Seems like everything this guy touched he made worse or broke altogether. I know he had some stereo equipment in the car but he ran a direct line to the battery to power those. So I'm just wondering what the heck this mess is. What are these two wires powering and why would anyone feel the need to wire in two high amp fuses?
The wires appear to be stock ones with the exception of the stereo power wire section next to the one fuse. There is a red one with a white stripe and a thicker solid red one. The car runs fine wired up like this but it looks like crap and seems unnecessary so I'd like to get rid of it if possible and solder the original wires back together. Any info is appreciated!
Pull each fuse...one at a time and see what works and what doesn't. Did he add a power amp for the stereo?
Thanks for your response. He did have an amp but it was connected directly to the battery using a separate power wire. I'll try pulling them and see what doesn't turn on. I am a little afraid to try starting the car with them disconnected though.
There shouldn't be any issues trying to start the car with the fuses pulled. Remember...fuses are designed to blow if there is a load problem (such as a short), they won't cause additional problems if they fail.
Make sure you try it one at a time and then when (if) the car starts try each accessory one at a time. Those are big fuses...but who knows if they are correctly rated or just what he had on hand. Good luck!
Okay so I unplugged the smaller red one with the white stripe (orange fuse). My headlights and interior dash lights would not light up. Everything else worked and the car started. Unfortunately the red fuse on the bigger wire is held in with rusted screws and the heads stripped right away. I will have to remove this fuse by cutting the wire so I may not be able to get to that tonight. When I have some time this weekend I think I am safe to remove the orange fuse.
The radiator fan on this car is hot wired to run all of the time with the ignition in the on position. The guy ran a wire and spliced into a pinkish/red wire above the gas pedal under the dash. It appears there used to be something else spliced into a thicker red wire right next to it as evidenced by the left behind splice connector (maybe the same thick red wire that the red fuse is connected to).
I know the radiator fan has nothing to do with the orange fuse as it still runs even when the orange fuse is unplugged. Perhaps it is related to the red fuse? My next move will be to cut out the red fuse and see what that effects. In the mean time, does anybody have any idea what the PO spliced into for the radiator fan? I want to set up a manual fan switch to keep it from running all of the time once I get my temp gauge working reliably and want it to be a safe power supply. Also, any clue what the wire with the other splice connector is for? I can try using my multimeter to see when it is hot if that will help.
Thanks! -Josh
[This message has been edited by OneSlowFiero (edited 10-11-2013).]
The first picture in the post shows that the PO had to replace the stock fuseable links with the hi-amp fuses and holders. When manufactured, there were two red wires with black "cans" in them, attached to the Battery Junction Terminal (located below the big plug-in).
Yes that heavier black wire is the power supply wire for the fan. It is the pink wire that it is spliced into that I am trying to identify.
Thanks, -Josh
Yea, that pink wire comes from the ignition switch, becomes hot when the key is in the run position. usually when people splice a fan into that, the fan winds up generating power to run the car for 30 seconds or so after the key is turned off. does it do that?
...the fan winds up generating power to run the car for 30 seconds or so after the key is turned off.
That seems like a really bad idea...that must be hard on the ECM as the power fades. Does the fan really have enough inertia to keep generating power for that long?
The first picture in the post shows that the PO had to replace the stock fuseable links with the hi-amp fuses and holders. When manufactured, there were two red wires with black "cans" in them, attached to the Battery Junction Terminal (located below the big plug-in).
I think I saw one there but will have to double check tomorrow. Are there only two total? If indeed this was his reasoning and the old ones are gone/shot, is there a place to buy new ones? I really want to get rid of the mess he created and would gladly solder in stock fuseable links.
Yea, that pink wire comes from the ignition switch, becomes hot when the key is in the run position. usually when people splice a fan into that, the fan winds up generating power to run the car for 30 seconds or so after the key is turned off. does it do that?
It doesn't run for 30 seconds but it does always seems to last a couple seconds and stumble to a stop like it is dying rather than just being turned off. If it is the fan wire causing this then I will definitely move the wire to a better power supply. Do you have a suggestion for a proper power supply for the fan? Preferably one I can hook a switch to in order to control its function.
Originally posted by OneSlowFiero: It doesn't run for 30 seconds but it does always seems to last a couple seconds and stumble to a stop like it is dying rather than just being turned off. If it is the fan wire causing this then I will definitely move the wire to a better power supply. Do you have a suggestion for a proper power supply for the fan? Preferably one I can hook a switch to in order to control its function.
Thanks again, -Josh
That sounds exactly like what's happening, the diode at the AC compressor plug is placed there to stop a similar phenomena when the magnetic field is dropped upon turning the A/C off. You can unplug the fan and turn the car on and off to test if it is the cause. I'd search out the green and white relay control wire up front in an effort to restore proper function. Check it against the ECM pin. That platinum battery is nice as far as CCA output but it's a bear of battery weighing well in excess of a typical good battery. I never bought one for that reason, it's entirely too heavy for the purpose it serves.
That sounds exactly like what's happening, the diode at the AC compressor plug is placed there to stop a similar phenomena when the magnetic field is dropped upon turning the A/C off. You can unplug the fan and turn the car on and off to test if it is the cause. I'd search out the green and white relay control wire up front in an effort to restore proper function. Check it against the ECM pin. That platinum battery is nice as far as CCA output but it's a bear of battery weighing well in excess of a typical good battery. I never bought one for that reason, it's entirely too heavy for the purpose it serves.
I'm assuming he hot wired it due to it not activating on its own properly. Would there still be a way to wire up a switch to turn it on manually from inside the car if I wire it back up properly?
The battery is actually out of my Caprice station wagon that had an LT1 and a full sound system. I kept the battery when I sold the car because it was too nice let go with the car and ended up putting it in the Fiero. That's why it is so huge lol. It is really nice to have the extra power but I'll agree the thing is a beast haha.
[This message has been edited by OneSlowFiero (edited 10-13-2013).]
Originally posted by OneSlowFiero: I'm assuming he hot wired it due to it not activating on its own properly. Would there still be a way to wire up a switch to turn it on manually from inside the car if I wire it back up properly?
The battery is actually out of my Caprice station wagon that had an LT1 and a full sound system. I kept the battery when I sold the car because it was too nice let go with the car and ended up putting it in the Fiero. That's why it is so huge lol. It is really nice to have the extra power but I'll agree the thing is a beast haha.
The green wire with white stripe that I'm referring to from the fan relay is a ground wire, when the ECM grounds it the fan comes on so it would be a pretty straightforward bypass if all else is in place.
