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96 cougar, INT fuse blows instantly upon replacement.

653 Views 32 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  OilBurner2003, 
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Know how I said until something breaks? Went to emissions, they failed me because the check engine light wouldn't flash upon cranking. I thought it was strange when I had codes on the computer but not on the dash. In my mind it was either a fuse related to the cluster or the bulb itself. Turns out this fuse is bad! Dunno if it actually will fix the light being off, but it control's a lot of stuff I would back. This 10 AMP fuse keeps blowing, instantly as soon as it makes contact. I'm sure some of you already know, but here's a list of what that fuse does.
Power mirrors;
Anti-theft lamp;
Trunk lamp;
Map lamps;
Vanity lamps;
Glove compartment lamp;
Engine compartment lamp;
Instrument panel lamps;
Rear courtesy lamps;
Door courtesy lamps;
Lock cylinder lamps;
Dome lamp

Seems like it's possible that could be causing my issue. So, that's why I'm here! Short maybe? Looking for thoughts, Thanks again!
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supergordo said:
If you need any electrical diagrams send me a private message. Ill send you pics. My computer is down so I’ve been checking the forum on the phone which isnt fun for me at the end of my day.
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Thank you so much! That’s very kind of you! The strangest thing, went to crank it just to see, starts right up. I suppose it’s a intermittent thing? Beats me. Ordered a new Starter.
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Intermittent alot of times can be due to corrosion. Sometimes there's enough current to move the started or a loose connection. You can check all those out when you're down there with a new starter.

I had to replace the wire from my battery to the starter on my old Cougar because of corrosion.

I also had an Impala that would not jump start with a low battery no matter what you did. Similar to you, was at the gas station, filled up and no start. Tow truck tried to jump me no dice. Towed home, put my meter on the batt and it was low. New battery and fired right up. That was a finicky B**ch; Chevys ya know.
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Kidd-7 said:
Intermittent alot of times can be due to corrosion. Sometimes there's enough current to move the started or a loose connection. You can check all those out when you're down there with a new starter.

I had to replace the wire from my battery to the starter on my old Cougar because of corrosion.

I also had an Impala that would not jump start with a low battery no matter what you did. Similar to you, was at the gas station, filled up and no start. Tow truck tried to jump me no dice. Towed home, put my meter on the batt and it was low. New battery and fired right up. That was a finicky B**ch; Chevys ya know.
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Really hoping I don’t have to lower the subframe to remove and reinstall. I installed it while I had subframe down for oil pan! So hopefully it’s not that complicated, gonna crawl under there today and see how much room I have.

Battery on this car is pretty old, wouldn’t be surprised if that in some way was apart of the issue. I’ll take it one step at a time.
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No need to drop the subframe. There is a thread on here with a pic of how to get to the bolts, some people leave the 3rd out, but that's cheating. It's an odd combination of extensions & U-joints to get in there.

Also, do you have a volt meter? It's pretty simple to check the charging system with one.
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Kidd-7 said:
No need to drop the subframe. There is a thread on here with a pic of how to get to the bolts, some people leave the 3rd out, but that's cheating. It's an odd combination of extensions & U-joints to get in there.

Also, do you have a volt meter? It's pretty simple to check the charging system with one.
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I do. Honestly, I haven’t checked the battery since I reassembled everything. I should do a test. I actually have the third bolt removed, because I only had two at the time! Maybe that’ll make it easier haha.
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Hook the voltmeter up to the battery posts and place it where you can see it form the drivers seat, usually up against the open hood works. Battery should read ~12.5v; start the engine and it should drop no more than 1v, any more than that and you'd got a bad cell in the battery. Once running you should read 14.4v. That means your alternator is charging the battery. You can also stress it by turning a bunch of stuff on and seeing how much voltage drops.
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Kidd-7 said:
Hook the voltmeter up to the battery posts and place it where you can see it form the drivers seat, usually up against the open hood works. Battery should read ~12.5v; start the engine and it should drop no more than 1v, any more than that and you'd got a bad cell in the battery. Once running you should read 14.4v. That means your alternator is charging the battery. You can also stress it by turning a bunch of stuff on and seeing how much voltage drops.
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Hey, those are good specs! Thanks for that! I’ll try and get that info today.
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Kidd-7 said:
Hook the voltmeter up to the battery posts and place it where you can see it form the drivers seat, usually up against the open hood works. Battery should read ~12.5v; start the engine and it should drop no more than 1v, any more than that and you'd got a bad cell in the battery. Once running you should read 14.4v. That means your alternator is charging the battery. You can also stress it by turning a bunch of stuff on and seeing how much voltage drops.
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Battery is reading 12.5. During idle, voltage goes from 13.2, to 14.4, and either goes to one or the other. Haha, still mad this starter is working when I turn the key lol..
Edit: After a min of idle with all accessories on, including A/C, staying at 14.2, rarely dropping below that.
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supergordo
Sounds like the alternator is good. Since you had the subframe down before just make sure your ground to the engine is nice and tight.
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supergordo said:
Sounds like the alternator is good. Since you had the subframe down before just make sure your ground to the engine is nice and tight.
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Starter out. Will make sure ground wire is tight before putting new starter in. Funny thing, it looks like someone…Shrink wrapped a part of the ground wire? Unless the factory did that.
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supergordo said:
Sounds like the alternator is good. Since you had the subframe down before just make sure your ground to the engine is nice and tight.
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Well, I’ll be damned. Started engine with new starter, sounded great. Turned off engine, went to start again…Same damn thing. No crank, starter won’t even try to engage, no signs of life other than the lights and everything else. Starter won't even click. The only thing that changed was the car was moved about 40 feet before I shut it off.



Well...Sounds almost like what I have. Doesn't matter how many times I cycle the key though.
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supergordo
Then take a look at the ignition switch.
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supergordo said:
Then take a look at the ignition switch.
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Will in the morning. At least my new starter sounded good!

Edit: Figured it out! Popped it in neutral and everything works as intended. Looks like I need a Neutral Safety Switch.
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