95 neon pops fuel pump fuse every time

I have a 95 neon single cam i just put a transmission in it. i broke the shift cable while removing the old trans, so after installing new trans i got impatient and wanted it out of the garage for a while. this means i had to leave the battery box out so i could manually shift the trans into gear. i figured that once i got it started it should be ok to let it run off the alternator and no battery just long enuf to back it up 20 yards into the grass. i apparently thought wrong. i got it started no problem, disconnected the battery, suddenly all the lights inside and out got super bright, it blew out the underhood light bulb, and the wipers (while in the off position) went crazy and were as if on high speed. I put it in reverse, got into the car, and it died before i got the door shut. then it would crank and crank no problem while battery was hooked up. (i should have mentioned i did this 3 times before it quit starting). i found a blown fuel pump fuse, replaced it, and the second i hooked up the battery with the key OFF, it popped again. went thru a whole pack of fuses this way. i checked almost all the underhood wiring and replaced all relays, no change. i even removed the fuel pump relay and it still popped the fuse. Not sure where to go from here. it was a $150 car that i got for a beater, and im not looking to spend much of any money on it. any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Mike

Check the wiring to the downstream O2 sensor. It may be grounding out on the axle and causing the fuel pump fuse to blow. A common problem with the neon.

The fuel pump fuse feeds the fuel pump relay and the automatic shutdown relay. Pull each of them and see which one will cause the fuse not to blow. If pulling the fuel pump relay does it you have a problem with the fuel pump or wiring. If pulling the automatic shutdown relay does it you will to start unhooking the things supplied by it. If neither does it un plug the ECM . After that you will need to unplug the O2 sensors, Ignition coil, Alternator and the Injectors. You may of also damaged the airbag & antilock brake computers also the radio and dash pod. Un hooking the battery while the engine is running should never be done unless the car has a generator. My guess is the ECM.