280z + battery fusible link no continuty

[Ken Kyger]

Not sure what you're saying. You said that the voltage went away. "Checked the fuselink and i have a positive 12v current on the pins from the terminal, but i have no continuity from the other". Plus you're getting continuity (resistance) and voltage measurements mixed up. Good that you're measuring but it's easy to get things confused. You could very well have a light connection inside the fusible link that opens up as soon as current flows. And voltage is not flow, it's just the impetus for flow. What do you see with the key On?

On the pictures - those are just wires. Google "280z fusible link" and look at some pictures to see what you're looking for. You might also follow the thick white wire back from the start to see where it goes. It also used to be attached to the fusible links block.

Here's one picture - Post #6. http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/electrical-s30/22763-78-280z-gauge-problems.html

Ya, i absolutely do not have those. In my pic on the right i have a mess of red and white wires - the ones i see going into the fuse link boxes on other peoples car - that lead into a bulged out yellowish connector, then into the blue wires. On first glance i thought they may have had some sort of fuse in there, but no, just connectors.

Ok, to clarify what i mean with the measurements. Im just testing voltage.

Ive found some 14g links at advanced auto, but they dont list the amps they are rated for. 14g is whats on there now, I should be good right?

With the key at on, i see nothing at all. No interior lights, the radio turns off - as expected - no fuel pump

Edited October 24, 2014 by Ken Kyger

[Zed Head]

I can see the white wire that you want to follow, in your first picture. There has to be something at the end of that wire.

If your main fuse or fusible link is blown, or the Ignition link, then the EFI relay won't work and you won't have power at the ECU. You have to find out what happened to those links, they are the key. Maybe the whole block came unbolted and is hanging down below the oil filter.

[Ken Kyger]

Then they wrap around to meet the blue wires as shown in the pic above.

[Ken Kyger]

Did PO seriously **** me over or something? I really dont see what i should be seeing here.

[Ken Kyger]

Omfg. Those blue ones are the links.

Ok. Were good now. So, you think I need to just replace all the links?

[Zed Head]

Sorry, my mistake, I didn't really look at those blue wires. I thought they were just wires to the pressure sender and other things.

Disconnect your battery before you start moving things. No need to melt new wires trying to fix problems.

The PO probably though he was cleaning up the engine bay when he did that. But they're down in the dirty wet area of the engine bay. Plus it looks like he either used plain wire or links of the same gauge.

You might consider pulling those wires up to a clean safe area, and replacing the blue with the correct links, or wiring in a Maxifuse block. Looks like a pretty good cause for your problem. Check your voltages there.

Edited October 24, 2014 by Zed Head

[Zed Head]

Just saw the wire nut in #15. The PO has made a mess. You have some work ahead of you.

[Ken Kyger]

It actually says fusible link on it after i got a good look, it was just really dirty so i didnt notice the first time. They are 12g, but all i can find around is 14. Would that work still? At least to get the car running again. Im going to go for the maxilink upgrade, but i dont want to have to wait for all the parts to show up to confirm that that was even the problem.

He used some sort of shrink wrap like connection cover, so thatll be fun to get off.

If 14g is good there as well as the connection to the ecu, i will go pick up some of that and see if i cant at least get this baby started again.

[Zed Head]

Your dilemma now is to figure out how much downtime you can take with the car, and if you decide on a temporary fix to get by, how to do it. I would disconnect the battery and drag all of those wires up high and dry. Then, for a temporary fix, replace that wire nut with a large crimped connection and some heat shrink or solder and heat shrink. Figure out which circuit is broken among the blue wires and wire in an inline fuse, or a fusible link of the correct gauge. If that blue wire is plain old wire, best to replace them all with fuses or fusible links of the correct capacity.

Here's a typical fusible link replacement - http://www.atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/fusiblelinks/index.html

[Zed Head]

If 14g is good there as well as the connection to the ecu, i will go pick up some of that and see if i cant at least get this baby started again.

You can't damage things by going smaller. Did you find one that was bad? Sometimes you can tell by feel. Or use the meter and measure resistance.

[Ken Kyger]

I see some of the shrink wrap on a few of them was melted through a bit. To test them id replace have to cut the wrap open and i figure i may as well replace them at that point anyways.

i need to pick up 6, replace them all, and start my hunt from the top again.

[Zed Head]

And don't forget the green ones. There's still something weird about the "squeezing and taping" that made things work again, in your first post. The blue ones might be fine. After seeing the wire nut, it could be that there's nothing wrong with those links at all, the problem is somewhere else. Maybe that wire nut just needs another twist.

You should still make them better, but don't be surprised if they're not the problem.

At least you know more about your car now.