Bad Day...Smoked something...didn't get high!

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Back in Time

Back in Time

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Ever have one of those days? Just finished putting dash and gauges back together. Put the battery in and upon hooking up 2nd cable to it it was obvious I had a dead short somewhere.By the time I got the cable pulled back off there was a lot of smoke in the starter area. Couldn't find any burnt wires after a short inspection so I hooked the battery back up and all is well except I have no power anywhere inside the car.Starter cranks if you arc it with a screwdriver but no power to ignition switch or the wires to ammeter.Electrical is absolutely my worst nightmare so tomorrow the nightmare of tracing out the problem starts. Thanks for letting me vent.:violent1::violent1::banghead::banghead:
 
Yep, check the fuseable link....


PS: In hind sight, you should have inhaled.... LOL!
 
Electronics run on smoke... :???:

There's smoke inside the components and wires, and that is what it runs on. Like oil in an engine, you need enough smoke in there to do the job... :D

If you let too much smoke out of the electronics, then they can't work.... #-o


You have to keep the smoke on the inside of the electrical components and wires, because if you let too much of it out, there will not be enough for the electronics to function.... :pale:
 
krazykuda said:
Electronics run on smoke... :???:

There's smoke inside the components and wires, and that is what it runs on. Like oil in an engine, you need enough smoke in there to do the job... :D

If you let too much smoke out of the electronics, then they can't work.... #-o


You have to keep the smoke on the inside of the electrical components and wires, because if you let too much of it out, there will not be enough for the electronics to function.... :pale:
Click to expand...

Thanks for making me smile this morning :cheers::cheers:
 
He is good at that :D yes thank you Karl :D
 
memike said:
He is good at that :D yes thank you Karl :D
Click to expand...

You're welcome...

I'm here all week, be sure to tip your bartenders and servers.... :glasses7:

Sometimes it's best to laugh at your situation when the world is kicking you... :D

Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out of it alive... :blob:
 
Damn sorry about your luck. When I rewired my car. It had a section in the instructions for how to check for current draw.

To do this. You will need a test light.

Start by turning off all accessories. Place the ignition switch in the off position and close the doors to make sure the dome light is off. Now connect the Positive Battery cable. Before connecting the Negative cable. you should check for current draw. This can be done easily with a test light connected between the negative battery post and the negative battery cable. No light = no draw. If you have a no draw or just a really dim light, it is safe to connect the negative battery cable and start checking the system.

I copied this out of the manual. Its to late this time, but its a safe way to check for next time. Hope this helps and good luck
 
Thanks for all the tips...much appreciated. Took the day off from working on the car to take care of some Honey Do's. Back at it tomorrow.
 
Also chk yer alternator, working on Dads we melted the fusible link....not sure why... spoke with Del 67dart273 over the phone and the bugger was able to translate my gibberish n woes and diagnosed the problem (bad alt) in literally 2 minutes.
Just a thought, good luck
Not all smoke is bad just ask Willy...or Karl....LOL
 
For a test light to put in series with the battery - lead to detect excess current, you ought to use a low wattage standard light bulb, like a 25W or less. A standard 12v test light will light up with practically no current and will not be a good indicator for this type of testing. Even using a 12v parking lamp will be a better test light.

I suspect you will see light even with the 25W standard blub. There is obviously a short somewhere if you smoked the fusible link. Good thing it was there!
 
My guess is you shorted the hot lead on the back of the instrument cluster.

Before you go putting another fuseable link in, you need to check for shorts. Easiest way is use a volt ohm meter set to continuity.

If all you did was pull the instrument cluster then likely that is where the issue is. Pull up a scematic on your car and look for any wire or circuit that ends up connected to the + side of the battery. Use test leads from each circuit to ground. If you hear the beep, then short you have. Especially if very low ohms or 0 ohms is displayed.
 
Absolutely plan to find the short 1st....I have a hunch.... but Honey Do's and some promised work for our HOA has kept me out of the garage.
 
Just thought I'd update this in case someone cares.Hot lead to ammeter was shorted by a wayward heater cable.Fried the end off the wire on the hot lead in the bulkhead connection.Didn't even fry the fuseable link...a 2 cent wire plug and I'm back to running again.Now if this damn car would just finish itself:D:D:D. Thanks for the tips ...it helped.
 
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