Bad problem!! Won't start. Details inside. HELP! -fixed :)

JohnnyC · Post by **JohnnyC** » Thu May 18, 2006 10:02 am

I was installing my new reverse glow gauge setups when something horrible happened.

I was hooking up the fog lights back to their switch when I accidently plugged in one of the three wires wrong and got a nasty spark. I tried pulling connector back off and it wouldn't come off... second later smoke started rising from the wire, which then began to accelerate in it's smoking. I pulled the wires out to stop the connection and to get the smoldering wires out of the dash as fast as possible. The wires came free (and pulled my tach out along with it...

Then as the smoke went all over, the horn started going off. I popped the hood and quickly pulled the negative battery cable off (I hadn't disconnected it because I didn't think I needed to for what I was doing).

Since it was just blowing the horn if I hooked up the battery, I pushed the car into the back garage to take a look.

Sure enough, the wires all the way up to the fuse for the fog lights was completely melted out. Luckily it didn't seem to have melted anything else beyond the fog light switch wires themselves. Keep in mind that this was an aftermarket fog light system so it wasn't in with the rest of the wire bundles. I checked the bundles all the way through as best I possibly could. I also pulled all the shorted out/melted wires from the fog lights out of the car.

Eventually after I got them all clear of the system, I decided I would check to see if the horns were still going off if I hooked up the battery or if anything else wasn't working with the electrical system.

I hooked up the battery. The regular lights are working, interior lights are working. Dash lights are also working. Turning the key to the on position gives the normal lights on the cluster. I waited until I could hear the fuel pump prime up (that noise you can here when you just turn it to the on position) and then attempted to start it up. I got a rather loud audible "CLICK" but nothing else. No cranking over at all.

Tried turning it over a second time... same click.

What did I screw up? (besides the fog light system and yanking my tach out)?

I still can't believe that all happened. It happened so fast.

Please help!

I'm going to try and get a little sleep and I'll check back. Hopefully one of you will have noticed this post and will have some ideas for me to check/try.

Daniel · Post by **Daniel** » Thu May 18, 2006 10:24 am

The click sound your hear is probably the starter solenoid engaging. This is good news.
My bet is your battery is down or you got a gound connection issue. Try another batt to see or check the voltage terminals under starting load.

Daniel

MMamdouh · Post by **MMamdouh** » Thu May 18, 2006 11:17 am

yeah... the short circuit you developed seems like a strong one and maybe drained a good chunk of the battry charge, try to bump start the car... if it did start normally then it is either a dead battry or a starter probelm (i doubt that though).

also press the hrn and turn on the head lights... if the horn sound noticably change due to the headlights then it is a battry charge issue.

MMamdouh

JohnnyC · Post by **JohnnyC** » Thu May 18, 2006 5:58 pm

Well... since the whole flight or fight thing has subsided and I went back over the system, I wasn't getting a full connection to the positive terminal. When I disconnected the power to the fog lights, I had loosened the secondary bolt on the battery lead. Started up and is running fine. Of course now I have to find out if I thrashed my tach beyond use or not.

JohnnyC · Post by **JohnnyC** » Thu May 18, 2006 7:34 pm

Tach is fine too!

whew... so the only loss in the meltdown was the fog light system. I think the lights themselves are probably okay, but the whole wiring system for them from the fuse to the switch was a total loss.

Looks like I'll be investing in some new fog lights eventually... hehe in the meantime, they're just decoration I guess.

Daniel · Post by **Daniel** » Thu May 18, 2006 7:41 pm

You're a very lucky man, man.

Daniel

JohnnyC · Post by **JohnnyC** » Thu May 18, 2006 7:44 pm

Daniel wrote:You're a very lucky man, man.

Daniel

Hehe yeah... my friends tell me that all the time.

daewoomofo · Post by **daewoomofo** » Thu May 18, 2006 9:22 pm

ok so lets see the guages!

kroz123 · Post by **kroz123** » Fri May 19, 2006 2:49 am

very very lucky man indeed

ubuyau · Post by **ubuyau** » Fri May 19, 2006 9:37 am

JohnnyC wrote:so the only loss in the meltdown was the fog light system.

Sounds like u need just a little thicker gauge wiring to the foggies

You're lucky man

Good troubleshooting.

--Tim

daewoomofo · Post by **daewoomofo** » Fri May 19, 2006 10:20 am

yeah jsut run new wired for the fog lights, its really easy. and that way you dont have to get new ones