cant C4 this frikin Bucket list ... Im electrified
05-22-2014, 03:13 AM
#1
Racer
Thread Starter
cant C4 this frikin Bucket list ... Im electrified
electi fired up ... Im 64 young with my first Vette , any Vette
Im 64 and have made my living restoring many wonderful cars over the last forty ... Im not saying that its not been done buy a team effort ,
My specialties are in working jigs and sheet metals and especially racings demand for drastically modified body bodies including single piece removable front ends and drastic fairigns giant road racing slicks
I'm a bit short on the certificate for wiring entire systems at a snap
Im built from good old experience of 50 years hands on with my Probe tool
I general have made great success using my simple Snap On probe device
However ,
this pain in the *** short has got me at my knees for the moment
so let explain a bit here
when I turn ignition to on position and turn radio to the on position ,,,, the 20 ampfuse in the fuse box blows with a nice crack
this fuse would be the one in the top row of the fuse box - second to the left - it.s a 15 ampere fuse from factory
I tried 20 - snap - gone
I tried 30 amp snap - gone
the fuse itself gets so hot it melt the fuse completely with a 30 ampere fuse
I removed the entire radio and all connectors . this did not help
I see no overheated wires in the car hoping to get a clue .. no luck
gues this is what bothers me the most ...
I cannot locate a single over heated wire or relay or any switch that shows overheating
I have numerous ours in making a spread sheet of my possible hot spots
anyone got an Idea ... Im flippin out but these tings usually end up being some simple fix
Can you send me one of them ... hah ha
any advise is needed at this point
Lawrence from so cal
this fuse port feeds a ton of stuff , however , no previous problems have ever raised any sort of any sort before now , instantaaneously
Im 64 and have made my living restoring many wonderful cars over the last forty ... Im not saying that its not been done buy a team effort ,
My specialties are in working jigs and sheet metals and especially racings demand for drastically modified body bodies including single piece removable front ends and drastic fairigns giant road racing slicks
I'm a bit short on the certificate for wiring entire systems at a snap
Im built from good old experience of 50 years hands on with my Probe tool
I general have made great success using my simple Snap On probe device
However ,
this pain in the *** short has got me at my knees for the moment
so let explain a bit here
when I turn ignition to on position and turn radio to the on position ,,,, the 20 ampfuse in the fuse box blows with a nice crack
this fuse would be the one in the top row of the fuse box - second to the left - it.s a 15 ampere fuse from factory
I tried 20 - snap - gone
I tried 30 amp snap - gone
the fuse itself gets so hot it melt the fuse completely with a 30 ampere fuse
I removed the entire radio and all connectors . this did not help
I see no overheated wires in the car hoping to get a clue .. no luck
gues this is what bothers me the most ...
I cannot locate a single over heated wire or relay or any switch that shows overheating
I have numerous ours in making a spread sheet of my possible hot spots
anyone got an Idea ... Im flippin out but these tings usually end up being some simple fix
Can you send me one of them ... hah ha
any advise is needed at this point
Lawrence from so cal
this fuse port feeds a ton of stuff , however , no previous problems have ever raised any sort of any sort before now , instantaaneously
05-22-2014, 04:16 AM
#2
How about an internal failure in the radio itself? You should be able to confirm that by duplicating a load on that circuit using the 12V+ and the ground pins of the power connector BUT you mentioned removing the radio didn't help. I don't quite follow. With no radio in the car does the fuse blow when the key is turned to on?
I believe that the anti-theft is powered from the radio fuse also. I don't believe I've ever seen a speaker relay or an antenna relay cause the issue you mention either.
I believe that the anti-theft is powered from the radio fuse also. I don't believe I've ever seen a speaker relay or an antenna relay cause the issue you mention either.
Last edited by WVZR-1; 05-22-2014 at 04:35 AM.
05-22-2014, 07:08 AM
#3
Melting Slicks
i would by a circuit breaker and for testing purposes i would install it in place of the fuse. would pull the radio and move the wires around listen to the breaker. My quess is you have a pos wire grounding out on something the breaker will stop breaking once you move the right wire then you can go in and look futher.
05-22-2014, 07:27 AM
#4
Le Mans Master
Sounds like you need to get a multimeter and start back tracking the wires from the radio.. You may have a short and a meter is the best way to find it, just make sure you have it set high enough that you don't blow the meter once you start checking for the short...There are quite a few guys on here that know a great deal about the electrical systems on these cars.. WVZR-1 is one of them, hopefully some of the others will chime in also....WW
05-22-2014, 07:53 AM
#5
I haven't heard anything about a wiring diagram, that is the starting point for any electrical diagnosis. Once you have that in hand see what else may be on the circuit and trace each section using the FSM as your guide, blindly searching for wires that look "hot" is futile.
05-22-2014, 10:25 AM
#6
Race Director
I'm trying to understand your post also. The fuse blows when you turn the radio on and it still blows without the radio? I'm not quiet sure what the problem is, but don't keep replacing fuses with higher amp fuses. You'll start burning up wires or the car eventually.
05-22-2014, 11:03 AM
#7
Le Mans Master
Member Since: Oct 2004
Location: Everett WA
Posts: 7,690
Received 477 Likes
on
353 Posts
C4 of Year Finalist (appearance mods) 2019
With our cars it's really really helpful to have the two volume Factory Service Manual. You can often find them here in the C4 parts for sale section for $75.00
05-22-2014, 01:37 PM
#8
Race Director
What radio do you have, does it have amplified speakers?? If it has amplified speakers, there is a speaker relay behind the R/H side of the instrument panel, try unplugging it, it feeds the four amplified speaker units..
05-22-2014, 03:22 PM
#9
Safety Car
Whoa!! You can't find the problem with a bucket full of fuses!! First, let's verify you're working on an '84 'vette. Is that true? You didn't say that.
Second, You really do need that Factory Shop Manual (FSM). Your Corvette is 30 years old, is quite complex, and is apparently highly modified.
Third, Your excellent mechanical experience is good, but you need to be careful with the electrical stuff!!
The fuse you're having trouble with has (almost) nothing to do with the radio! It's marked "ctsy/clk" (15A). This fuse also feeds the cigarette lighter. Is there rust inside your cigarette lighter, probably from beverages spilled into the lighter socket? Or maybe a penny inside the socket? That would be the first place I'd look.
It looks like you have a "hard" short. A good way to track down this kind of problem is to fabricate a special test light. Use one of your dead fuses and solder two wires to the pins on the TOP of the fuse. (Trim the plastic if necessary.) Solder these wires to an old (good) headlight. Plug this into your offending fuse location. When you have a short, the light will come on, but nothing will burn!! If you don't have a short, most accessories will work just fine!! This is much nicer than using a circuit breaker and waiting for the circuit breaker to overheat!
This fuse also feeds your Bose speaker relay. If your radio has been changed out, you should remove your Bose relay (if you had the Bose). If the fuse only blows when you turn on the radio, this Bose relay is probably the problem, not the radio itself! The radio is on a different fuse.
Good luck!!
Second, You really do need that Factory Shop Manual (FSM). Your Corvette is 30 years old, is quite complex, and is apparently highly modified.
Third, Your excellent mechanical experience is good, but you need to be careful with the electrical stuff!!
The fuse you're having trouble with has (almost) nothing to do with the radio! It's marked "ctsy/clk" (15A). This fuse also feeds the cigarette lighter. Is there rust inside your cigarette lighter, probably from beverages spilled into the lighter socket? Or maybe a penny inside the socket? That would be the first place I'd look.
It looks like you have a "hard" short. A good way to track down this kind of problem is to fabricate a special test light. Use one of your dead fuses and solder two wires to the pins on the TOP of the fuse. (Trim the plastic if necessary.) Solder these wires to an old (good) headlight. Plug this into your offending fuse location. When you have a short, the light will come on, but nothing will burn!! If you don't have a short, most accessories will work just fine!! This is much nicer than using a circuit breaker and waiting for the circuit breaker to overheat!
This fuse also feeds your Bose speaker relay. If your radio has been changed out, you should remove your Bose relay (if you had the Bose). If the fuse only blows when you turn on the radio, this Bose relay is probably the problem, not the radio itself! The radio is on a different fuse.
Good luck!!
05-22-2014, 03:39 PM
#10
Safety Car
Whoa!! You can't find the problem with a bucket full of fuses!! First, let's verify you're working on an '84 'vette. Is that true? You didn't say that.
Second, You really do need that Factory Shop Manual (FSM). Your Corvette is 30 years old, is quite complex, and is apparently highly modified.
Third, Your excellent mechanical experience is good, but you need to be careful with the electrical stuff!!
The fuse you're having trouble with has (almost) nothing to do with the radio! It's marked "ctsy/clk" (15A). This fuse also feeds the cigarette lighter. Is there rust inside your cigarette lighter, probably from beverages spilled into the lighter socket? Or maybe a penny inside the socket? That would be the first place I'd look.
It looks like you have a "hard" short. A good way to track down this kind of problem is to fabricate a special test light. Use one of your dead fuses and solder two wires to the pins on the TOP of the fuse. (Trim the plastic if necessary.) Solder these wires to an old (good) headlight. Plug this into your offending fuse location. When you have a short, the light will come on, but nothing will burn!! If you don't have a short, most accessories will work just fine!! This is much nicer than using a circuit breaker and waiting for the circuit breaker to overheat!
This fuse also feeds your Bose speaker relay. If your radio has been changed out, you should remove your Bose relay (if you had the Bose). If the fuse only blows when you turn on the radio, this Bose relay is probably the problem, not the radio itself! The radio is on a different fuse.
Good luck!!
Second, You really do need that Factory Shop Manual (FSM). Your Corvette is 30 years old, is quite complex, and is apparently highly modified.
Third, Your excellent mechanical experience is good, but you need to be careful with the electrical stuff!!
The fuse you're having trouble with has (almost) nothing to do with the radio! It's marked "ctsy/clk" (15A). This fuse also feeds the cigarette lighter. Is there rust inside your cigarette lighter, probably from beverages spilled into the lighter socket? Or maybe a penny inside the socket? That would be the first place I'd look.
It looks like you have a "hard" short. A good way to track down this kind of problem is to fabricate a special test light. Use one of your dead fuses and solder two wires to the pins on the TOP of the fuse. (Trim the plastic if necessary.) Solder these wires to an old (good) headlight. Plug this into your offending fuse location. When you have a short, the light will come on, but nothing will burn!! If you don't have a short, most accessories will work just fine!! This is much nicer than using a circuit breaker and waiting for the circuit breaker to overheat!
This fuse also feeds your Bose speaker relay. If your radio has been changed out, you should remove your Bose relay (if you had the Bose). If the fuse only blows when you turn on the radio, this Bose relay is probably the problem, not the radio itself! The radio is on a different fuse.
Good luck!!
05-22-2014, 04:34 PM
#11
The fuse you're having trouble with has (almost) nothing to do with the radio! It's marked "ctsy/clk" (15A). This fuse also feeds the cigarette lighter. Is there rust inside your cigarette lighter, probably from beverages spilled into the lighter socket? Or maybe a penny inside the socket? That would be the first place I'd look.
It looks like you have a "hard" short. A good way to track down this kind of problem is to fabricate a special test light. Use one of your dead fuses and solder two wires to the pins on the TOP of the fuse. (Trim the plastic if necessary.) Solder these wires to an old (good) headlight. Plug this into your offending fuse location. When you have a short, the light will come on, but nothing will burn!! If you don't have a short, most accessories will work just fine!! This is much nicer than using a circuit breaker and waiting for the circuit breaker to overheat!
I like the "headlamp/sealed beam" choice for testing and I've used it BUT I've never soldered the leads to a fuse so that it could be plugged in. Maybe because my experiences started before the ATO fuses!
05-22-2014, 07:40 PM
#12
Team Owner
Pro Mechanic
05-23-2014, 12:53 AM
#14
Racer
Thread Starter
my 84 C4 cross fired Vette here ... certified
Whoa!! You can't find the problem with a bucket full of fuses!! First, let's verify you're working on an '84 'vette. Is that true? You didn't say that.
Second, You really do need that Factory Shop Manual (FSM). Your Corvette is 30 years old, is quite complex, and is apparently highly modified.
surprisingly original ... thanks to the previous 2 owners
Third, Your excellent mechanical experience is good, but you need to be careful with the electrical stuff!!
The fuse you're having trouble with has (almost) nothing to do with the radio! It's marked "ctsy/clk" (15A). This fuse also feeds the cigarette lighter. Is there rust inside your cigarette lighter, probably from beverages spilled into the lighter socket? Or maybe a penny inside the socket? That would be the first place I'd look .... your so quick and correct , I went straight outside to my C4 Vette a few minutes ago ... I did not see my lost penny or dime down in that lighter tunnel I kinda wish that Id find one .... no money or gold found ... ah **** ..' its funny though .. I was recently setting up my Tom tom unit to find a good mounting location ... I,ts actually a bit tight and not easy to find the sweet spot , We will get it there of course ,
I will be first in line when they make an after market glove box , you got any ideas on that one ... Im still spinning down from not understanding why they left that one by the way side
It looks like you have a "hard" short. A good way to track down this kind of problem is to fabricate a special test light. Use one of your dead fuses and solder two wires to the pins on the TOP of the fuse. (Trim the plastic if necessary.) Solder these wires to an old (good) headlight. Plug this into your offending fuse location. When you have a short, the light will come on, but nothing will burn!! If you don't have a short, most accessories will work just fine!! This is much nicer than using a circuit breaker and waiting for the circuit breaker to overheat!
right on
This fuse also feeds your Bose speaker relay. If your radio has been changed out, you should remove your Bose relay (if you had the Bose). If the fuse only blows when you turn on the radio, this Bose relay is probably the problem, not the radio itself! The radio is on a different fuse.
Good luck!!
Second, You really do need that Factory Shop Manual (FSM). Your Corvette is 30 years old, is quite complex, and is apparently highly modified.
surprisingly original ... thanks to the previous 2 owners
Third, Your excellent mechanical experience is good, but you need to be careful with the electrical stuff!!
The fuse you're having trouble with has (almost) nothing to do with the radio! It's marked "ctsy/clk" (15A). This fuse also feeds the cigarette lighter. Is there rust inside your cigarette lighter, probably from beverages spilled into the lighter socket? Or maybe a penny inside the socket? That would be the first place I'd look .... your so quick and correct , I went straight outside to my C4 Vette a few minutes ago ... I did not see my lost penny or dime down in that lighter tunnel I kinda wish that Id find one .... no money or gold found ... ah **** ..' its funny though .. I was recently setting up my Tom tom unit to find a good mounting location ... I,ts actually a bit tight and not easy to find the sweet spot , We will get it there of course ,
I will be first in line when they make an after market glove box , you got any ideas on that one ... Im still spinning down from not understanding why they left that one by the way side
It looks like you have a "hard" short. A good way to track down this kind of problem is to fabricate a special test light. Use one of your dead fuses and solder two wires to the pins on the TOP of the fuse. (Trim the plastic if necessary.) Solder these wires to an old (good) headlight. Plug this into your offending fuse location. When you have a short, the light will come on, but nothing will burn!! If you don't have a short, most accessories will work just fine!! This is much nicer than using a circuit breaker and waiting for the circuit breaker to overheat!
right on
This fuse also feeds your Bose speaker relay. If your radio has been changed out, you should remove your Bose relay (if you had the Bose). If the fuse only blows when you turn on the radio, this Bose relay is probably the problem, not the radio itself! The radio is on a different fuse.
Good luck!!
this little circuit testing instrument is pretty cool , it,s pulled me out of the woods many time over the years
I own the " Haynes " 84 thru 96 Vette shop manual ... not the bomb but usefull
this car is a virgin as far as the wiring , this is obvious and as far as I know from my car research .. Im clearly the 3rd owner and the car is / was 100 % stock , no rewires , add ons or changes .. thankyou
Please advise me to the exact location of that Bose relay
and re explain the fuse box explanation you provided me ... Im seeing that the CTSY/CLK fuse slot directely controls the radio and approx 10other functions .. to many for this old dude to remember at one time
I double checked the head Bose unit to find that it surely does handle the Bose system ... What am I missing bro ....
so basically I have attined some solid fact finding today and feel like a Bud- servacio is the next .. Im hoping it,s a direct connection to my entire soothing and cleansing of this old spirit center
I will let you know my direct exam results Manyana
Thanks so much my new Vette brother
L from the so cal coast
Cheers
05-23-2014, 01:01 AM
#15
Racer
Thread Starter
positiveley first after the Java connection
what crazy way to stat the day ... How simple and to the point ..
so obviusly simple ... got this manyana
your cool
Im thankful
so Cal moving forward and I will let you know asap
.... cant wait
Old school drop out and in one more glorious time
so obviusly simple ... got this manyana
your cool
Im thankful
so Cal moving forward and I will let you know asap
.... cant wait
Old school drop out and in one more glorious time