ive got an 05 stratus sxt sedan, i hopped in tonight to go to work and when i turned on my headlights, i noticed that the backlighting for my environmental controls werent on. i tried them anyways, cause my windshield was fogged up and i needed to go. i had the heat set all the way up and on just the defroster set on, and it went on, but it was blowing ice cold air, like air conditioner cold. i tried to switch settings but no matter what i set it to, it only blew a/c air out of the defroster vents. the rear window defroster wouldnt come on, either. after experimenting for a bit i found that with the headlights off, everything works normally(different vent/temp settings and the rear defroster works), but as soon as i turn the headlights on all air gets diverted to the defrost vents and is ice cold. however, if i turn on the rear defroster before the headlights it stays on after turning on the lights.

any idea what might be the problem? or how much im going to have to pay someone to look at it?

 

Sounds like a short in the illumination line in the controls. The control panel should be easy to swap out with one from a junkyard if available. You can also pull it out and see if any wires are frayed or disconnected behind it. I've seen panels go bad, and work fine once they've been disconnected and re-connected.

 

it's the multi-funtion switch (the blinker/head light switch assy). my '02 has always been a bit funny, except of course when i took it in for the dealer to look at. i have had luck adjusting the inst light dimmer. don't think it will be a cheap fix.

hope it helps, let us know.