bad short Reply #15 – May 06, 2008, 08:35:00 AM it's group 2 and the instrument cluster is in the back seat. On group 1 there is a fusible link blown but it looks like it's been that way for some time, and i can hook up group 1 with no problem. i'm at work now but when i get home i will post a pic up. i didnt get a chance to work the test light method but i continuity checked all the wires in group 2 from the eyelet(disconnected from the solenoid of course) to their termination points. All the wires checked good for continuity( so i assume that means the fusible links are OK?). I then ohms checked each wire and got like .2 ohms which should be right as its just checking the wire itsself. (i have a fluke 77 so it's not a cheapo) Quote Selected
bad short Reply #16 – May 06, 2008, 01:14:19 PM Check the wires to the alternator. Try disconnecting the wires from the alternator. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #17 – May 06, 2008, 02:15:36 PM already did that...and the coil...no go:mad: do you know what number circuit breakers i need to pull to isolate all the wires going to that particular group of wires? if i pull them i might isolate which side of the fuse box he short is on. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #18 – May 06, 2008, 03:48:16 PM Fuse link I is isolated by the ignition switch being out.Fuse link H goes to fuses 4 8 16 & 12 and without going through a fuse to the main headlight switch. From the headlight switch (orange/white) to the autolamp relay.Fuse link G goes the rear window defrost control (no fuse) on the RH side of the heater function control. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #19 – May 07, 2008, 09:54:36 PM well i hooked up the test light in between the neg post and cable and of course it's glowing very brightly. I went so far as to pull every circuit breaker and it's still lit. i am disconnecting things under the dash, the headlight harness, still lighting up. All the suspect wires from the solenoid to the their plugs are reading .2Mega Ohms which i think a straight wire ought to( a short to ground should be high ohms right?) it's getting frustrating. the only thing i did different is to route the wire bundles under the fenders and there isnt any chaffing. i did rebuild the neg battery cable but it routes the same...i just had to make it into 2 pieces. question... I Ohms checked the solenoid with no wires on it and it was out of limits(open), same for all the other wires except when I put the suspect wire bundle on.. i then get .2 Ohms...does that prove anything? it seems to show the one bundle is opening the solenoid? Quote Selected
bad short Reply #20 – May 08, 2008, 01:17:37 AM Quote from: lakenheath24;217739well i hooked up the test light in between the neg post and cable and of course it's glowing very brightly.I should have pointed out there are normal things that can light the light. Dome light because the door is open, Light under the hood etc.But with all the fuses pulled they should be out of the picture.Quote I went so far as to pull every circuit breaker and it's still lit. i am disconnecting things under the dash, the headlight harness, still lighting up.I hope you are leaving things disconnected as you proceed and not plugging them back in. So with all the fuses out and the cable unplugged from the main headlight switch, the test light is still on.QuoteAll the suspect wires from the solenoid to the their plugs are reading .2Mega Ohms which i think a straight wire ought to( a short to ground should be high ohms right?)Did you mean .2 Ohms? .2 Mega ohms is 200,000 Ohms. I hope you are disconnecting the battery before using the Ohm meter.When checking the resistance of a wire it must be isolated, not connected to anything else at one end. It should be a very low resistance. A ground will not affect the resistance of a wire from one end to the other.A ground is a low resistance (dead short) between a +12v wire and ground. Ground being the chassis of the car or the engine block.Have you checked the resistance of a suspect wire to ground?Quote question... I Ohms checked the solenoid with no wires on it and it was out of limits(open), same for all the other wires except when I put the suspect wire bundle on.. i then get .2 Ohms...does that prove anything? it seems to show the one bundle is opening the solenoid??? Are you measuring from the battery side to the starter motor side of the solenoid? If so it should read open circuit. The contacts are only closed when you are running the starter motor.If when you put the suspect wire on the battery side of the solenoid and the resistance across the solenoid goes to .2 Ohms, you are looking at the problem. The motor side is close to ground because of the low resistance through the motor.Why don't you measure from the suspect wire to the chassis and see what you get? Quote Selected
bad short Reply #21 – May 08, 2008, 08:31:15 AM Both the doors are open, didnt even think about that. i will disable them and see if that helps. The hood is off so that shouldnt play. I didnt leave everything disco'd...I pulled one cb and put it back after the light test. As far as the solenoid goes i measured from the two copper cable posts...battery and starter. it was open until i attached the bundle of wires shorting the circuit and then it opened up to .2 ohms. I measured each wire as a straight shot.... .2 ohms....very low. Do you mean by "you are looking at the problem" that the solenoid is bad or for sure there is something grounding out in the wire bundle to? it seems odd with the battery disconnected that hooking up a wire bundle would open a solenoid. Also, I noticed when i hook up the other wire bundle on the battery solenoid it goes from 25mega Ohms up to 31 mega ohms then it just goes to O.L on the meter. i guess there is a small amount of juice in the circuit it's bleeding off? Not sure. I will check the wires to ground tonight. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #22 – May 08, 2008, 04:21:01 PM You are just confusing yourself with the ohm meter. Put it aside for now and use the test light.1. Leave the yellow wire OFF the solenoid.2. Leave the green fuse link ON the solenoid.3. Remove fuses 4 8 12 16 and leave them all out.4. Unplug cable from the main headlight switch, leave unplugged.5. Unplug cable from rear window defrost control, leave unplugged.6. Disconnect all wires from the alternator, leave disconnected.7. Make sure the instrument cluster connectors are not touching anything.8. Are there any non-stock wires spliced in anywhere? Does the test light still come on? Quote Selected
bad short Reply #23 – May 08, 2008, 07:05:40 PM yes:beatyoass: sorry... getting pissed off and i know that doesnt help. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #24 – May 09, 2008, 03:55:32 PM The reason for having everything disconnected at once is in case there is more than one short to ground. We don't want to give Murphy's Law an opening.With everything disconnected as suggested in post #23 and only the battery cable and the green fuse link on the solenoid it's time to start cutting some wires.Right click on the wiring diagram in post #19 and print it.Is the alternator close enough to the solenoid that you can physically check the wires from end to end? If so we shouldn't have to cut them.Hook up your test light and we will see which wire will turn it off.Follow the green fuse link from the solenoid to splice S261. Cut the red/orange wire that goes to the ammeter. Do not cut the yellow wire, this is the meter shunt and we don't want to screw it up.Go down the harness to splice s262. Cut the yellow/light green wire that goes to the ammeter.Go to the end of the black fuse links. The one with the black/orange wire goes to the fuse panel. Cut it.Then cut the yellow wires on the other fuse links.When you cut the wire that turns off the light, reconnect previously cut wires to see if any will turn the light back on. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #25 – May 13, 2008, 06:57:39 PM ok...getting real close. I snipped all the wires and no go. I then sniped the 2 alternator wires... no go. I had the blk/orange wire going to ground on the fenderwell, as soon as i removed that...light out. Please tell me that it goes to the Pos side of the solenoid. if so what a dumb:shakeass: the one thing i didnt photograph was the wiring for the solenoid. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #26 – May 13, 2008, 10:24:14 PM Look at the diagram in post #9 and you will see that the black/orange wire should have gone to the alternator output.Grounding it does ground out the positive terminal of the solenoid. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #27 – May 14, 2008, 08:02:58 AM i see it now. Thanks a million softtouch, the light tip was superb. i think i'll keep it hooked up as i put the rest of the dash together. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #28 – May 21, 2008, 03:56:50 PM okay, i am ready to start the car, i re-pinned a new pigtail on the ignition switch and replaced the switch its self. with the test light hooked up the light does not come on. i am a bit gunshy now so i turned the key to the on position(not start) and the light comes on, same goes for when i put the key in Aux position. i just want to make sure this is Okay before i try to start it as i dont want to burn it to the ground...my wife might get upset. Quote Selected
bad short Reply #29 – May 21, 2008, 07:10:29 PM Quote from: lakenheath24;220072okay, i am ready to start the car, i re-pinned a new pigtail on the ignition switch and replaced the switch its self. with the test light hooked up the light does not come on. i am a bit gunshy now so i turned the key to the on position(not start) and the light comes on, same goes for when i put the key in Aux position. i just want to make sure this is Okay before i try to start it as i dont want to burn it to the ground...my wife might get upset.I think that is normal but I have never tried it. I will do it on my car tomorrow and see what happens. Quote Selected
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