electrical fire?
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electrical fire?
pls bear w/ me as i type this, my typing finger was just blistered up in my '70 EB. After warming her up for 2-3 minutes, i started to drive to pick up some brews. about 1/4 mile from my house, i saw white smoke billowing out of the drivers side dash...of course, my 1st thought was to kill the engine, but when i grabbed the key, i found it to be incredibly hot! by the time i turned it to off, i already had blistered finger tips... once off, the smoke stopped immediately.
i popped the hood and nothing looks odd in the box.
the only thing i can think of is some wiring came loose on the ignition switch (or somewhere under the dash), using the key as ground? maybe the hot wire/switch was burning some insulation?
any ideas? i've disconnected the battery until i figure this one out...btw, still no brews, just scorched digits...
thx!
i popped the hood and nothing looks odd in the box.
the only thing i can think of is some wiring came loose on the ignition switch (or somewhere under the dash), using the key as ground? maybe the hot wire/switch was burning some insulation?
any ideas? i've disconnected the battery until i figure this one out...btw, still no brews, just scorched digits...
thx!
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Joined: May 2004
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It looks like you lost the insulator on your ignition switch.If the short stopped when you shut the key and the key was hot that is where the ground is. Id go ahead and invest in a new switch. At least remove it and test if for a short. It would take alot of amps to heat up that key and switch body and there is a 10 gauge wire hooked to it so I believe that is where your heat came from. Post your results if you dont mind
good luck
Mark
good luck
Mark
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Worn wire, maybe more?
Thanks for the reply. As of today, I still haven't figured it out. The yellow wire leading to/from the ignition is obviously shot. The insulation is pretty much gone and I can see what's left of the wire. I'm guessing that's part if not the whole problem, but that doesn't explain the 800 degree key.
I'm planning on buying a new switch as a start, but might replace the whole harness. Any ideas as to how big a job that is?
I'm planning on buying a new switch as a start, but might replace the whole harness. Any ideas as to how big a job that is?
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Joined: Dec 2002
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From: USA
I replaced the whole harness on my '69 after it had an electrical fire caused by a short iether in the ammeter or the wire going to the ammeter. New harness from Centech was about $500 all said and done. I would look for a cheaper solution than replacing the whole harness if most of yours is still good.
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Temporary Fix...I think
Well, I replaced the ignition switch, and bypassed the fried wire (off-white with red stripe) with a new 12 ga. splice. Then I used electrical tape to wrap all brittle insulation/exposed wires under the dash. I'd rather not pay $500 for a new harness, since my EB is not for show, but cruisin'. The less I can spend on keepin' her running (safely), the better. I took the old switch apart since I was curious; couldn't tell anything was wrong, aside from 35 years of grime and currents...Anyway, seems to be ok now, but I take a fire extinguisher with me on the road...thanks for all the help.
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