SoCal 's monthly San Bernardino rotary meet: Second Saturday of each month.
05-05-09, 08:30 PM
#5752
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alright..... I swear this is my last post for now. is anyone good at electrical here and is willing to help me out? i tried doing this on my own and the next step i was going to take is pull out the harness and inspect every wire.
05-05-09, 08:34 PM
#5753
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I forgot all about Adams! guess im reading this too late...still at work.
I'll be at the meet on saturday but I wont be able to make the cruise, have some family stuff to attend. What time do you guys usually head out for the drive??
I'll be at the meet on saturday but I wont be able to make the cruise, have some family stuff to attend. What time do you guys usually head out for the drive??
05-06-09, 09:17 AM
#5756
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^^what up. Yeah it's been forever LOL, well maybe I will see you Saturday
I'm not an electrical genius, but I know a bit. What exactly is happening?? And which fuse/fuses are blowing?
I'm not an electrical genius, but I know a bit. What exactly is happening?? And which fuse/fuses are blowing?
05-06-09, 10:21 AM
#5757
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It is the tail fuse, which is my power source for my gauge lights and my tail lights. The lights are not working at all and everytime i put a new fuse in, it blows. i figured the harness was grounding out somewhere so i decided to pull everything out of the car to follow the harness search for any exposed wires and pretty much taped a lot of the loose wires that way they would not be touching metal but the fuse is still popping.
05-06-09, 10:40 AM
#5758
Sounds like some device the fuse powers is shorting internally. What does it power besides tail lights and guage lights? Any aftermarket stuff?
What amperage fuse is it? & what year is your FD; I'll pull the wiring diagram and give it a look.
Oh, and it looks like I'll be making the Saturday meet. Another forum member visiting from Texas (80's Old School) is going to be in town and will try to make it, as well.
What amperage fuse is it? & what year is your FD; I'll pull the wiring diagram and give it a look.
Oh, and it looks like I'll be making the Saturday meet. Another forum member visiting from Texas (80's Old School) is going to be in town and will try to make it, as well.
05-06-09, 11:17 AM
#5759
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hey glen, car is a '93 and its a 15 amp fuse. it controls the tail lights, gauge lights, front bumper lights, a/c panel and the only aftermarket thing hooked up to it is my boost gauge. that is really all i know of being connected to that one fuse, i tried reading the wiring diagram but i got so confused and gave up on tryin to read it.
05-06-09, 12:47 PM
#5762
No problem - - I hope I can help. Good practice for the day I have an FD of my own, heh.
First question:
1) does the fuse blow
a) as soon as you put it in, even if the key's off
b) as soon as you turn the switch to "accessory" position
c) as soon as you turn the switch to the "ignition" position
d) as soon as you try to start
e) as soon as you try to turn the lights on
First question:
1) does the fuse blow
a) as soon as you put it in, even if the key's off
b) as soon as you turn the switch to "accessory" position
c) as soon as you turn the switch to the "ignition" position
d) as soon as you try to start
e) as soon as you try to turn the lights on
05-06-09, 02:38 PM
#5765
Interesting...
According to the wiring diagram, the "TAIL" fuse is hot all the time - - it's not controlled by the ignition switch.
There's a relay called the "TNS Relay" which switches power to the lights, but it also is not controlled by the ignition switch - - only by the headlight part of the combo switch.
That relay is controlled by the combo switch headlight section. It gets turned on (grounded) only when the headlight switch is on, either in the "TNS" (running lights) position, or when the headlights are fully on.
The headlight switch is supposed to work regardless of the key being in the car.
Unless your headlight switch is on, that relay's supposed to cut off all power to all the lights.
If the fuse is blowing ONLY when you turn the key to ACC, there's a cross-connect between two circuits somewhere.
I'd recommend removing the TNS relay, checking the wiring around it, and testing it. If it's been passing enough current to blow that fuse repeatedly, it might be bad.
Its probably not the cause of the short, but it's a good "halfway" point for testing. With it disconnected, the short will either go away or will still be shorted.
If the fuse still blows with the TNS relay disconnected, The short is "upstream" from there. If it goes away, it's "downstream."
The TNS relay is E3-01; it's in a relay box inside the engine compartment, just aft of the hood opening, near the latch.It's right in the center of the box, #4 from the passenger side.
Oh, and if you're tired of blowing fuses for testing purposes, you can use a meter or a test light to test for ground and/or voltage on the output side of the fuse connector.
According to the wiring diagram, the "TAIL" fuse is hot all the time - - it's not controlled by the ignition switch.
There's a relay called the "TNS Relay" which switches power to the lights, but it also is not controlled by the ignition switch - - only by the headlight part of the combo switch.
That relay is controlled by the combo switch headlight section. It gets turned on (grounded) only when the headlight switch is on, either in the "TNS" (running lights) position, or when the headlights are fully on.
The headlight switch is supposed to work regardless of the key being in the car.
Unless your headlight switch is on, that relay's supposed to cut off all power to all the lights.
If the fuse is blowing ONLY when you turn the key to ACC, there's a cross-connect between two circuits somewhere.
I'd recommend removing the TNS relay, checking the wiring around it, and testing it. If it's been passing enough current to blow that fuse repeatedly, it might be bad.
Its probably not the cause of the short, but it's a good "halfway" point for testing. With it disconnected, the short will either go away or will still be shorted.
If the fuse still blows with the TNS relay disconnected, The short is "upstream" from there. If it goes away, it's "downstream."
The TNS relay is E3-01; it's in a relay box inside the engine compartment, just aft of the hood opening, near the latch.It's right in the center of the box, #4 from the passenger side.
Oh, and if you're tired of blowing fuses for testing purposes, you can use a meter or a test light to test for ground and/or voltage on the output side of the fuse connector.
05-06-09, 02:58 PM
#5766
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i meant to come back in and correct my last response earlier. the fuse blew when i turned the light switch on. i went back and double checked but forgot to come back inside earlier and tell you. i will pull the TNS relay and try again. i pulled it yesterday cause i knew it had somethin to do with the lights but i didnt know how to check it and just stuck it back in. i might just go get a test light, i have a multi-meter but i haven't used it in about 4 years and dont remember how to use it.
05-06-09, 03:24 PM
#5767
Well, that's pretty different.
OK, if it's only blowing when you flip the light switch, it's possibly the relay (shorted coil), but more likely something downstream from there. Easy enough to check.
Roughly whereabouts do you live, anyhow? I'm not promising I can get free tonight, but if I can, and if you don't live too far away, I can maybe drop by and give you a hand if you'd like.
OK, if it's only blowing when you flip the light switch, it's possibly the relay (shorted coil), but more likely something downstream from there. Easy enough to check.
Roughly whereabouts do you live, anyhow? I'm not promising I can get free tonight, but if I can, and if you don't live too far away, I can maybe drop by and give you a hand if you'd like.
05-06-09, 03:35 PM
#5768
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i would love all the help i can get.i live in san bernardino right off the 210 and del rosa. 3318 n erwin st, san bernardino CA, 92404.(909) 419-6099. i pulled the TNS relay and tested another fuse and it did not blow, granted it did not turn anything on cause the relay was pulled but the fuse is intact.
05-06-09, 04:44 PM
#5769
That's about 60 road miles from home for me; a bit of a haul, but doable if I can let the rush hour traffic die off a bit first.
Once I get home tonight and see how many "honeydews" may have accumulated today, I'll give you a ring and let you know if I can make it over there.
What's your availability with regard to time? (I have to get up at 5 for work, so can't stay too late).
Once I get home tonight and see how many "honeydews" may have accumulated today, I'll give you a ring and let you know if I can make it over there.
What's your availability with regard to time? (I have to get up at 5 for work, so can't stay too late).
05-06-09, 05:49 PM
#5771
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I'd have to agree with divindriver, possibly the relay. I was looking at the wiring diagrams earlier but if i remember correctly the only thing after the combination switch is ground. So if its grounding out after the switch it really wouldnt cause a problem. In theory that is lol
05-06-09, 07:50 PM
#5772
Matt, I'm sorry; I'm not going to be able to make it tonight. Surprise guests. That combined with the distance make it a no-can-do for tonight.
I'll give you a quick call and walk you thru testing the relay, and what to try next.
Basically, we want to start isolating things down to track down the branch that's causing the short. There are a couple convenient places where you can "split" things down.
Friday night I will definitely have time, if you're still chasing it.
I'll give you a quick call and walk you thru testing the relay, and what to try next.
Basically, we want to start isolating things down to track down the branch that's causing the short. There are a couple convenient places where you can "split" things down.
Friday night I will definitely have time, if you're still chasing it.
05-06-09, 08:23 PM
#5773
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Would anyone mind if we put the Civic that usually comes with us in the back of the pack? Renton can vouch that I gave a lot of distance between me and Lesper, who was in front of me, before we hit the curves of Silk Road. I caught up to Lesper pretty quick while he was stuck behind the Civic. So no offense to Mr. Civic, but lets put him in the rear this time 
well we can put my slow fc up front.