fuse box problems

[deedee]

I keep blowing 20amp fuses in the fuse box. when I blow a fuse the turn signals on the dash don't work, temp/oil guage, and the horn does't work. I went through 2 fuses today, definitely a problem. What should I do to fix the problem.

DeeDee

[Curtis240Z]

Process of elimination. Honk the horn first. If the fuse blows then you need to concentrate your efforts in the steering wheel area or the horns themselves.

If that was not the problem you need to recreate the problem so you can trace down the short or ground. To reduce going through all your spare fuses before finding the problem you could use a SINGLE strand of wire from some stranded wire and let that cut instead of using a new fuse everytime. Remember to replace the strand with a good fuse when you are done. Good luck finding shorts or grounds in the miles of wire, it can be a trying task. Sometimes it is a bad electrical component that is shorting or grounding like the horn or dash gauge.

[a7dz]

IS there more then one fuse you are blowing? Or just the same one over and over again? Is it just the dash lights that do not work or are the turn signals dead as well. Figure out which circuit the fuse is in and start taking out parts or disconnecting them until you get the bad one. There is a wiring diagram posted on this sight by "onuthing" that is pretty basic.

[EScanlon]

Process of elimination. Honk the horn first. If the fuse blows then you need to concentrate your efforts in the steering wheel area or the horns themselves.

If that was not the problem you need to recreate the problem so you can trace down the short or ground. To reduce going through all your spare fuses before finding the problem you could use a SINGLE strand of wire from some stranded wire and let that cut instead of using a new fuse everytime. Remember to replace the strand with a good fuse when you are done. Good luck finding shorts or grounds in the miles of wire, it can be a trying task. Sometimes it is a bad electrical component that is shorting or grounding like the horn or dash gauge.

I don't know that I would recommend using a strand of wire to check for a known fuse blowing situation. In the event of a catastrophic problem, you're simply allowing the melt to occur OUTSIDE of the glass envelope the fuse provides. Now you have a REALLY potentially hazardous situation. Do you stick a rag in your gas filler neck in lieu of a gas cap? (That is...a WICK?)

Deedee, you DO have an electrical problem, but rather than keep throwing fuses at it, address it bit by bit.

You've posted 3 different posts all relating to electrical problems and instead of trying to fix all three independently of one another, it may be that the problem is ONE item.

Your "interior electrical problem", that addresses the map light, washer pump etc, are all off ONE fuse. This post deals with yet another circuit off of...ONE fuse. So now you have TWO fuses. Toss in your Tach problem with the intermittent read and blow-out reading and it points at something having been done in the wiring in the steering column area.

Did you recently do any work in the clamshell of the steering column? Replace an ignition switch? Turn Signal Switch? If you disconnected ANY wiring are you sure you connected items back where they belong? Have you done the procedure known as "Clean the fuse box clips"? That's where you remove all of the fuses and then clean the clips that hold them. Don't forget to inspect and REPLACE the fuses...especially if they're the original ones that came with the car.

Check the wiring diagram for your car, and trace out the individual circuits that are causing you problems and you'll discover that they all seem to come together at the steering column.

FWIW

Enrique