blowing fuses

[xjon]

My whole interior lights are out including my radio. Checked the fuses and found the one. It is located at the drivers kick panel labeled "room lamp 10amp". The problem is that if I replace the fuse, it just pops instantly. What is the problem?

More info. This started when I took a high speed turn, sweeping right and I had a stroller in the trunk. I heard a loud thunk. All my plastic panels are gone. What could the stroller have hit or broken to cause this problem inside the car?

TIA

[180fan]

grounding out somewhere. find out where it's grounding and you'll find what's causing your fuses to blow.

[xjon]

Grounding?- You mean when a powered wire hits the body of the car? Or the black wire loose?

[s13sr20chris]

you have a powered wire hitting the body or some other ground source. you can narrow the prob down by unplugging some harness connectors in different areas and see if the fuse blows. if not, plug them in one at a time untill it does. then you know which wires to follow.

[xjon]

Great tip. Thanks.

[Hellion240sx]

WOW thats exactly whats happening in my car right now... can you guys go into a lil more detail cuz im not good with wires and what not. as in harness connectors? where are they located?

[s13sr20chris]

harness connectors are everywhere. they are the plastic things that connect wires(and harnesses) together. for example if the brake lamps were in the circuit and you wanted to eliminate them you would...1)access the lights and unplug them2)if prob persists, trace wires back and unplug further upstreametc.

this can also be done in the reverse where you unplug like just about everything you can think of and work your way back. the reverse method blows less fuses but takes longer. i have a little circuit breaker that i use so i can use the fast method at work.

[Hellion240sx]

see the weird things is it will work for a few days then it will blow a couple of days later?!?!? wtf??!?!?!?! so how would i figure that oine out? if it bust at different times?

[s13sr20chris]

well then thats called an intermittant problem. say hello to my no.1 headache at work. you have to do the wiggle test on the harness. that or drive around with different things unplugged for a while.

[benemorius]

Sounds like you just smashed up your trunk light and it is shorted now....

[Hellion240sx]

hmmm but i havent don anything to my trunk lights, well its a hatchback. so just wiggles the part where its plugged up and thats how i find out whats the problem?

[s13sr20chris]

yeah, you wiggle all the harnesses until the fuse blows again.

[slipnfall]

Check your trunk/hatch interior light(s) if you have 'em. That stroller flopping around in the back could have beat the bulb socket up pretty bad.

The only other wires that would be remotely related to that fuse could be the sound system; you mentioned it was a hatch, so I doubt you have the active(amplified) factory stereo system. You don't even have deck speakers do you? If you have any type of speakers in the trunk, pull your head unit/audio source: it's unlikely to happen, but a shorted speaker wire can pop a fuse(because the head unit/source is pulling too much current attempting to drive a shorted load).

My money is on an interior bulb...HTH,-Slip

[Hellion240sx]

OK WIGGLED ALL THE HARNESSES ON THE BACK OF THE TAILLIGHTS AND NONE oops caps lock, were it. o well. I have no speakers in the back fully gutted. i am going to try the stereo tomorrow. i believe the fronts were active but cut those for the new speakers years ago.

interior bulb? like a burnt out bulb?

[slipnfall]

No, a burnt bulb will open, not short. I said 'bulb', because that's what that fuse controls, bulbs.