Please Help, MAJOR electrical problem..

[Chrisbgft]

Okay, it all started about a month ago when i had my DVD player and Screen installed. The install went great and i was had it all done for our show. So a week after that i am driving to SummerFest in Milwaukee. I am half way there when my ABS light comes on. Then the SRS, followed by the Brake light. My Powersteering turned off, then all my lights started to dim. So i pulled to the side and shut the car off. Its dead. So we push it and get it jump started. Drive about 10 minutes. Same thing happens. So we pull over and disconnect everything electrical in my car. We open the hood and realize the guy wired the powerwire from the DVD player to my FUSEBOX. Its connected to one the the 2 screws in the front of the box. So we cut that possibly thinking that is the problem. Get the car jumped and its fine for 2 weeks. Now i go to court and the samething happens. We took the alternator out and its perfect. Like New. We had all the solenoids checked and all. its PERFECT. The battery will just not keep a charge. I cant even drive my car now cuz it will not even drive for 5 minutes w/ otu something screwing up. I think its something to do with the fusebox. Let me know what u think. thanx...chris.

[ssvr6]

Wow..I don't man. I thought it was just the DVD player, but now...

Steve

[Chrisbgft]

sorry, accidentally pressed enter before i was finish!

[Chrisbgft]

okay, well thanx...hopefully we have a electrician on the board somewhere!

[JSIR]

you can pretty much expect to have a short to ground somewhere in the vehicle. I know it doesn't help but that is likely the problem. A short to ground will bleed power from the battery 24/7. So its not the battery but an accessory that is shorted or improperly wired. You have a hot wire with 12 volts that is unintentionally touching or improperly wired to a ground source which is bleeding off power. Highly unlikely to happen with the stock wiring so it must be an accesory like the one you added.

I had that problem with an SAFC I once wired up.

hth

Joey

[Chrisbgft]

thanx, that helps alot! See, after it happened i took all the audio stuff out. I think it was where he had the DVD power wired to. Right to the fusebox. I have a feeling it shorted a wireout in the fusebox possibly. If u open our fusebox u will see 2 screws right in the front. He wired it to the one on the right...

[chunky]

why don't you let the guy who installed it fix it? doesn't he waranty his work?

As mentioned before, I'd look for a short somewehre.

it is strange though that the car shuts off when it's already running - the car should be able to run on just the alternator alone - it will want to stall at idle though, and the EPS light will come on (the battery buffers the entire system).

Check the connections and make sure he didn't wire the fusebox directly to the alternator. If my memory serves me correctly, one of those two screws in your fusebox leads to the battery, the other to the alternator. look for miswiring near there.

[TomR123]

My friend has a similar problem on his mustang, heres what he did: Hook up a current tester to your battery and pull fuses. The fuse that makes the votage jump up will be what is causing the short, its just narrowing down the device and wiring that is on that fuse. Hope it helps

[Chrisbgft]

Yea, i just dont how to check for a short, considering its on the screw where he wired it to. How would i check for a short then?

[JSIR]

well you need a voltmeter. Hook it up to the battery negative and positive terminal and read the voltage. If the voltage is dropping on a regular basis then you have a short. For example if you get 12 volts reading at first read, then it drops to 11.9 volts five seconds later, then 11.8 volts five seconds after than, and so on, and so on, then you have a short. Pull individual fuses until the voltage stabilizes. Chances are that the guy wired the accessory to a 12 volt source in the vehicle , some wire under the dash which had 12 volts to it. And that source is shorted somehow, maybe some wire melted causing a short too in a place you can't see unless you look for it. Its hard to find but you have to start somewhere. Unless you take it back to the installer.

Joey

[BlackNRedSi]

Originally posted by JSIR
well you need a voltmeter. Hook it up to the battery negative and positive terminal and read the voltage. If the voltage is dropping on a regular basis then you have a short. For example if you get 12 volts reading at first read, then it drops to 11.9 volts five seconds later, then 11.8 volts five seconds after than, and so on, and so on, then you have a short. Pull individual fuses until the voltage stabilizes. Chances are that the guy wired the accessory to a 12 volt source in the vehicle , some wire under the dash which had 12 volts to it. And that source is shorted somehow, maybe some wire melted causing a short too in a place you can't see unless you look for it. Its hard to find but you have to start somewhere. Unless you take it back to the installer.

Joey

Good idea, also if that doesnt work, take the wires out that the installer used...but better yet like someone mentioned...take it back to the guy that did it...If he did it for you as a favor, ask him to fix it for you....