1982 CHEVROLET CAMARO bulb

GM – CAMARO 1982-1992 – Repair Guide (Checked by WxMax) 126
CHASSIS ELECTRICAL

UNDERSTANDING AND TROUBLESHOOTING ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS

BASIC ELECTRICAL THEORY
For any 12 volt, negative ground, electrical system to operate, the electricity
must travel in a complete circuit. This simply means that current (power) from
the positive (+) terminal of the battery must eventually return to the negative (—
) terminal of the battery. Along the way, this current will travel through wires,
fuses, switches and components. If, for any reason, the flow of current through
the circuit is interrupted, the component f ed by that circuit will cease to function
properly.
Perhaps the easiest way to visualize a circ uit is to think of connecting a light
bulb (with two wires attac hed to it) to the battery - one wire attached to the
negative (—) terminal of the battery and the other wire to the positive (+)
terminal. With the two wires touching the battery terminals, the circuit would be
complete and the light bulb would illuminat e. Electricity would follow a path from
the battery to the bulb and back to the bat tery. It's easy to see that with longer
wires on our light bulb, it could be mounted anywhere. Further, one wire could
be fitted with a switch so that t he light could be turned on and off.

Fig. 1: This example illu strates a simple circuit. Wh en the switch is closed,
power from the positive (+) battery te rminal flows through the fuse and the
switch, and then to the light bulb. The light illuminates and the circuit is
completed through the ground wire back to the negative (—) battery terminal. In
reality, the two ground point s shown in the illustration are attached to the metal
frame of the vehicle, which comple tes the circuit back to the battery

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The normal automotive circuit differs from
this simple example in two ways.
First, instead of having a return wire from the bulb to the battery, the current
travels through the frame of the vehicle. Since the negative (—) battery cable is
attached to the frame (made of electrically conductive metal), the frame of the
vehicle can serve as a ground wire to complete the circuit. Secondly, mo\
st
automotive circuits contain multiple components which receive power from a
single circuit. This lessens the amount of wire needed to power components on
the vehicle.
HOW DOES ELECTRICITY WORK: THE WATER ANALOGY
Electricity is the flow of electrons - t he subatomic particles that constitute the
outer shell of an atom. Elec trons spin in an orbit around the center core of an
atom. The center core is comprised of protons (positive charge) and neutrons
(neutral charge). Electrons have a negativ e charge and balance out the positive
charge of the protons. When an outside forc e causes the number of electrons to
unbalance the charge of the protons, the electrons will split off the atom and
look for another atom to balance out. If th is imbalance is kept up, electrons will
continue to move and an elec trical flow will exist.
Many people have been taught electrical th eory using an analogy with water. In
a comparison with water flowing through a pipe, the electrons would be the
water and the wire is the pipe.
The flow of electricity can be measur ed much like the flow of water through a
pipe. The unit of measur ement used is amperes, frequently abbreviated as
amps (a). You can compare amperage to th e volume of water flowing through a
pipe. When connected to a circuit, an ammeter will measure the actual amount
of current flowing through the circuit. W hen relatively few electrons flow through
a circuit, the amperage is low. When many electrons flow, the amperage is high.
Water pressure is measured in units su ch as pounds per square inch (psi); The
electrical pressure is m easured in units called volts (v). When a voltmeter is
connected to a circuit, it is meas uring the electrical pressure.
The actual flow of electricity depends not only on voltage and amperage, but
also on the resistance of the circuit. T he higher the resistance, the higher the
force necessary to push the current through the circuit. The standard unit for
measuring resistance is an ohm. Resistance in a circuit varies depending on the
amount and type of components used in t he circuit. The main factors which
determine resistance are:
• Material - some materials have more resistance than others. Those with
high resistance are said to be insulato rs. Rubber materials (or rubber-like
plastics) are some of the most common insulators used in vehicles as
they have a very high resistance to electricity. Very low resistance
materials are said to be conductors. Copper wire is among the best
conductors. Silver is actually a super ior conductor to copper and is used
in some relay contacts, but its hi gh cost prohibits its use as common
wiring. Most automotive wir ing is made of copper.

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Headlight adjustment may
be temporarily made using a wall, as described
below, or on the rear of another vehicle. When adjust ed, the lights should not
glare in oncoming car or truck windshi elds, nor should they illuminate the
passenger compartment of vehi cles driving in front of you. These adjustments
are rough and should always be fine-t uned by a repair shop which is equipped
with headlight aiming t ools. Improper adjustments may be both dangerous and
illegal.
For most of the vehicles covered by th is information, horizontal and vertical
aiming of each sealed beam unit is provided by two adjusting screws which
move the retaining ring and adjusting plat e against the tension of a coil spring.
There is no adjustment for focus; this is done during headlight manufacturing.
Because the composite headlight asse mbly is bolted into position, no
adjustment should be necessary or possibl e. Some applications, however, may
be bolted to an adjuster plate or may be retained by adjusting screws. If so,
follow this procedure when adjusti ng the lights, BUT always have the
adjustment checked by a reputable shop.
Before removing the headlight bulb or di sturbing the headlamp in any way, note
the current settings in order to ease headlight adjustment upon reassembly. If
the high or low beam setting of the old la mp still works, this can be done using
the wall of a garage or a building:
1. Park the vehicle on a level su rface, with the fuel tank about
1/2 full and
with the vehicle empty of all extra cargo (unless normally carried). The
vehicle should be facing a wall whic h is no less than 6 feet (1.8m) high
and 12 feet (3.7m) wide. The front of the vehicle should be about 25 feet
from the wall.

Fig. 5: Location of the aiming screw s on most vehicles with sealed beam
headlights

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SIGNAL AND MARKER LIGHTS
REMOVAL & INSTALLATION
FRONT PARKING AND TURN SIGNAL
Reach around to the back side of t
he light assembly and unlock the bulb
holder/wiring harness by grasping the bul b holder/wiring harness and turning it
counterclockwise approximately
1/4 turn.
1. Remove the bulb holder/wiring harness assembly.
2. To install, insert the bulb holder /wiring harness assembly into the light
assembly and locking the holder by turning it
1/4 turn clockwise.

Fig. 1: Typical front turn signal lamp mounting
FRONT MARKER LIGHTS 1. Remove the six screws from the filler panel under the front fascia.
2. Remove the filler panel.
3. Remove the socket from the lamp assembly.
4. Remove the bulb from the socket.
5. Installation is the reverse of removal.

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Fig. 4: Once the filler panel has been remo ved, the front side marker light can
be replaced
REAR MARKER LIGHTS 1. Open the hatch.
2. Remove the fasteners from the rear trim panel.
3. Remove the trim panel.
4. Remove the socket from the lens assembly.
5. Remove the bulb from the socket.
6. Installation is the reverse of removal.

Fig. 5: Exploded view of the side marker lamp assembly
REAR TURN SIGNAL, BRAKE AND PARKING LIGHTS

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1. Remove the rear com
partment trim assembly.
2. Remove the plastic wing nuts from the tail lamp assembly.
3. Remove the tail lamp assembly.
4. Remove the socket(s) from the assembly.
5. Remove the bulb(s) from the socket(s).
6. Installation is the reverse of removal.

Fig. 6: Remove the tail light bezel attaching screws

Fig. 7: There are attaching scr ews hidden in the rear corner

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Fig. 8: Push the thumb-lock and turn the lamp assembly to remove
HIGH MOUNT BRAKE LIGHT
1986 MODELS 1. Remove the screw securing the cover.
2. Remove the cover.
3. Remove the bulb.
4. Installation is the reverse of removal.

Fig. 9: Third brake light on 1986 models
1987-1990 MODELS 1. Remove the screws securing the lens assembly.
2. Remove the bulb from the lamp assembly.
3. Installation is the reverse of removal.
1991-1992 MODELS 1. Remove the two screws fr om the lamp assembly.
2. Remove the lamp assembly from the bracket.
3. Remove the bulb from the socket.

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DOME LIGHT
1. Remove the courtesy lamp fuse.
2. Remove the lens by gently squeezing the edge and pulling down.
3. Remove the bulb.
4. Installation is the reverse of removal.

Fig. 11: Dome lamp assembly