I have my grandpa's 1997 Ford F150 xl 4.6. He is the only owner, bought it new right off the lot.

I inherited the truck, and the instrument cluster does not illuminate. I used a test light and checked every fuse--under the hood and under the steering wheel. Every fuse is good. I have a multimeter too, but dont know exactly what to use it for in this situation. Also, the dimmer switch and air condition controls do not light up. But the door ajar and others light up when I crank it up.

I do not know where to begin to fix this, so any help or advice would help a ton.

 

How did you check the fuses if you didn't use a meter?

If you don't have an owner's manual, download it, look at the fuse charts:

http://www.fordservicecontent.com/Fo.../97f12og1e.pdf

Try adjusting the dimmer switch, it may be dirty or turned all the way down.

 

I forgot to add one of my buddies helped me figure out how to use the multimeter (sorry lol im new to this). Every fuse had the right number of volts and checked for continuity. Any advice where to go from there?

 

Check the dimmer switch?

 

I would recommend checking the dimmer switch too.