HOW TO... Replacing a Police Dome Light After 14 Years

A familiar accessory to anyone who has been around a police car is the snazzy dome light used in place of the vehicle's stock light.  It is known by many names... sun, ticket light, cop dome light, work light, etc.  The latest ones are LED and have both red and white lights.  But Vic 3.0 has the old clear-bulb version.  Wellp, somehow a crack had developed in the light's white plastic cover.   Earlier this month, I tried to push the crack in a bit, to make it look better, and instead I ended up with an actual hole.

Such a flaw is not tolerable.

So online I went, expecting to find tons of those plastic covers on Ebay.  I was surprised NOT to find many at all!  A few listings were what looked like cheap bulk lots.  I did manage to find a seller with NOS GM-bagged ones.  So they got my money, and I got the part.

While trying to pry the old cover off, it basically disintegrated in my hand.  On went the new one, and now things look a bit nicer.  

If YOU need to replace your dome cover, do a search for either "Signal Stat 77-570" or GM part number 10160922.  More digging will probably turn up a Ford part number as well.  

129,000 Mile Update... AAAW NUTS!!!

Two days ago, I was out and about doing errands, and noticed something about Vic 3.0 didn't look right.  Upon closer examination, I found some roasted peanuts inside the passenger side marker light!  Either a chipmunk or possibly a mouse must have found the hole left by the PD when they took out the strobe units, and started hoarding their nuts in there. 

One drawback to feeding the local wildlife...

When I got home, I took out both units, removed the nuts, and taped up the holes.  After cleaning off the rubber gaskets and waxing the paint they press onto, I reinstalled them and hopefully that will be the first and last time it happens.  Vic 2.0 drove around for years with the same holes and never got used as a "larder". 

While I was under the hood, I sprayed WD-40 into some holes I found in an effort to rust-proof the front fenders.  Will it work?  I doubt it, but it made me feel like maybe I can stave off fender rust for at least one day. 

Keep a light burning in the window...

So, I'm out with some railfans, waiting on a Pan Am freight, enjoying a record warm March day.  The train passes, and we start walking back to our cars.  I notice my headlights are on.  No clue why as the sun is shining.  I start thinking... Did I accidentally hit the light switch or something?  OR, did my boyfriend show up while our view across the tracks were blocked, unlock the car, and switch on my lights to mess with me?

I unlock the car, and the light switch is off.  Turning it turns on the marker lights and taillights like normal.  The high beams didn't work.  I popped the hood, looked around, and didn't see anything obvious.  I even switched on the AUX power to see if Todd's wig-wags and flashers were the problem.  (No, he hasn't removed his equipment yet)

Fast forward... I am driving home because I can't leave the car parked with the headlights on for an hour or two.  As I stop at traffic lights, I play with switches and stuff and look at the lights reflecting in the cars in front of me.  Things just won't go off.

Pull into driveway, and look at time.  Vic 1.0 had a feature where things like interior lights would shut off if accidently left on by the driver.  I forgot the amount of time it would take.  So I parked the car and looked back in a 1/2 hour.  STILL ON.

A search for correct socket ensued, and the battery was disconnected.  

A little while later, Todd comes over and we poke around under the hood a bit.  Pulling fuses doesn't turn the lights off.  We mess with the battery cable and listen for things turning on and off, etc etc etc.  

So... long and short of the story is the culprit was a connector Todd had used to wire up all his lighting.  One metal bit was brown and burny.  Being electrically illiterate, I guess that was causing a short, thus turning on the headlights alone.  And I think even on high-beams!

We unplugged that connector, hooked up the battery again, and everything was back to normal.

One potentially annoying and pricey fix avoided... THANKFULLY!!

Vic... Getting Old...

It’s been a while since I posted an update on Vic.  I had to replace 2 of the Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice snow tires due to wear and cracks starting to show on the sidewalls.  They were replaced with 2 used ones that I like to call “generic snow tires”.  My boyfriend Todd had them hanging around and were still good, so on they went.  I am not big on having mixed tires on a car.  So far, it seems they have less dry/sand grip than the Goodyears, which are on the front.  Haven’t driven in real snow yet.

The rust situation hasn’t improved much.  It KILLS me driving around with rusty fenders and quarters…

I have had an intermittent issue with the ABS acting up in wet weather.  Slowing to a stop, even a controlled stop, would set the ABS off and make it unsafe to stop due to the added distance ABS causes.  When the problem started up, I would pull the ABS fuse under the hood.  After a few days, or when it was dry outside again, I’d put the fuse back in.  Thing is, it didn’t ALWAYS do it!  My mechanic said it could be a wheel sensor or under-hood ABS component.  Knowing my financial situation, he said to just keep taking the fuse out. 

I am starting to wonder if the actual issue is a wire somewhere, because it hasn’t happened since we swapped on the winter tires.  Time will tell…

Another issue has been the speedometer.  Sometimes the speed stays at “0”.  If I jiggle the key, it will try to work.  Another issue that only happens now and then.  Worn ignition lock?  Is it the chip in the key?

Over the holidays, Vic didn’t move.  When I finally took it for a ride, it was bucking a lot.  I chalked it up to moisture in the gas tank.  Put in some dry gas, and over time it got better.  I had a new bottle of Stabil that was supposed to go into my Javelin, and decided to add a little to the Ford as a precaution.  So far, so good.  Todd’s ’06 was also running rough, and we now wonder what garbage is being put into the gas around here lately…