Question: Fuse Information

[wingman@bbc.net]

Can someone with a factory book on the 1996 Collector's Edition tell me what fuse/circuit the driving/fog lights are on. I have found that there is a 50 watt halogen bulb (#885) that is an exact replacement for the existing 37 watt bulbs and it will increase the down-road visibility a lot at night. I want to verify that there may be enough capacity in the cirsuit to handle the extra load (or not). In my experience with other vehicles, there is at least a 100% excess capacity in the actual wiring and normally about a 25% excess capacity in the fuse itself, but I want to verify this. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[So Bay Vetter]

I'm looking at my manual as I write this; as near as I can figure they are run through the "Tail Fuse #6 - 15 amp. First fuse, second row down (B) in the I/P fuse block inside the passenger door. However there is also a fog lamp relay in the wiring harness and a 60 amp exterior lighting fuse in underhood fuse block #2 (aft of battery). which might have difficulty handling the load of a bigger bulb. There are several troubleshooting proceedures that might help you but . . . you really need to get service manuals! - I mean that in a good way!

 

[RoyalViking]

Going from 37 to 50 watts doesn't seem like much.

Here's some info on what to expect (Bear with me if you already know this). The amp draw for the 37 watt is 2.91 amps (Watt/Volts=Amps). That is for one lamp. When you replace that bulb with the 50 watt the amperage is 4.17 amps. Your two lamps on that circuit will add 2.52 amps to the total amperage for the fog lamps (going to go from 5.82 to 8.34 amps). You might want to look at the remaining loads and see what they are. You can't increase the fuse size without upgrading the wire gauge. But this may help in knowing if the fuse will handle the increased amperage.