help...I am stranded 500 miles from home...elec power gone

[giovengo]

please help...I was driving in town making a turn slow about 10 mph and the car quit running like someone pulled the plug. the car is a 1984 with 34000 miles...in near perfect condition...all equip that is switched on by the key in the acc, run, and start position quit working...the gauges and idiot lights dont work, the wipers,radio,and heater fan dont work...all the other lights work, the horn works. I have checked the fuse link near the battery and all the fuses in the fuse pannel and they are all good...all the chimes work like the key in the ignition while the door is open. the car is a manual with a/c , cruise, and tilt wheel...there are no mods..it is completly stock and I just now changed the stock tires...always stored in a dark heated garage...i have looked in the haynes manual but as you may know the haynes and others like it are not very good manuals.i have checked all the conectors and wireing and cant find anything wrong...i think it is the key switch but they usually don't quit or go bad while you are driving. I don't know the power flow from the battery to the switch...I really need to get home but i wont take this car to the GM dealer because i think they prob dont know as much as I do. any thought s would be welcome...thanks

[The Dark Side of Will]

I don't have an '84 manual.

I do have an '87 manual. I've heard the wiring is different, but I don't know by how much.

So to summarize your problem, you have no electrical power except to exterior lights and horn; none of your fuses are blown.
Do your interior lights have power?
What test equipment do you have available? Test light? Meter?

I looked a few things up in my '87 manual. That won't help. The '87 has the radio and horn both powered from the same fuse. One can't lose power while the other still has it. I don't know what could be applied to the '84 from that book and what couldn't.

[whipped]

Yeah, it kind of sounds like the ignition switch. You'll have to take off the steering wheel and dig into the column to replace it.

If your headlights work, I'd suspect that's the problem. I can't think of a way to test it... there might be a wire under the dash to check, but without an 84 diagram it would be impossible to find.

[ConvictedRedneck]

Same exact thing happened to me. Mine ended up being my starter that shorted out which in turn somehow ruined my battery.

[stimpy]

please help...I was driving in town making a turn slow about 10 mph

That's your problem. Fieros aren't supposed to go around corners slowly.

[befarrer]

Could be a fusable link. On 84's they dont have that power distribution stud like the 85+ have by the C500, they use the starter solenoid terminal. And that is where all the fusable links are. I have an 84 service manual, but my dad borrowed it on friday, so I dont have it with me.

[giovengo]

Thanks for your reply guys. The reply saying "Fiers aren't supposed to go around turns slow" added some humor to my humourless situation and I got a kick out of it. I do have a volt/ohm meter and have tested voltage where I could. I found no voltage in the fuse block on the acc and run equipment but that does not tell me anything. I would not get voltage there if the key switch was in the off position anyway and that is what is going on. It is acting as if the key was not turned on.

[Kohburn]

the actual switch that the key activates in on the bottom of the stearing column and gets moved by a metal rod if i remember right (sometimes i get my cars mixed up)

if you can take the bottom cover off the dash under the gauge pod then you should be able to see the switch.. if the switch isn't working then possible you could pull the right wires and twist em together to make it think the key is in the "ON" possition

once that is done you can just push start the car and drive
(basicly, hotwire the car)

[stimpy]

Thanks for your reply guys. The reply saying "Fiers aren't supposed to go around turns slow" added some humor to my humourless situation and I got a kick out of it.

Really that's about all I'm good for. Sorry I couldn't be more help, but I'm confident in the expertise of my peers.

[giovengo]

I found the problem...A wire from the starter sol. burnt in two. it was hidden in the plastic loom and was wraped with fire resistant cloth. Very hard to spot. I did not think the key switch had gone bad. They just don't go bad while you are driving. Apparently the wire is the feed for everything that is switched. Thanks for y'alls input and if I can do anything for y'all just give a shout.

[Kohburn]

I found the problem...A wire from the starter sol. burnt in two. it was hidden in the plastic loom and was wraped with fire resistant cloth. Very hard to spot. I did not think the key switch had gone bad. They just don't go bad while you are driving. Apparently the wire is the feed for everything that is switched. Thanks for y'alls input and if I can do anything for y'all just give a shout.

so you get the car back home?

[The Dark Side of Will]

I found the problem...A wire from the starter sol. burnt in two. it was hidden in the plastic loom and was wraped with fire resistant cloth. Very hard to spot. I did not think the key switch had gone bad. They just don't go bad while you are driving. Apparently the wire is the feed for everything that is switched. Thanks for y'alls input and if I can do anything for y'all just give a shout.

It was wrapped in insulation because it was a fusible link. I'm not sure how to rate, but you should replace it with an inline fuse holder and not normal wire.

[whipped]

I would imagine there was a reason it burnt in two, also.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Nah... it's a Fiero. Things just randomly heat up and catch on fire.

[befarrer]

Could be a fusable link. On 84's they dont have that power distribution stud like the 85+ have by the C500, they use the starter solenoid terminal. And that is where all the fusable links are. I have an 84 service manual, but my dad borrowed it on friday, so I dont have it with me.

I win. It is probably a fuseable link that burned, that is what they are supposed to do. They are a smaller grade wire than the rest of the circuit, so when too much power goes through, they heat up, and melt, just like how a fuse works, but instead of the metal wire between the 2 contacts in a fuse, it is the wire itself.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Except that it's an ENORMOUS PITA to fix when it does blow.

The next question is... what caused it to blow?

[txf]

I've noticed Autozone has started carrying multiple sizes of Fusible link wire.

[zonyl]

I've noticed Autozone has started carrying multiple sizes of Fusible link wire.

God knows why.. Can someone enlighten me on why car companies even used fusible links? Was it all just about saving the pennies on the inline fuse holder?

[Series8217]

I think they're generally more reliable than a an actual fuse because there's no corrosion of the connection to worry about. Nice to have good connections on a wire that might carry over 50 amps..

[whipped]

Yeah right. They were cheap.

Length of wire with special insulation cost < 1 billion amp fuse and holder cost

In addition, who burns out fusible links? I think they take the chance that they won't burn out before the warranty expires. Which in 1987 was probably like 1 year/10,000 miles. :la: