OK, I just bought the car, so this is probably not my fault, but it is now my problem, and its a BIG one!
Apparently, the prior owner of my 1997 Eagle Talon installed an after market radio, TV etc, and I am not sure of the make. He had to buy a new wiring harness to do the install, and I am guessing he did it himself.
Shortly after, if not immediately the dash board lights stopped working and so do the rear running lamps.
My problem is that I no dash lights, ar rear running lights so I cant drive after dark.
Every time I try to change a fuse for either of these problems, the fuse starts smoking then blows.
Any ideas as to where I might start looking would be greatly appreciated. Also, if I were to take this to a shop, would I be better off the find someplace that car audio guy, as opposed to a general maintenance guy?
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Stacy
Replies (11)
swez on 06/5/2007 23:14:25
Hummm, this means there is either a short circuit in that circuit or someone tapped some extra gear into that line and it's too much for the fuse. (Not good here) What value fuse is blowing here and what is the fuse call out function for this circuit? (Radio, Dash lights, Tail lights???)
My first question would be to see if the fuse smokes when the HU and TV are turned off. If the fuse holds, then the previous installer/owner may have tapped into that circuit by mistake and hense, too much current draw and a smoked fuse when they are switched on.
If the fuse smokes even if the TV/HU are off, there may be a shorted wire in the dash area that is causing this situation. Either way, a skilled tech that is very familiar with aftermarket install troubleshooting should be brought into the game. This is not a job for a rookie tech, a dealership tech or a casual DIY'er.
Good luck and keep us posted on what you learn.
Swez
PS WARNING... Under no circustances should the stock fuse be swapped out with a larger value fuse. This can cause a fire in the dash board and really mess up your ride.
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 09:04:12
The radio and the TV unit are no longer in the car, I really have no use for a TV while driving.
The fuse that keeps blowing is the Rear Lamp(25v). What doesnt work are any of the running lights that would be initiated by turning on the head light switch (dash lights, front and rear running lights).
I was reading the "So you cut off you wiring harneess" thread, and I am positive he would of had to cut the old one to install what he had. So, I was searching last night and I can not find a ground wire coming off the radio. I have a 97 Eagle Talon, and I know from the wiring diagram there is no ground for the radio, and I dont see a secondary installed.
Could it be that it just needs to be grounded?
Any recommendations you could make as to where I might find an after tech market guru would be greatly appreciated. I am in the Metro Detroit/Downriver area.
Thanks for all your help.
Stacy
swez on 06/6/2007 09:28:50
All aftermarket HU's need to be grounded on a dedicated ground and not to the factory harnesses. If the HU is grounded to the dash harness, this could be part of your problems.
Also, since this is a high current fuse, (25A's) chances are good there is a bare power wire that is shorting to ground. That will blow a fuse immediately. This can happen easily when a bare wire is taped and the tape comes off and touches bare metal in the dash or other matal grounding points. It can also happen if the insulation on the wire has been comprmised and has burned through the insulation and shorting to a grounded source.
Downriver Detroit you say? Hummm, I live just west of Dearborn Heights. (Off Ford Road and Middlebelt in Garden City) Perhaps we can work something out if you cannot find a local tech to help you.
Oh, since an Aftermarket HU is installed now, what make and model is used here? You did mention it was Aftermarket... the brand and model #'s are often shown on the face panel. (Ie: Kenwood KDC-xxxx or KAC-xxxx) That is a key piece of info so that a tech can look up the wiring color codes and make sure they were done correctly.
Say more please,
Dave
PS I have a gut reaction that the HU was not wired correctly or some gear was removed before you bought this vehicle and some wiring errors may be present. Have you attempted to remove the HU and disconnect the modified wiring harness to see if that fuse does not blow when the HU is removed? That could be a very helpful test and help nail down the basic issues if related to the HU wiring and such.
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 10:44:03
The aftermarket head unit was removed before I purchased the car, It was a kenwood AVEC-II. It currently has the stock radio installed in the car. It's a 1996 eagle talon, not a 97.
swez on 06/6/2007 16:25:06
Yep, it sounds like the harness was modified for the Aftermarket HU and now that the factory unit was reinstalled, something is wrong with that harness change.
These can be a real pain to troubleshoot w/o a good wiring schematic on this specific vehicle. It sounds like a short circuit is present or one or more wires are attached to the wrong parts of the OEM HU.
Do you know the person who owned this vehicle well enough to ask them to have a closer look at the problem? If not, this could be a real headache for you now and later.
Swez
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 22:42:54
Unfortunately this problem exist with or without the OEM HU.
I did find out that the harness for the Kenwood was just adapted to the OEM harness, so there was no clipping of wires. But ut appears they did not ground the new HU.
I pulled up the wiring diagram for the car audio, and there was no ground for the OEm HU
Unfortunately the car is mine.
Any Ideas?
Stacy
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 22:45:42
Also, the OEM HU was not installed when I got the car, there was nothing. About a week later he found it, and I popped it into the OEM harness that was left in the car.
cplkittle on 06/6/2007 23:12:54
Does the vehicle have an alarm system on it?
My guess is that the front parking lights do not work either. Blinkers may be seperate than parking lights.
When an alarm system is installed, the parking light wire is tapped into and fed to blink when the doors lock and unlock. The front and rear parking lights as well as the dash lights will blink when this wire is triggered. Most of the time, the parking light wire is tapped either in the driver's kick panel or under the trim beside the driver's seat running to the rear of the vehicle. This is the feed to the rear lights on the light side of the switch, so it will back feed to the dash lights and front parking lights. If this wire is grounded out either through a loose connection, or maybe the trim has been screwed down through the wire, it would cause the fuse to pop.
rambos_little_sister on 06/7/2007 09:59:48
It does have an aftermarket viper alarm, (which also doesnt work) I will take a look at it after work today.
Word to everyone, always test drive a car at night before you buy!
Thank you for all your help, this is a great forum.
swez on 06/7/2007 16:45:09
I think Kittle nailed it. If the alarm has been tampered with and some of its circuitry is now faulty, this would indeed cause the problems mentioned. Now you know who to hire to troubleshoot the problem here... a Viper alarm installer can fix all this.
Swez
PS We like this place too and the best part, it's free to casual users and a great place to swap ideas. For heavy users, we ask for nominal donations to keep the site alive. Glad you like the show... come back as you wish.
UKinstaller on 06/8/2007 12:05:09
peek up at the white wire coming off of the viper alarm. it will be connected to parking lights. unplug it and see what happens.
-UK
Apparently, the prior owner of my 1997 Eagle Talon installed an after market radio, TV etc, and I am not sure of the make. He had to buy a new wiring harness to do the install, and I am guessing he did it himself.
Shortly after, if not immediately the dash board lights stopped working and so do the rear running lamps.
My problem is that I no dash lights, ar rear running lights so I cant drive after dark.
Every time I try to change a fuse for either of these problems, the fuse starts smoking then blows.
Any ideas as to where I might start looking would be greatly appreciated. Also, if I were to take this to a shop, would I be better off the find someplace that car audio guy, as opposed to a general maintenance guy?
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Stacy
Replies (11)
swez on 06/5/2007 23:14:25
Hummm, this means there is either a short circuit in that circuit or someone tapped some extra gear into that line and it's too much for the fuse. (Not good here) What value fuse is blowing here and what is the fuse call out function for this circuit? (Radio, Dash lights, Tail lights???)
My first question would be to see if the fuse smokes when the HU and TV are turned off. If the fuse holds, then the previous installer/owner may have tapped into that circuit by mistake and hense, too much current draw and a smoked fuse when they are switched on.
If the fuse smokes even if the TV/HU are off, there may be a shorted wire in the dash area that is causing this situation. Either way, a skilled tech that is very familiar with aftermarket install troubleshooting should be brought into the game. This is not a job for a rookie tech, a dealership tech or a casual DIY'er.
Good luck and keep us posted on what you learn.
Swez
PS WARNING... Under no circustances should the stock fuse be swapped out with a larger value fuse. This can cause a fire in the dash board and really mess up your ride.
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 09:04:12
The radio and the TV unit are no longer in the car, I really have no use for a TV while driving.
The fuse that keeps blowing is the Rear Lamp(25v). What doesnt work are any of the running lights that would be initiated by turning on the head light switch (dash lights, front and rear running lights).
I was reading the "So you cut off you wiring harneess" thread, and I am positive he would of had to cut the old one to install what he had. So, I was searching last night and I can not find a ground wire coming off the radio. I have a 97 Eagle Talon, and I know from the wiring diagram there is no ground for the radio, and I dont see a secondary installed.
Could it be that it just needs to be grounded?
Any recommendations you could make as to where I might find an after tech market guru would be greatly appreciated. I am in the Metro Detroit/Downriver area.
Thanks for all your help.
Stacy
swez on 06/6/2007 09:28:50
All aftermarket HU's need to be grounded on a dedicated ground and not to the factory harnesses. If the HU is grounded to the dash harness, this could be part of your problems.
Also, since this is a high current fuse, (25A's) chances are good there is a bare power wire that is shorting to ground. That will blow a fuse immediately. This can happen easily when a bare wire is taped and the tape comes off and touches bare metal in the dash or other matal grounding points. It can also happen if the insulation on the wire has been comprmised and has burned through the insulation and shorting to a grounded source.
Downriver Detroit you say? Hummm, I live just west of Dearborn Heights. (Off Ford Road and Middlebelt in Garden City) Perhaps we can work something out if you cannot find a local tech to help you.
Oh, since an Aftermarket HU is installed now, what make and model is used here? You did mention it was Aftermarket... the brand and model #'s are often shown on the face panel. (Ie: Kenwood KDC-xxxx or KAC-xxxx) That is a key piece of info so that a tech can look up the wiring color codes and make sure they were done correctly.
Say more please,
Dave
PS I have a gut reaction that the HU was not wired correctly or some gear was removed before you bought this vehicle and some wiring errors may be present. Have you attempted to remove the HU and disconnect the modified wiring harness to see if that fuse does not blow when the HU is removed? That could be a very helpful test and help nail down the basic issues if related to the HU wiring and such.
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 10:44:03
The aftermarket head unit was removed before I purchased the car, It was a kenwood AVEC-II. It currently has the stock radio installed in the car. It's a 1996 eagle talon, not a 97.
swez on 06/6/2007 16:25:06
Yep, it sounds like the harness was modified for the Aftermarket HU and now that the factory unit was reinstalled, something is wrong with that harness change.
These can be a real pain to troubleshoot w/o a good wiring schematic on this specific vehicle. It sounds like a short circuit is present or one or more wires are attached to the wrong parts of the OEM HU.
Do you know the person who owned this vehicle well enough to ask them to have a closer look at the problem? If not, this could be a real headache for you now and later.
Swez
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 22:42:54
Unfortunately this problem exist with or without the OEM HU.
I did find out that the harness for the Kenwood was just adapted to the OEM harness, so there was no clipping of wires. But ut appears they did not ground the new HU.
I pulled up the wiring diagram for the car audio, and there was no ground for the OEm HU
Unfortunately the car is mine.
Any Ideas?
Stacy
rambos_little_sister on 06/6/2007 22:45:42
Also, the OEM HU was not installed when I got the car, there was nothing. About a week later he found it, and I popped it into the OEM harness that was left in the car.
cplkittle on 06/6/2007 23:12:54
Does the vehicle have an alarm system on it?
My guess is that the front parking lights do not work either. Blinkers may be seperate than parking lights.
When an alarm system is installed, the parking light wire is tapped into and fed to blink when the doors lock and unlock. The front and rear parking lights as well as the dash lights will blink when this wire is triggered. Most of the time, the parking light wire is tapped either in the driver's kick panel or under the trim beside the driver's seat running to the rear of the vehicle. This is the feed to the rear lights on the light side of the switch, so it will back feed to the dash lights and front parking lights. If this wire is grounded out either through a loose connection, or maybe the trim has been screwed down through the wire, it would cause the fuse to pop.
rambos_little_sister on 06/7/2007 09:59:48
It does have an aftermarket viper alarm, (which also doesnt work) I will take a look at it after work today.
Word to everyone, always test drive a car at night before you buy!
Thank you for all your help, this is a great forum.
swez on 06/7/2007 16:45:09
I think Kittle nailed it. If the alarm has been tampered with and some of its circuitry is now faulty, this would indeed cause the problems mentioned. Now you know who to hire to troubleshoot the problem here... a Viper alarm installer can fix all this.
Swez
PS We like this place too and the best part, it's free to casual users and a great place to swap ideas. For heavy users, we ask for nominal donations to keep the site alive. Glad you like the show... come back as you wish.
UKinstaller on 06/8/2007 12:05:09
peek up at the white wire coming off of the viper alarm. it will be connected to parking lights. unplug it and see what happens.
-UK
Copyright ClubKnowledge 2009 * All Rights Reserved
