Electrical Problems with my '87' DL

[3crows]

Haven't used the car since last Autumn since the heater/blower stopped working.Now it's Summer and I started to try to figure out what caused the blower to stop working.The first thing I noticed after starting the car was that the fuel gauge didn't work and the heat gauge pegged on 'Hot'. I pulled the instrument cluster out and replaced it with a spare and now it works except for the 4WD indicator light. Then I started on the blower and heater. All the fuses are good and it seems I have power to the fuses in and out but no power to blue and blue and white wires to the blower plug and heater plug. The switch shows continuity in all positions it;s supposed to. Is there something else in there that I'm not checking? The next problem I found was when I got out of the car I noticed that the right side marker glowed with the ignition off. I started pulling fuses and found it went out with the 'Position' fuse. I turned on the headlights but the side marker lights didn't come on. I put the fuse back but the side marker lights still didn't come on except for the dim glow from the right side marker. What is this fuse supposed to control? Everything else seems to work. I've run power directly to the blower motor and it works. Then I found that the horn doesn't work but the clock and hazard light does. They're all on the same fuse so I figure I have a ground problem with the horn. The electrical stuff seems to be the nemesis of most of use but I'm hoping someone can figure this out. I've been playing with it for a couple of days now with no good results.

[jsyme]

Ok. lots of data there but no context.  

What year, and model of car are we talking about here?  any engine or computer upgrades?

 

1. Starting at the blower, have you tested to see that it will work by itself? blower only + 12 volts and a ground?  ah you did test that directly and it works. ok.

 

2. Regarding the side markers, If this is DL GL Loyale the side marker is on because of the dang switch on top of the steering column. it's a left right toggle. useless. I'm sure you bumped it when swapping out the cluster. I've done it too.  it will kill your battery if you leave it on.

 

3.  fuses.. not enough data. you're all over the map here.

 

4.  Horn, hazard and lights. ummm ground problem. ok go with that.

 

Grab a wiring diagram for your vehicle and work through the issues.

[jsyme]

Sorry - you mentioned it in the Title...  '87' DL" in forum "Old Gen.: 80's GL/DL/XT/Loyales...".  

[3crows]

Suppose this isn't the best day for communication but I'm talking about the fuse block on the lower driver's side dash. I pulled them all and none were burnt. Nothing in the wiring that I could see was burnt. I suspect there is a short somewhere because of the dim glow from the side marker but not a clue how to find it. The only other fuses I'm aware of are the fusible links in the engine compartment. That still wouldn't solve the issue of why one side marker glows somewhat, as in not getting enough power to light as it should and the other one doesn't light at all and nether of them light when the headlights are on or just the drive lights. I'll check the wiring diagrams I have in 3 different books and see if I can understand them. It would be easy if there was a blue and blue and white wire coming from the blower fuse position in the block to the blower but there isn't. No idea what the 'Position' fuse is supposed to control? Not goin' todo much today 'sept BBQ

Edited July 4, 2017 by 3crows

[DaveT]

A couple of things - looking at fuses does not verify that they are good.  They must be tested with a test lamp or meter in circuit.  I have seen open fuses that looked good.

 

Odd, dim lamps usually has something to do with an open ground / Broken ground wire.

 

Sitting, especially outdoors, is really bad for cars.  Any unsealed electric connection /s can be compromised.

 

Mice cause lots of damage, eat insulation off wires, pack the HVAC system with nest materials.

[robm]

Check the blower relay.  It is probably not working.  It is one of the bunch of 4 above the ECU, and is a real pain to get at.  I believe it comes on withthe ignition, but it has been a while.  You can swap one of the neighbouring relays into its position to test if it is OK.

[3crows]

I'm back working on this guy. Got the blower working (relay) Thanks S Nut) and fixed the horn problem. 4wd indicator and the heat gauge don't work. Don't know if the problem is in the instrument cluster or the sending/sensor units. . The car runs fine otherwise. The trans. in my '86' is about to die and has started to leak oil again through the trans axle shaft seals that I replaced earlier this year and is getting hard to shift so I need to get my '87' road worthy again. I'm going to check for power to the heat sensor and/or just pull and replace it. I've never had one go bad. Not too concerned about the 4wd indicator now, just the heat indicator.

In the fuse block next to the hazard light fuse is a fuse location that says 'Position'. Anyone know what that is?

The wire that goes to the heat sensor next to the thermostat is yellow and green. I've got continuity from it to where it goes into the plug by the battery. It comes out the back of that plug and goes through the fire wall with a cluster of wires but there's no yellow and green wire in the fuse block so I can't tell where it goes once it goes under the dash.

Edited September 4, 2017 by 3crows

[jono]

I think if you ground out wire at temp sensor below thermostat housing bolts you will get gauge go to red with ignition on or engine running.

[3crows]

Don't know what I did or didn't do before but gauges work now. Still would like to know what that 'Position' fuse controls. Guess the easiest way to find out is to pull it and see what doesn't work.

Edited September 6, 2017 by 3crows