NEED HELP (electrical)

[quackmandude]

Ok...where do I start. Its my running lights. I have a short somewhere, the fuse keeps popping everytime I turn them on. Narrowed it down to the front half of car but can't follow the wire any more. Changed out the blinker switch/handle and it helped for a month or 2. Now it's back. When I put a 30 fuse on it, it gets hot and lights are on but really dim. I think it may by the connecter under the dash where the blinker switch connects, because if I wiggle it with the 30 fuse in there, then the lights flicker. But I can't see a short there at all!! Checked under the fuse box under the hood and it looks ok, switched the relay in the fuse box and its good. Also sometimes my right front driving light stays on very dim, I think it's pinched somewhere and that's it because sometime my batteries drained. I hate my life right now cause I need my inspection and I can't drive at night with out being pulled over. Just to clarify (because some people call them different things) its my driving lights only, the fuse is a 15a and is labeled tail. My headlights, blinkers reverse, and brake lights work fine. Just my drivng/ running lights.

Thanks guys I really need help asap im at my wits end stealthee I'll fly u here to fix it for me lol jk

[91STT]

First off NEVER substitute a larger fuse in order to remedy a blowing fuse, you may end up with an electrical fire.
I believe what you are referring to are the parking lights.
To help troubleshoot, get yourself sealed been head light or any 12v bulb & socket plus a length of wire as needed to position the bulb in a convenient location. 18 gauge should be fine for troubleshooting. The bulb will save you some money from wasting fuses during the troubleshooting process & give you a visual indicator when you have located the short.
Now for the fun part. Remove the under dash trim panel & knee bolster. Remove the fuse that keeps blowing. Connect the bulb across the terminals of the fuse block where you removed the fuse, use the extra wire as needed so it will be visible while your head is under the dash & to keep the bulb from burning you or your interior. Turn your light switch to the parking light position. If you have a short, the bulb that you have connect across the fuse terminals will glow. Its brightness depends on how much the circuit is "shorted." The brighter it is the more it is shorted.
From your description, the bulb should be pretty bright. Now move the wiring harnesses under the dash, if the bulb dims or goes out, you have narrowed down the location of your short. Pay extra attention to harnesses & wires that are routed past metal objects. Keep in mind that moving a harness will move other harnesses & wires so be careful not to drive yourself crazy thinking you have located the problem when it is the harness next to it. Once you have located & corrected the short check it again to make sure you do not have any others.
Other locations that may cause shorts for the parking lights are behind the kick panels & rocker panels.
Post back to let us know what you did & how it went. If you still can't find the short I may have some other suggestions.

[quackmandude]

Ok. I did that. And my cars possessed. Lol. Ok so I connected it like u said, and the only place the light flickers and goes out is when I touch the connection between the turn signal switch and the wire harness under the dash. I narrowed it down to the black wire who h seems loose, I figured it was a ground, so I tried to splice another ground and no dice, then at some point my parking lights were on without the fuse in, the switch off and disconnected, and even the ground wire to that particular bulb cut! Yes, no ground and the light was still on. Well they managed to turn off and I got back to testing.

My dad says, and he's always right, that it's the turn signal switch itself, or that it's shorted somewhere else and messed up the sodering inside the switch so testing it would be useless, and all I was doing with that black wire was turning the whole circut on and off, that's y the light goes out. I've bee. Under the dash all dam day and no luck other then that one ground on the connector.

Question. What's a rocker and kick panel? This the panels that run next to the seats?

Also I think my dads right, any other places I should look. Sorry im good with motors but wiring gives me the hibbie jibbies

Thanks guys lets get my car going!

[91STT]

you should not assume that a black wire is ground, in this case it is correct but it not always the case.
it is not the switch that is causing your short. the switch supplies ground to the green/yellow wire to activate the taillight relay. concentrate on the green/white wires, these wires come after the 15A fuse. check the harnesses at the fuse box under the dash.
the kick panel is the location next to your left foot on the driver side and right foot on the passenger side. the rocker panel is what is next to the seats.
have you had any work done recently? it doesn't have to be electrical. any kind of work.

[quackmandude]

No I haven't actually. A few years ago we wired a tac down there but this problem only started last year. Ok so is it impossible for it to be the switch or just improbable. Also I changed the switch before and it fixed it for a while. Could the short have burned the old switch and that's y the new one worked but only for a lil while? Monday im gonna take the panels out and investigate everything. Does it connect to the fuse box under the dash anywhere? I lost the cover to it. Thanks guyss

[91STT]

The switch supplies ground to a relay. A short would not blow the fuse, it would cause the lights to come on. In order for the fuse to blow, the power side has to be shorted to ground.

Here is the wiring diagram for the exterior lights
This should help with your troubleshooting

[quackmandude]

That should help alot man. Ill get to it first think in the morning and report back. Thanks

[quackmandude]

Hey sorry no reply. I've been planning my wedding with my wife and have been super busy. But I jumped back on my car, I hate not being able to drive at night so im gonna finish it this time. Ok. I found a couple of confusing, different looking, wiring schematics for the driving lights. I found one on 3si that had the connector c69. I no that the connector is at the junction box under the dash. They said it was in the front (but what is front? Front of the car or front from where u look at it, which would be the rear end of car). I want to find the wire there and run a new wire to there and see if the short is in between that at the fuse box under the hood, and if that doesn't work im gonna have to info after that and the short would prolly be beside the seat and i would have to remove the seat.

So all in all. WHERE IS THE C69 connector? And which wire on that connector do i need to change? I no its a green and white wire, but i hope there isn't 2. Also is there a way to drop the fuse junction down farther? I think i have to disconnect everything to do that. Tha ks again guy sorry it's so confusing i explained the best i could. Thanks

[quackmandude]

I got it now. I re wired from the under the hood fusebox to the c69 plug under the dash. I also had to t it to get the driver side front parking light to work, guess my short was in that wire. But now a new problem...my door ajar light stays on...wth. I think it's cause I took off the sensors for it under the hood to get under my fuse box, I guess I installed it back wrong but it looks fine. I hope, to god, that it's not a wiring issue because when i have the hood closed and close the driver door it dimms. :'(