Cylinder from floor - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

Smoothride · 07-16-2012, 04:23 PM

I have searced for over an hour and cant find what the cylinder on the driver side floor is for? Its on a 71 c10. I just got it and trying to figure out what everything is for. It looks kinda like a fuse and its position on the left side floor of the driver side kinda below the emergency brake?

What is it? what does it do? can it be removed?

67ChevyRedneck · 07-16-2012, 04:24 PM

You mean the Headlight Dimmer Switch???

You click it with your foot for high/low beams. Each click changes it from low to high to low to high to low etc...

Smoothride · 07-16-2012, 04:26 PM

not sure...is it on the floor?

edit: I searched that name and i think thats it...looks like it....how does it work?

TheSeeker · 07-16-2012, 05:15 PM

It works by stepping on it, waiting for it to click, then releasing. If you have ever owned a lamp with a floor switch.. Its the same thing. Its for you high beams

Smoothride · 07-16-2012, 05:21 PM

oh ok... Thanks

PanelDeland · 07-16-2012, 11:26 PM

Yer a young whipper snapper ain't ya? All dimmers used to be mounted there.They are simple and easiy replaced when need be.

**70cst** · 07-17-2012, 10:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PanelDeland

Yer a young whipper snapper ain't ya? All dimmers used to be mounted there.They are simple and easiy replaced when need be.

My thoughts

Not laughing at you but laughing with you.

But it is a fair question.

By the way when did they stop using floor dimmer swiches? I remember my Dads 65 Mercury Comet has the windshield washer switch on the floor also. Those were the days

brianthelion02 · 07-17-2012, 01:39 AM

That makes ya feel old!!!!
Posted via Mobile Device

Beetle · 07-17-2012, 03:26 AM

How old is this guy? I am 25 and I know what a dimmer switch is.

bobs409 · 07-17-2012, 06:23 AM

I think I just aged 30 years after reading this.

(no offense mean't to the poster)

oklalawnboy · 07-17-2012, 08:03 AM

Oh to be young again......

67ChevyRedneck · 07-17-2012, 08:27 AM

Wanna hear something stupid? The driving position in my 65 mustang is dang near perfect for me. My wrist reaches the steering wheel just right and I can very comfortably reach the brake/gas pedals, but for some dang reason I CAN NOT reach the dimmer switch. I have to actually scoot down in the seat and stretch my foot out, so I just drive around with the High beams on

They're not bright at all, at least until I do the headlight upgrade to it, and I'm not too short, 5'8".

Funny story. My wife had no idea what a dimmer switch was. I told her to "watch this" and I smacked my dash and the headlights magically switched from low to high. I smacked it again and they switched back. I told her to give it a try and they switched again. Kinda freaked her out. I said it was a wiring bug. What she didn't know was I was hitting the dimmer switch with my foot. I had fun with that for a few weeks...

**70cst** · 07-17-2012, 10:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 67ChevyRedneck

Wanna hear something stupid? The driving position in my 65 mustang is dang near perfect for me. My wrist reaches the steering wheel just right and I can very comfortably reach the brake/gas pedals, but for some dang reason I CAN NOT reach the dimmer switch. I have to actually scoot down in the seat and stretch my foot out, so I just drive around with the High beams on

They're not bright at all, at least until I do the headlight upgrade to it, and I'm not too short, 5'8".

Funny story. My wife had no idea what a dimmer switch was. I told her to "watch this" and I smacked my dash and the headlights magically switched from low to high. I smacked it again and they switched back. I told her to give it a try and they switched again. Kinda freaked her out. I said it was a wiring bug. What she didn't know was I was hitting the dimmer switch with my foot. I had fun with that for a few weeks...

I use to do the same with Dad's Mercury Comet except the windshield washer switch was on the floor. I would have the kids hit the dash and then the washers would start to squirt water. It really freaked them out. Boy were those the days. Thanks for the memories

Smoothride · 07-17-2012, 08:40 AM

man, I now feel old and dumb... thanks everyone...lol

Im 31 and didnt know what that was

yuccales · 07-17-2012, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smoothride

man, I now feel old and dumb... thanks everyone...lol

Im 31 and didnt know what that was

Naw, old & dumb is getting into your sisters new 2012 Honda car and the only thing I could find was the steering wheel. I looked for the radio knobs, she started laughing!

Billett · 07-17-2012, 08:43 AM

haha happens to everyone at some point. We had a guy on another forum who didn't know where his glovebox was...

geezer#99 · 07-17-2012, 09:12 AM

Some older cars had 3 switches down there. Dimmer and a switch for overdrive where side by side. The third one was actually a pump you stepped on to squirt washer fluid on your windshield.

PanelDeland · 07-17-2012, 09:20 AM

Wait until the key doesn't turn to start.There were several ways that worked,the easiest to find being a button on the dash.probably the hardest was on older GM trucks(maybe some cars) where there was a "Dimmer style'switch under the accelerator.You had to floor it to crank the engine.

KEL · 07-17-2012, 09:47 AM

my 67 Lincoln had another "dimmer switch" next to the real one.
it operated the scan on the radio

geezer#99 · 07-17-2012, 10:17 AM

I hope none of you young guys run into an Edsel with all those buttons in the centre of the steering wheel. Truely a typewriter shifter.

OJ1988 · 07-17-2012, 10:29 AM

Wow. I had no idea what he was talking about. Till someone mentioned the dimmer switch!

I was expecting to see a large hydraluc cylinder laying on the floor board.

GMC Canuck · 07-17-2012, 10:41 AM

dimmer switch on the floor and key in the dashboard, two criteria of a cool vehicle.

key on the dashboard is coming back (if you can call it a key) but the floor mounted dimmer switch is a thing of the past.

GASoline71 · 07-17-2012, 10:43 AM

To this day... when I jump in to my '06 Silverado I still tap my left foot... looking for the dimmer switch.

Then my brain slowly remembers to pull on the blinker doo-hickey switch arm thingy. It's the newest rig I've ever owned...

Gary

geezer#99 · 07-17-2012, 12:02 PM

I'll bet a bunch of you have never seen a seat that moves out to you and swivels to make it easier to get in. Steering wheel pivoted off to the right at the same time. You sat down and the seat slid back in, swung back to centre and the wheel locked back in the centre.
Any guesses at what car?

AirSpeed · 07-18-2012, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geezer#99

I'll bet a bunch of you have never seen a seat that moves out to you and swivels to make it easier to get in. Steering wheel pivoted off to the right at the same time. You sat down and the seat slid back in, swung back to centre and the wheel locked back in the centre.
Any guesses at what car?

That would be a thunderbird. Ever tried to find a vacuum leak in one of those? Everything runs off vacuum in those suckers! Must be 12 miles of vacuum lines behind the dash!
Posted via Mobile Device

07-16-2012, 04:23 PM	#1
Smoothride Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Houston, tx Posts: 100	Cylinder from floor I have searced for over an hour and cant find what the cylinder on the driver side floor is for? Its on a 71 c10. I just got it and trying to figure out what everything is for. It looks kinda like a fuse and its position on the left side floor of the driver side kinda below the emergency brake? What is it? what does it do? can it be removed?

07-16-2012, 04:24 PM	#2
67ChevyRedneck Hittin E-Z Street on Mud Tires Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 23,090	Re: Cylinder from floor You mean the Headlight Dimmer Switch??? You click it with your foot for high/low beams. Each click changes it from low to high to low to high to low etc... __________________ Jesse James 1967 C10 SWB Stepside: 350/700R4/3.73 1965 Ford Mustang: 289/T5-5spd/3.25 Trac-Loc 1968 Pontiac Firebird: Project Fire Chicken! 2015 Silverado Double Cab 5.3L Z71 2001 Jeep Wrangler Sport 4.0L 5spd 2020 Chevrolet Equinox Premium 2.0L Turbo 2011 Mustang V6 ~ Wife's ride American Born, Country by the Grace of God 1967 CST Shop Truck Rebuild! My 1967 C-10 Build Thread My Vintage Air A/C Install Project "On a Dime" Trying my hand at Home Renovation! 1965 Mustang Modifications!

07-16-2012, 04:26 PM	#3
Smoothride Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Houston, tx Posts: 100	Re: Cylinder from floor not sure...is it on the floor? edit: I searched that name and i think thats it...looks like it....how does it work?

07-16-2012, 05:15 PM	#4
TheSeeker Registered User Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Glendale, AZ Posts: 337	Re: Cylinder from floor It works by stepping on it, waiting for it to click, then releasing. If you have ever owned a lamp with a floor switch.. Its the same thing. Its for you high beams

07-16-2012, 05:21 PM	#5
Smoothride Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Houston, tx Posts: 100	Re: Cylinder from floor oh ok... Thanks

07-16-2012, 11:26 PM	#6
PanelDeland I am a Referee of life. Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Greensboro N.C. Posts: 13,992	Re: Cylinder from floor Yer a young whipper snapper ain't ya? All dimmers used to be mounted there.They are simple and easiy replaced when need be. __________________ The 47-present Chevrolet and GMC Truck Message Board Network,it's owners,moderators,members,and associates of any type should not be held responsible for my opinion. You can't fix stupid,not even with duct tape. "My appearance is due to the fact that "GOD" does punish you for having too much fun!" Barrett-Jackson has perfected alchemy,they make rust into gold! "You can lead a horse to water but you can't saddle a duck" "Cleverly disguised as a 'Responsible Adult' "Sometimes your Knight in shining armor is just a retard in tinfoil"

07-17-2012, 01:39 AM	#8
brianthelion02 Overdrive club Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: apache junction, arizona Posts: 819	Re: Cylinder from floor That makes ya feel old!!!! Posted via Mobile Device __________________ 1971 c-10 1951 3100 chevy 1970 chevy c-30 Sold!

07-17-2012, 03:26 AM	#9
Beetle Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Location: Fayetteville, NC Posts: 725	Re: Cylinder from floor How old is this guy? I am 25 and I know what a dimmer switch is. __________________ Jason TEAM C10 HOT ROD POWER TOUR 689 Short Step 68 Step Trucks Sold: 70 GMC, 72 K5 Members met: Andy4639 GCncsuHD CSGAS zicc1835 hotrod farm truck Mingrao Bhelton brenthiggins

07-17-2012, 06:23 AM	#10
bobs409 1969 Custom 30 wrecker Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Pottsville, Pa Posts: 2,611	Re: Cylinder from floor I think I just aged 30 years after reading this. (no offense mean't to the poster) __________________ Bob 63 Impala 283/PG/3.36 (under restoration) 66 Impala 327/PG/3.36 66 Chevelle SS 409/M22/3.55 69 Chevelle 307/PG/3.08 (future restoration) 69 C10 short stepside 454/TH350/3.73 69 Custom 30 tow truck 350/4 spd/4.10 (resto done, CRUISIN TIME!) 71 Cheyenne 20 fleetside 350/4 spd/4.10 71 Chevelle 6/PG/3.08 72 Chevelle 454/M21/4.10

07-17-2012, 08:03 AM	#11
oklalawnboy Registered User Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Glencoe Alabama Posts: 510	Re: Cylinder from floor Oh to be young again...... __________________ 72 Cheyenne super 10 08 3500 HD 4dr dually 12 ford flex (wifes ride) 76 Monte Carlo 83 Chevy short wide Silverado 96 Mazda Miata, 2000 Allegro Bus

07-17-2012, 08:27 AM	#12
67ChevyRedneck Hittin E-Z Street on Mud Tires Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 23,090	Re: Cylinder from floor Wanna hear something stupid? The driving position in my 65 mustang is dang near perfect for me. My wrist reaches the steering wheel just right and I can very comfortably reach the brake/gas pedals, but for some dang reason I CAN NOT reach the dimmer switch. I have to actually scoot down in the seat and stretch my foot out, so I just drive around with the High beams on They're not bright at all, at least until I do the headlight upgrade to it, and I'm not too short, 5'8". Funny story. My wife had no idea what a dimmer switch was. I told her to "watch this" and I smacked my dash and the headlights magically switched from low to high. I smacked it again and they switched back. I told her to give it a try and they switched again. Kinda freaked her out. I said it was a wiring bug. What she didn't know was I was hitting the dimmer switch with my foot. I had fun with that for a few weeks... __________________ Jesse James 1967 C10 SWB Stepside: 350/700R4/3.73 1965 Ford Mustang: 289/T5-5spd/3.25 Trac-Loc 1968 Pontiac Firebird: Project Fire Chicken! 2015 Silverado Double Cab 5.3L Z71 2001 Jeep Wrangler Sport 4.0L 5spd 2020 Chevrolet Equinox Premium 2.0L Turbo 2011 Mustang V6 ~ Wife's ride American Born, Country by the Grace of God 1967 CST Shop Truck Rebuild! My 1967 C-10 Build Thread My Vintage Air A/C Install Project "On a Dime" Trying my hand at Home Renovation! 1965 Mustang Modifications! Last edited by 67ChevyRedneck; 07-17-2012 at 08:33 AM.

07-17-2012, 08:40 AM	#14
Smoothride Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Houston, tx Posts: 100	Re: Cylinder from floor man, I now feel old and dumb... thanks everyone...lol Im 31 and didnt know what that was

07-17-2012, 08:43 AM	#16
Billett Registered User Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Pittsgrove, NJ Posts: 1,502	Re: Cylinder from floor haha happens to everyone at some point. We had a guy on another forum who didn't know where his glovebox was... __________________ Will 1968 C10 - Project Texa Go 6.0/4L80e 2003 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 2002 Ford Excursion 7.3L 2024 Toyota Sienna

07-17-2012, 09:12 AM	#17
geezer#99 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Bowser Posts: 13,731	Re: Cylinder from floor Some older cars had 3 switches down there. Dimmer and a switch for overdrive where side by side. The third one was actually a pump you stepped on to squirt washer fluid on your windshield.

07-17-2012, 09:20 AM	#18
PanelDeland I am a Referee of life. Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Greensboro N.C. Posts: 13,992	Re: Cylinder from floor Wait until the key doesn't turn to start.There were several ways that worked,the easiest to find being a button on the dash.probably the hardest was on older GM trucks(maybe some cars) where there was a "Dimmer style'switch under the accelerator.You had to floor it to crank the engine. __________________ The 47-present Chevrolet and GMC Truck Message Board Network,it's owners,moderators,members,and associates of any type should not be held responsible for my opinion. You can't fix stupid,not even with duct tape. "My appearance is due to the fact that "GOD" does punish you for having too much fun!" Barrett-Jackson has perfected alchemy,they make rust into gold! "You can lead a horse to water but you can't saddle a duck" "Cleverly disguised as a 'Responsible Adult' "Sometimes your Knight in shining armor is just a retard in tinfoil"



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07-17-2012, 09:47 AM	#19
KEL 72 GMC Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Wells, Maine Posts: 534	Re: Cylinder from floor my 67 Lincoln had another "dimmer switch" next to the real one. it operated the scan on the radio

07-17-2012, 10:17 AM	#20
geezer#99 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Bowser Posts: 13,731	Re: Cylinder from floor I hope none of you young guys run into an Edsel with all those buttons in the centre of the steering wheel. Truely a typewriter shifter.

07-17-2012, 10:29 AM	#21
OJ1988 Just a car guy Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: New Washington, IN Posts: 991	Re: Cylinder from floor Wow. I had no idea what he was talking about. Till someone mentioned the dimmer switch! I was expecting to see a large hydraluc cylinder laying on the floor board. __________________ 1955 belair Blown Pro Street cruiser 1971 Camaro Pro Touring 1973 Vega Drag Car 1970 C20 tow rig

07-17-2012, 10:41 AM	#22
GMC Canuck Registered User Join Date: May 2012 Location: Ingersoll, Ontario Posts: 93	Re: Cylinder from floor dimmer switch on the floor and key in the dashboard, two criteria of a cool vehicle. key on the dashboard is coming back (if you can call it a key) but the floor mounted dimmer switch is a thing of the past.

07-17-2012, 12:02 PM	#24
geezer#99 Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Bowser Posts: 13,731	Re: Cylinder from floor I'll bet a bunch of you have never seen a seat that moves out to you and swivels to make it easier to get in. Steering wheel pivoted off to the right at the same time. You sat down and the seat slid back in, swung back to centre and the wheel locked back in the centre. Any guesses at what car?

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