blaen99

iTrader: (6)

I am having major electrical gremlins, MT, and am desperately hoping for your help.

Started the 4828 install this weekend. During the install the usual things happened (Nothing fitting right, bolts shearing, The Usual), and I tugged on my wideband sensor wiring to get it apart - a tug on a wire that is entrenched in the center console.

The problem started with not having a working dimmer, no tail lights, and no gauges. Looked, found "Well, sonofabitch, I popped my fuse...somehow". Went in, replaced fuse, started back up....

Oh hey, everything works fine. Except for the goddamn 4-ways being on 24/7 now. Turn on my running lights, bam, 4-ways stop. In fact, if I have my running lights and/or headlights on, everything works perfectly fine. Even the 4-ways only turn on when I hit their button.

If I don't have the running lights or headlights on, the goddamn 4-ways come on and stay on.

Solutions MT? Searching revealed CRAP ALL for hazards on 24/7, except for a random post about an alarm that was obviously not relevant.

Thanks guys!

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

Anyone? Having to skip class today because not-working-Miata, so yeah. Suck on my end due to this.

18psi

iTrader: (76)

start tracing wires and see where you shorted them dawg.

wish I could be of more help, but thats all I could think of

hornetball

iTrader: (4)

This. By pulling, you've almost certainly shorted a wire to ground by cutting the insulation along a sharp piece of sheet metal. Likely on the negative side of your 4-ways. To get more help, we would need the year of the car to look at the correct wiring diagram.

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

DAMNIT. I'm sad in the pants to hear that.

It's a 1991 Mazda Miata.

Another piece to the puzzle I discovered today: If I have my running lights on, but pull the fuse for the running lights, the 4-ways are on no matter what - I have to pull the battery to stop the 4-ways.

18psi

iTrader: (76)

Better bust out the sawzall bro

hornetball

iTrader: (4)

The only real common point between flashers and the running light systems is the stalk. That doesn't seem very likely, although something there might have fried.

Both the hazards and the turn indicators run to a common box (that might also be fried). Logical place to start might be that box. It's up under the steering column off course.

There should be a connector with 7 pins. If you pull the connector off, you can ohm the pins with a multimeter to start troubleshooting. Pins are as follows:

Black/Red Wire: Power -- Hot at all times -- Goes to 15A Hazard Fuse
Green/White Wire: Right Turn Indicator Power -- Goes to all the flasher lights on the passenger side.
Green/Black Wire: Left Turn Indicator Power -- Goes to all the flasher lights on the driver's side.
Orange Wire: Goes to the Hazard Warning Switch. This wire should normally be open and is pulled to ground when the Hazard Switch is active. Likely place for a short to cause flashing.
Green/Yellow Wire: Goes to Left Turn Switch on stalk. This wire provides power (from the 10 amp meter fuse) when the Left Turn Switch is made.
Green/Red Wire: Goes to Right Turn Switch on stalk. This wire provides power (from the 10 amp meter fuse) when the Right Turn Switch is made.
Black Wire: Ground for the Box

If you fried the box, it's about $65 from Mazda for a new one.

BTW, somewhere on here is the FSM for a 1992 (posted by J. Perez -- sticky I think). That would have wiring diagrams in it. Would be the same wiring as a 1991.

Yoga is in order.

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

Thanks Hornet.

Think I can get by @ one drive a day for 4 days until the weekend where I can pull this sucker apart and find out wtf is happening?

hornetball

iTrader: (4)

Pull your Hazard Fuse and give hand signals for turns. That should get you by.

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

Sounds good. Thanks man, I'll take a long crack at it this weekend.

Seefo

iTrader: (5)

Actually, I think its a grounding issue. Random, but with the ignition on and a ground missing, I have had **** randomly turn on before (I can't remember exactly, I think it was either a dash light or an interior light). Perhaps you forgot a ground somewhere? (engine, intake manifold, 3 or 4 under the dash, etc.)

Particularly for me, I always seem to forget the intake manifold ground (99 NB).

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

Left turn signal is now not working. There's a burnt wire that apparently let out the magic smoke on the radio too.

I'm going to be pulling apart the car today and saying eff homework. This is an extraordinarily bad time for this all to be happening :(.

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

All right.

Latest update:

Turn signals now work again. The flasher was not plugged in hard enough. This fixed some odd behavior across the turn signals/etc.

4-ways still come on if my running lights aren't on. If my running lights or headlights are on, however, they stay off until I hit the 4-way button.

My stereo is dead.

I went through every fuse in the car. They were all perfect.

I went through all the grounds. For some odd reason, there are only 1, maybe 2 grounds in the center console - but it's also obviously been rewired. Every other ground is as expected, except for the engine to chassis ground - but that ground was not even there went I bought the car, and it has worked perfectly up until now. I can get one to throw on if people really think it'll help, however?

With that said, even after going through everything, no wires are sliced, cut, or otherwise damaged in the center console. I visually and physically inspected (No multimeter, sadly) every single wire under the dash and in the center console that are physically possible to. No wires were obviously cut or otherwise damaged.

I don't have a multimeter local, but I am at a loss now for what to do even if I did have a multimeter. I don't know what to do and am hoping to get suggestions.

Seefo

iTrader: (5)

Definitely, I would buy some thick wire and put the engine ground on. 6 gauge should do just fine and would be easily available from an car audio store.

Also, under dash grounds:

1 under the stereo dash thing (its off to the side)
1 behind the steering wheel area
and I think 1 more for the ECU.

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

Will do tomorrow.

Check on these two

Uncheck on this. Got a better location?

Seefo

iTrader: (5)

You know, I have always thought the ECU ground was the one behind the steering wheel and its mounting location, but I was corrected a while back on that. Never really looked into, just assumed I was blind when I pulled my whole dash and never noticed a 3rd ground wire there. So probably don't worry about that for now or see if you can find a location on it.

Try this thread:
Those 5 Ground Wires Under the Brake Booster - MX-5 Miata Forum

Couple more listed here:
Anyone have a list of all the factory grounds? - MX-5 Miata Forum

Another one here:
https://www.miataturbo.net/general-m...ocation-19644/

Also, make sure the Intake manifold ground is on tight. (I think I mentioned this earlier??)

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

Car never came with an intake manifold ground I don't believe, I'll double check that tomorrow.

Miater

Try swapping the headlight relay, and flasher for known good ones.

The problem started with not having a working dimmer, no tail lights, and no gauges. Looked, found "Well, sonofabitch, I popped my fuse...somehow". Went in, replaced fuse, started back up....

What caused this to blow?

Make sure all connectors are together tight and that every pin is in place.


best of luck

blaen99

iTrader: (6)

That one will be hard to do immediately. I'll do what I can.

The entire problem is I'm unable to find out what the hell happened with that fuse. Also: Stereo dead, no fuses dead. wtf?

Miater

Something fried in the radio.

Was the radio tied into the dimmer switch for the back lighting?

Is the radio still hooked up but dead?

Does the dimmer switch smell burnt?