Tail lights work but why don't license plate lights?

Wire harness in trunk. : Toyota Camry Common Electrical ...

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Ground wire coonection for tail light Camry 1999. All the lights ( license plate, tail,reverse) that are connected to the trunk are not working.... 1999 Toyota Camry.
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the license light uses the same fuse as the tail lights. if you have not license light then it may be the bulb or a bad wire for the light from where it branches of the tail light wire.

1. Disconnect the tail/back up lamp harness connector from the from the body wiring harness.
2. Remove the tail/back up lamp assembly from the rear compartment lid.
3. While supporting the tail/back up lamp assembly, unplug the tail/back up lamp harness grommet from the rear compartment lid and remove the tail/back up lamp from the vehicle.
4. Remove the license plate lamp bulb from the lamp housing.

its for the lights mostly..left right tail, brake, backup, license plate..you have brown, yellow, and white, and two shades of green mostly..brown is running(tail/license plate) wire..yellow is left brake, /turn light gren is right side and last wire is reverse..(some may be wrong but its close)..
oh and fuel tank.. sender../pump..not sure of the colors there..I think purple or black..

These are the diagrams basically from the headlamp switch going back to the license plate lamps. The main splice after the headlamp switch going back is in the main harness near the warning chime module. If you need a larger picture or the entire outside lighting wiring, feel free to email me at [email protected] with all your vehicle information. Yes it is that simple by just splicing into the main rear light wiring at the brown wire. Hope this is what you were looking for.....

The tail lights and dash lights are on two different circuits only related by the headlight switch. I would look for a problem there.

Sounds like either your wiring from the Light switch is bad or the Light switch itself is bad. Check with your Owners manual to see if the "Parking lights" have a separate fuse.

Your tail and License plate lights would light with either the Headlights or the "Parking" light selected at the switch as would the front parking lights. If all lights except the headlights are out, your problem is closer to the light switch than at the mounting points of each Parking light or License plate light.

This is one case where you will not know if a dead wire off of the switch is dead because of a bad switch or a bad wire. You would have to detach the harness at the switch, test the wire bundle or jump the switch with power to see how it distributes power through the Harness. It will take a lot of time to rule out the switch. It may be cheaper to replace the switch and then work from there.

Oh boy, Chevy uses 3 important wires to make up their tail light harness. Brown is used for your parking lights and yellow and green are your signal and brake light wires, yellow one side, green the other. You have some seriously crossed wires. Start with tracing the lic plate lite since that works. Make sure it leads into your main parking lights and the ground wires from these tail lites aren't cut. The lic place lite will work with just power because the body of the lite is grounded with the bumper. Then make sure that there is power to the signal wires. You can do this with a test light and the signal light switched on. You don't need anyone to step on the brakes since it's the same signal, only interepted. Most importantly, Remove the tail lites and check grounds!! Good luck

Sounds like you may have a wiring issue. I would cut the wires at the tag lamps, leaving enough to splice in new ones. Then pull one of your tail light assemblies out and, using a test light which is available from most parts stores for $5-10, figure out which wire is hot with the parking lights on. Splice a wire from there to your tag lamp socket. Then splice the other wire to the ground circuit at the tail lamp or find a good ground to wrap it around somewhere else (usually just about anything metal). Just find a bolt somewhere, back it out a bit and stick some of the stripped wire behind it at tighten it back up.

REMOVAL PROCEDURE

1. Disconnect the tail/back up lamp harness connector from the from the body wiring harness.
2. Remove the tail/back up lamp assembly from the rear compartment lid.
3. While supporting the tail/back up lamp assembly, unplug the tail/back up lamp harness grommet from the rear compartment lid and remove tail/back up lamp from the vehicle.
4. Remove the license plate lamp bulb from the lamp housing.

INSTALLATION PROCEDURE

1. Install the license plate bulb into the lamp housing.
2. While supporting the tail/back up lamp assembly, install the tail/back up lamp harness grommet to the rear compartment lid and install the tail/back up lamp. NOTE: Refer to Fastener Notice in Service Precautions.
3. Install the tail/back up lamp fasteners to the tail/back up lamp studs. Tighten Tighten the tail/back up lamp fasteners to 6 N.m (53 lb in) .
4. Connect the tail/back up lamp electrical connector.
5. Connect the tail/back up lamp harness connector and clip the connector to the metal edge of the rear compartment lid.