Strange electrical mystery on my 84! (Page 2/2)
theogre JUN 23, 08:11 PM

quote
Originally posted by johnt671:

I replaced the lighter socket but it didn't help. Boy, the one that was in there sure was crusty. I did get another clue, No headlights or tail lights. At this point I realized I'd had this problem before. While everything working I went back to the battery and wiggled the + cable and everything went off. Another wiggle and all came back on.

I saw the cable was a little loose so with high hopes I tightened the cable down and took it for a ride. Everything was looking good for 15 minutes and then died. A few minutes later it came back on and stayed on until I got home. another wiggle and it shut down.. I have it down to one of the two secondary wires off the + side of the battery.

I should point out that the wires were a mess when I bought the car and a few years ago I did a rewiring job to make the wire a lot neater and cleanner. So tomorrow I plan on taking the wire ties and looms off and see what I can find. Thanks again for the advice.

big wires to starter + cable bolt originally but many move them should be Fusible links A & B and a lot of things die when loose etc.

If links moved or worse cut out then needs proper fixing including new link if removed. Have a short on these and other wires w/o their links can cause a fire.
Do Not bundle fusible links w/ anything.

See my Cave, Fuse Links notes but location is for 85+ cars.
johnt671 JUN 24, 11:09 AM
Thanks Ogre. I know on the 84 the links are near the starter. Like I said the wiring was a mess when I got the car and when I rewired the car I just spliced some longer wire in on the top to make it look better then it was. I've replaced the starter a bunch of time until I finally went with a 3.8 starter. I'm not ever sure if there are any fusible links on the car.

Back to work.
johnt671 JUN 25, 05:15 PM
I found the problem. It was a frayed butt connector on the red wire coming off the battery. I took the wire looms I put on and as soon as I moved the wire and the sparks flew. I also found another splice on the wire below mine. I disconnected the battery and replaced my bad splice, put the cable back on and ran the car and all was good. I disconnected the battery and left it disconnected overnight.

I went to the auto parts this morning and picked up a good pair of crimpers, some weather proof butt connectors, and wire to finish the job. I replaced both connectors and put a new piece of wire in and put shrink tube and thought it was done.

When I started the car it barely ran. I hit the gas twice and it ran smooth at around 900 RPMs so I took it for a drive to reset the computer, and it ran nice, but no check engine light like I got before as the idle adjusted. Got home and shut it off for awhile and when I started it up got the same thing. I did look around where I was working but didn't see anything disconnected.
theogre JUN 25, 06:42 PM
Check HL motor(s) aren't "Twitching."
Gen1 HL motors will drain the battery often in hours when motors have problems.

Disconnect them up front and watch volts at battery.

If still drops, alt etc can problems.

[This message has been edited by theogre (edited 06-25-2020).]

johnt671 JUL 06, 01:14 PM
No twitching, and battery stays charged even after sitting three days. Other than starting funny the idle settled down and the thing did fine on three fifteen mile drive. I went to a car cruise a few nights ago about a mile from the house and on the way home I lost the radio and horn but everything else on the fuse circuit still worked. Turned on the lights and the left side headlight dosn''t pop up.

I've been fighting to keep this car going for 25 years, and I'm tired of it. The pleasure for driving it no longer comes close to the pain of working on it. I have an engine compartment wiring harness, so it's going to the shop to swap this harness in and fixed or not, it's going away.
Alan Stockholm JUL 07, 11:33 AM
Interesting, I have a very similar problem, fuse nr 11 is ok, but no power. Dome light is always on and interior light is dead :-( I belie the problem is that its no power to the wheel switch on any of the four pins. But I cant find any wiring diagram where I could find where the power to the switch comes from and with of the four cables should have power "in" ( I assume its the gray cable?)
fierosound JUL 07, 01:10 PM
Wiring from 84 Manual



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[This message has been edited by fierosound (edited 07-07-2020).]

Raydar JUL 07, 03:22 PM
Chris Eddy is right. This is caused by an open circuit (bad connection or broken wire) somewhere.
A short is just that... a short. If a circuit is shorted badly enough to stop several devices on that circuit, it damn well better blow the fuse. If it doesn't, there's going to be a smoke show.

This is going to sound strange, but flip the fuse box down. You might even remove the screws that hold the hinge to the metal bracket on the underside of the dash, for better access.
Check the wiring where it connects to the back of the fuse box. Some fuse box connectors just plug in, and may have come partially unplugged. (It could be your #11 fuse, or it could be a different connection.)
Keep in mind that some Fieros also have a terminal box on the A-pillar, way up under the dash.
In later cars, it's usually only installed if the car has power windows or similar optional accessories, but I'm not sure about 84s.