bad electrical short

[jsmith6752]

I have a really bad electrical short in my tail light circuit. The fuse blows almost instantly and heats up. A dead short for sure. My digital dash also goes out when the fuse blows. Should I unplug the dash and try it? Anyone have a similar experience or suggestions? ...thanks

 

[Jeb]

I think your problem is probably in the light switch. There is no common fuse between the tail lights and the instrument panel. The common connection between the two is the switch itself.

 

[jsmith6752]

that makes a lot of sense...thank you

 

[jsmith6752]

where is the wire harness that feeds the tail lights routed inside of the car? how do I get to the tail light bulbs...thanks

 

[Jeb]

The service manual for my '87 says that the first thing to check if the tail light fuse keeps blowing is the wire running from the fuse panel to the light switch. It should be brown in color.

I'm not sure how the harness is routed on your car. The lamps can probably be reached from underneath or through the license plate access hole.

This is the sort of job where a service manual comes in handy. Have you already ruled out the light switch as a possible cause of the problem?

 

[Hot Rod Roy]

Short circuit tester

I made a tool that really helps when you're looking for a short circuit. Take an old fuse that has been blown out, and a headlight bulb. Solder two wires to the headlight bulb (either the high beam or the low beam) and to the two terminals of the burned out fuse. Plug this fuse into the offending circuit. When you have a short, the headlight will go on, and nothing will get hot or get damaged due to the short. If you don't have a short, the headlight will be off, but there will normally be enough electricity going thru the headlight for the circuit to work normally. This trick will give you a chance to look for the short without using a bucket of new fuses!

S.T.W.

 

[G Winter]

Good one HOT ROD , so basic yet makes good electrical sense.
This one remains in the memory bank.

Glenn