hey all i got a BIG problem!

my park light fuses keep shorting.. as soon as i put them in/turn on lights POP! there they go! theyre 8 Amp fuses right?

this is a 1968 Semi-Auto

that is what was in there for the 10 months i had it before the blew up, and now it's eating them like skittles!

has anyon had this hapen, and can suggest where the short may be coming from? or if it's safe to up the fuse to 16?

i cant drive at night untill this is fixed!

AAAARGGHH!!! *pulls out hair*

thanks...

---Damien

Damien does the fault happen straight away or intermitently. I have looked at a wiring diagram in the Haynes manual and it shows 12 volt bugs have two parking light fuses, one for the left and one for the right. These fuses also runs the tail lights and the right fuse runs the number plate light. There fore I recomend you check the parkers, tail lights and number plate lights for shorting. It would be a good idea to have a good look at wire from the number plate light back to the main wiring loom as I reckon this would be pretty easy to damage especially if you have had the engine lid off.
Good luck
Nicko

Firstly, no it's not safe to put a 16amp in it's place. If you try to do that (or worse still use tin foil) you'll probably get an electrical fire, which can ruin your whole day.

Do you have a multimeter? If not I recommend you get one, they're quite cheap from Dick Smiths, Jaycar etc. Use it to test the wires in different places until you find the short-circuit. It's not that difficult, and the short should be easy to fix once you've found it. Do you have some electrical insulating tape? If not, get some: it's only $2 for a pack of 5 at places like GoLo, Clints etc. Wrap connections with it to prevent any chance of them touching something and shorting.

yes Both left and right fuses blow.. does this mean the fault is somwhere before the two fuses split? ie. closer to the battery?

i work at the wearhouse (bought out clints') so i got some elec tape.. and a multimetre too! will have to investigate tomorrow somtime :/

how do i identify the short circuit with the multimetre?

the engine lid has never been off since i bought it.. but its a 36 yr old car.. so anything could happen!

and is it possible it is just two wires behind the loom touching and doing this (or is that what a short circuit is?)

thanks

---Damien

Hi

Have a look at the back of your headlight, there are copper sheet springs that contact the bulb, these can sometimes touch and blow the fuse.

1302Steve

Damien,
It sounds like you have a high resistance short to earth. If your park lights are dim before the fuse blows it is most likely the case.
What you need to do is to trace which bit of the electricals is the offending part.
I you have a multimeter do this.
1. Disconnect battery.
2. Set multimeter on ohms.
3. Connect multimeter leads to earth and the park light fuse. (it should read 0 ohms resistance)
4. Remove all parking bulbs.
6. Read multimeter again (if wiring is ok it should read open circuit)(if it reads xx ohms you got a short in a fitting or wiring to earth).

If you do have a short, progressively unplug wires from light fittings and fuses and test each piece to earth....a process of elimination.

If non of the above is true you could have a high resistance joint at one of your fittings. Discoloured wire ends where there has been heat from high current is a telltale sign. If this is the case reterminate the wiring after you cut off the burnt anealed bit.

Hope this helps.

Brendan

Brendan,
Have You ever taken a parking bulb from a VW headlamp???
The main power copper strip which usually contacts the tip of the bulb with pressure... earths out when the bulb is taken out!!!! I can remember that from years ago....

Damien,
Its very odd to have both circuits shorting out at the same time... unless someone has done something to both lamps..
whether front parkers or rear tail lamps...
I've never heard of that happening before...
I'll send You an email tomorrow..

Lee

actually... its quite possible i stuffed somthing up in the headlights when trying to put the stone guards on them (STILL havnt BTW).. i think that will be the first thing i check! i havnt touched the rear lights at all..


i will crack out the multimetre, and let you all know how i go..

Lee - i'll be waiting for your e-mail.. havnt had an update in a while :P

cheers,

---Damien

Also check the back of the fuse box to see if something such as a screw or piece of metal hasnt fallen onto the terminals. it is unusual that both fuses are blowing and it could have something to do with the stone guards. I worked as a sparky on lifts and there was a saying that you should always check the thing you touched last when there is a problem
Cheers Nicko

One way to get around this,
is to wire in [solder] a 12Volt light bulb in serier with the Fuse.
If you are going to blow the fuse,
the light globe glows instead.

Ivan

they work again!!!

i believe it was the headlights..
although i moved a suss wire behind the fuse terminal aswell..

the headlights had gathered a bit of moisture, but i think the problem was they might have been touching the body of the car.. gonna wrap them in some tape

also the connection to one of the park lights in the front wasnt on properly.. dunno if this had any affect..

and the damn servo ripped me off... $1 per fuse :|

thanks for your help everyone! i never thought to check the headlights.. as i didnt notice the park lights there were off aswell.. good learning expeience and not TOO expensive either

---Damien

they work again!!!

i believe it was the headlights..
although i moved a suss wire behind the fuse terminal aswell..

the headlights had gathered a bit of moisture, but i think the problem was they might have been touching the body of the car.. gonna wrap them in some tape

also the connection to one of the park lights in the front wasnt on properly.. dunno if this had any affect..

and the damn servo ripped me off... $1 per fuse :|

thanks for your help everyone! i never thought to check the headlights.. as i didnt notice the park lights there were off aswell.. good learning expeience and not TOO expensive either

---Damien

Damien,
Good work..
Yes after looking at the stock headlamps with the park lamp behind the headlamp, it may have been the terminal not on correctly and touching the body... a bad design...
I use Hella H4 Quartz Halogen headlamps... it takes a bit of modification but have done it a few times....
I also have a pair of good "L" 1303S Bosch headlamps, they are a better design...
You can buy a packet of those ceramic fuses at BIG W etc...
Its best to have a few in the ash tray....

cheers
Lee

yeah, think i'll buy a few packs! lol

i was driving in the TERRIBLE weather (melb atm) with lights/wipers on.. and when i turned off to fill up at the servo.. i couldnt start her up again!!!

had to call a friend to come give me a jump start!!!

i have issues w/ RACV atm.. so no call for them

useless info but thought i'd share it!

---Damien