2000 XJ 4.0 2WD Auto: Dash Illumination: Fuse 6 keeps popping. Short in harness?

Hey Forum,

This is my first post and very excited to participate in the forums. Thanks!

Vehicle: 2000 XJ Cherokee Sport, 4Dr, 2WD, 4.0, Auto.

On to the problem..My dash illumination is out and whenever I switch on the headlights(which to my knowledge turns on the dash illumination, the 5 amp fuse #6 pops. This includes HVAC control illumination also. BUT, turn signals, engine light, high beam, other dash indicators work. I just can't read the speed/rpm/temp/oil etc in the dark.

Here's what I've done so far: rebuilt the headlight switch/dimmer module and cleaned it up. Dimmer rheostat works on the bench and gets good contact as well as tested with multimeter.

Reinstalled. Fuse still pops when I switch the lights on. Next, I traced Fuse 6 to a light brown wire and orange wire. When the lights go on, the light brown wire goes hot to 13v, through the fuse and out to the orange wire. There are several instances of the orange wire behind the dash...One goes into the HVAC and there was another one free one with the end taped off(previous owner installed aftermarket radio)..Found a few more as well.

Also, I was reading elsewhere that the black wire with yellow stripe is the illumination. I see this wire also behind the radio and also going into the dimmer and to the light brown wire which goes to Fuse 6.

So, where I'm confused, the orange wire is shorted to ground somewhere and the black wire with yellow stripe is also shorted to ground. My head is spinning in circles and I'm trying to figure out the current flow of the wiring and see what I can replace/cut or search for to resolve this problem.

I'm in the process of pulling the whole front interior dash out to see what's going on, but the wires I'm searching for seems to be all wrapped up in the stock harness and hard to believe that there's a short in that area.

Do these wires exist anywhere else? Any insight would be useful. Thanks for the help.

You might want to check your tail lights before ripping things apart by the dash. On my old 90 XJ, when the tail light wiring went bad, the fuse blew and also caused the dash lights to go out. I believe the system is designed that way to get your attention, so you know something is wrong before the cop pulls you over for no rear lights. However, your brake lights should still work as they are on a different circuit. Good luck!

Thanks! Taillights and all other indicators are good.

I found the problem! Somehow the bulb for the gear indicator was shorted. I pulled the bulb and viola, short is gone. I'll replace the bulb soon and post an update. I wish I checked that first, but hindsight is 20/20. The FSM wiring diagram for fuse 6 was helpful once I figured how how to read it.