidney-shaped shield that fits between the top of the dash and the coaming. Works a treat,
I should have been awarded a Blue Peter badge really.

Is it better than TurboTony's satnav cowling?



Gold Blue Peter badge I think

[glenrobbo]

v8s4me said:

Is it better than TurboTony's satnav cowling?



Gold Blue Peter badge I think

It's nearly as good as a Pringles expansion tank Joe

[jim290s]

Thanks all for the information! I've just got the car back after getting the wheels refurbished (I'll post a thread with pics later on) and it turns out I was just being a numpty. The dash illumination all works fine with the rotary switch - I just didn't expect them to be separated from the headlamp circuit. I suppose it's just a strange TVRism?

Glen - thanks for the fuse diagram. I'll be looking out for the 'Bible'

jwigglesworth - Yes I would be interested, how much are you after?

[jwigglesworth]

jim290s said:

Thanks all for the information! I've just got the car back after getting the wheels refurbished (I'll post a thread with pics later on) and it turns out I was just being a numpty. The dash illumination all works fine with the rotary switch - I just didn't expect them to be separated from the headlamp circuit. I suppose it's just a strange TVRism?


jwigglesworth - Yes I would be interested, how much are you after?

Morning Jim, no monies required-just let me have your address & I shall post it to you.
Jeremy

[greymrj]

Just an additional tip, the dash illumination, particularly to the speedo/revcounter, can reflect badly onto the screen as Glenrobbo has pointed out. It is possible to replace those bulbs with amber (or blue or green) bulbs. Apparently blue has been shown to be the least distracting but I have found the amber bulb definitely helped.
If I prefer the amber to the blue does that mean I cannot have a badge at all?

[S2Mike]

Curiously you may find the rotary instrument light switch has 3 positions,"Off" "On" and the 3rd position which is :
"Off plus dipped beam headlamps wont work"

After a lot of checking and cursing I found this out !!