Wiring problem.. fuses?
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Wiring problem.. fuses?
I was driving home the other day with the radio and heat cranked and my brights on and suddenly all my lights went off and my radio too. I just installed a new (stock) radio and have 4 more powerful speakers running from it. I also just put in an aftermarket tach and wired the power right from the radio. Here's where I'm at now:
Things that work:
Brake lights
Turn signal
Tach gives a reading but doesn't light up
Things that don't work:
Headlights
Radio
All interior lights
I don't know much about the electrical side of things.. does anyone have an idea where i should look? Could it be that I had too many things running off the same wires?
In another thread someone said that the headlights don't run off a fuse but a fusible link or there's a circuit breaker or something.
Thanks for the help in advance.
Things that work:
Brake lights
Turn signal
Tach gives a reading but doesn't light up
Things that don't work:
Headlights
Radio
All interior lights
I don't know much about the electrical side of things.. does anyone have an idea where i should look? Could it be that I had too many things running off the same wires?
In another thread someone said that the headlights don't run off a fuse but a fusible link or there's a circuit breaker or something.
Thanks for the help in advance.
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Just checked and all the fuses look good but the wires i ran the dimmer for the tach off of (also attached to the radio) is melted pretty bad. Could this be the problem or is there a fusable link i should look for under the hood?
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I don't have any tools to see if there's power through the fusible links but they all felt firm and there was no sign of the wire being melted inside. The wire that i found that's melted was only connected to my radio and tach so idk why my headlights and dash lights went out too if that's the case...?
Edit:
I don't know how it slipped my mind but i forgot to mention that the wire was melted before but it's definately worse now than it was then.
Edit:
I don't know how it slipped my mind but i forgot to mention that the wire was melted before but it's definately worse now than it was then.
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if that melted wire is the source of the problem than it was part of a circuit that included the things that aren't working right now. Sounds strange to me, I think you're having some wiring overload issues. when you installed the things that you did you wired it all up just like it was, right?
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When i got it there was no radio but i wired it just like stock only attached the tach as well. I disconnected the tach and still nothing worked. The only thing i can think of is that the wire is maybe connected to the headlights and dash somewhere else that i can't see and that part of the wire broke somehow. Any other ideas? I'm currently at a loss... other than all the lights and my radio deciding to die at the exact same time i can't think of anything else.
Edit:
I read somewhere about there being a circuit breaker for the headlights.. do you or anyone else know where this is?
Edit:
I read somewhere about there being a circuit breaker for the headlights.. do you or anyone else know where this is?
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I'd say it's time you broke out the continuity tester and the multimeter. if you don't have these tools, they can be purchased for cheap at a hardware store or somewhere similar. They're good tools to have, and they don't gotta be fancy, the most basic ones will get the job done.
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Well I think i found the problem. I found the wire that was melted under the hood and followed it under some electrical tape. When i unwrapped the tape I found the other wire doing just fine but these other two wires attached to nothing. They look like the both went into that black thing on the left with the blue salt looking stuff inside it. Does anyone know what these wires are as well as the black thing they're connected to and/or how to reconnect them? Also, what is that blue stuff? It looks kinda like road salt but i highly doubt it is lol.
Btw in the picture to the right goes into the cab and to the left is the battery. Both wires had fusible links farther to the right that look to be fine.
Btw in the picture to the right goes into the cab and to the left is the battery. Both wires had fusible links farther to the right that look to be fine.
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i unwrapped a little farther and found which wires they come from/go to but don't know what these wires do haha.
on the battery side both connect into something that looks kinda like a fusible link that connects to a yellow wire which goes to what i think is the starter (lower left side of the engine [300cid 6]). on the side going to the cab the green wire connects to a yellow wire and the orange to an orange/black wire. is i remember from when i put in my stereo those last 2 were the power wires.. is this how these wires are supposed to be connected stock? my radio (when it was working) didn't turn off when i turned the car off.. is that supposed to happen or could it be because both switched and constant power wires are connected to the same place?
on the battery side both connect into something that looks kinda like a fusible link that connects to a yellow wire which goes to what i think is the starter (lower left side of the engine [300cid 6]). on the side going to the cab the green wire connects to a yellow wire and the orange to an orange/black wire. is i remember from when i put in my stereo those last 2 were the power wires.. is this how these wires are supposed to be connected stock? my radio (when it was working) didn't turn off when i turned the car off.. is that supposed to happen or could it be because both switched and constant power wires are connected to the same place?
Logistics Pro
Joined: Jun 2008
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From: Florida
You are aware that these trucks are factory wired for a tach as long as you don't have idiot lights right?All you needed to do was pick up a tach and printed circuit from the junkyard,and plug and play.But if you have idiot lights for battery and oil pressure,disregard.The dash light dimmer circuit uses a lt blue/red wire,and dims the radio,heater controls,and gauge lights all at the same time.
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From: patricia ab canada
if i remember correctly those wires supply power to the fuse box and lights.looks like the insulation cracked and the wires corroded and finally broke.those two wires go to the battery side of the relay.it looks like those wires were joined at that black block and go to one wire.i'll check my truck in the morning to confirm.
your radio should turn off with the key.
i hooked up my tack to the radio light wire for the light the ground to the chassis,power to switched power from the fuse block,and tapped into the green wire from the coil.
your radio should turn off with the key.
i hooked up my tack to the radio light wire for the light the ground to the chassis,power to switched power from the fuse block,and tapped into the green wire from the coil.
