I hate those column bright switches.
When mine went bad, I managed to snake it out of the column without taking anything apart.
Can't get it back in that way though lol.
as far as the lights not coming on, I'd check the ground wire connection. It should be bolted to the radiator support somewhere. Clean that up, and grind to bare metal where it connects to the body. Put a thin thin coat of dielectric grease on the metal "o"
If that doesn't help, it's probably the switch
