Re: Wire Mystery? Smoke in the Cabin

["cruznmd" <racuti1@xxxx>]

Willie,

Heavy gauge brown wires go to a few things in the car. You really 
need a wiring diagram to trace it out correctly.

BTW, if the fuse had blown, and you had smoke and odor, the fuse in 
the ckt was too high for the application. The wiring was burning 
before the fuse blew. IF you elect to keep the circuit as is, use a 
smaller rated, slow blow fuse. Or possibly a fuse rated the same as 
the one that blew but quick blow vs. slow.

Consulting my diagram here, I see:

1. Brown/pink running from the inertia switch to the door lock relay 
and the locks. 
2. Solid brown running from main fuel relay to RPM relay.
3. Solid brown running from main fuel relay to "aux relay" via 2 
wiring harness main junctions.
4. Brown/orange running from fan relays to otterstat.
5. Solid brown from 3rd & 4th speed relays to fan breaker to wiring 
harness junction. (the people fan, not the engine fans)

Based on what you said you had running at the time, it could be the 
brown for the fuel pump as that is -always- running when the car runs 
and maybe the fan wiring depending on what your engine temp was when 
the car died. Were you idling in traffic?

I doubt it was the locks. Even if you have the OEM module and it was 
trying to lock you in/unlock you in, the thermal trip would have 
kicked in before the odor and fuse problems.

Get Ye a wiring diagram. Hope this helps,

Rich
#5335

--- In dmcnews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, wmack <wmack@xxxx> wrote:
> Group,
> 
> I was driving down the road on saturday, as I was stopped at a 
stoplight, the 
> car suddenly died. Just out of the blue cuts off. I manage to get 
it to the 
> side of the road, and for some reason it refires. I pull it 
quickly into the 
> next parking lot to take a look at it. But on the way to the 
parking lot my 
> wife and I smell something burning, and next thing we know there is 
smoke 
> filling the cabin. I made it to the parking lot, and opened the 
access panel 
> to the fuse box and electrical compartment. 
> There is a large group of wires bundled together that runs 
underneath/just 
> behind the fuse box. There was one brown wire, maybe 14 guage, 
that the 
> previous owner had spliced an inline fuse into it. The burning and 
the smoke 
> was from the fuse melting, I think that is why the car cut off, 
because the 
> wire was basically cut. 
> Anyway, my question is what does this wire do? And why would it 
overheat, 
> besides maybe having the wrong fuse in it. That day, I had the car 
on, and 
> the radio thats it, no ac, nothing else.
> I've had the car for 3 1/2 years, this is the first electrical 
problem I've 
> had.
> 
> Any suggestions would be appreciated.
> Thanks
> Willie Mack
> Vin 5043