Okay, I fully understand what you're writing regarding water wicking up the copper inside the insulation, and yes, when I spliced in the new connector, I included a foot or so of the wiring attached to the connector, and soldered it in. Perhaps I didn't go far enough? I saw no green corrosion when I stripped the wiring. Anyway, I also just tried the battery trick... sigh. No good, but now the lights are flashing that emergency stuff (no siren yet? Perhaps that is fried too?) so I've disconnected the battery until I get to the bottom of this issue. I watched the U-Tube video on removing the LEFT side license plate lamp and pushing the lock mechanism open. So, I've got the lens w/bulb off, but the black plastic "socket" with the bulb connectors won't budge from that hole, thus I have NO access yet to the locking mechanism. I don't wish to break this lamp's body, so what am I doing wrong? I've pried a bit with a small flat blade screwdriver but it seems very solid. Is this just "stuck"? Again, I don't want to break anything because I didn't ask questions. Thanks for ALL of you much appreciated inputs. BoB