Coil/wiring problem...major pain

[led_fut]

so ive been driving the last month without turn signals, which i dont think is legal but i havent been able to figure out the problem and am too cheap to bring it in (college).

the 10A fuse (turn signals, tach, fuel guage, temp guage, cruise indicator, brake warning lamp, etc.) was blowing for no apparent reason a while agao, but now blows instantly, everytime i try.

i bought a 10A circuit breaker in order to try and narrow it down, with no luck. but tonight, i had a brilliant idea to try it in the dark and see if i can find a spark. after trying for a while, i could hear a crackle come from teh coil area. i started grabbing wires to see if i could get a shock, and finally, when i slipped my hand under the coil - SNAP - big shock for me.

i could now see arcing in the wire that runs from the rotor to the coil, so i disconnected that, but the fuse still blows. disconnected wires, one at a time, from the coil, still blows. took the coil completely off and the fuse still goes. so my thinking is it might be in the wiring directly leading to the coil. but i could be wrong.

i am getting really frustrated with this problem, and am hoping that some of you experienced accord owners can help me out

any info greatly appreciated!

[Oldblueaccord]

Well your on the right track. Since its still blowing fuses I would unhook everything thats on that cuircuit then add it back one thing at a time and see where your at.

As far as the turn signals Im pretty sure in the state of New Jersey they unhook the turn signals at the dealership :bowrofl: no need for them no one usues them.


wp

[led_fut]

on the weekend i spent an afternoon at it and disconnected the whole guage cluster to ensure the short wasnt somewhere in there...disconnected all the circuits one at a time and the fuse still went...

but i can definately hear a faint snapping noise in teh engine compartment by the coil...its got to be in the wiring somewhere.

as far as how the current jumped from the wiring to me when i stuck my hand under teh coil...i dont know.. there are no wires under the coil casing.

right now, im leaning toward the tachometer wiring that leads into the coil... not sure which colour that one is...if anyone knows that would be great... and ill just follow that wire away from the coil, retape it all up nice, and see if that works

might be a good opportunity for new plugs/wires/cap/rotor while im at it...

opinions/thoughts welcome...especially if anyone knows problem areas for 17 year old wiring

[Oldblueaccord]

well if it shocked you then its high voltage and the only thing that makes high voltage is the coil and the wire to the tach (maybe the cruise as well I dunno). Everything else is 12 volts DC no shocks. Not sure if it going to ground would make a fuse blow I still would check other stuff like the bulbs in the lights and such that can blow and short out.

wp

[jlros75]

I would check the front and back bulbs from signal lights, Have you replace any of those lately? I'm asking because something like that hapened to my car shortly after I replaced the front bumper lights; the car was blowing the turn signal fuse as soon as I activated the turn signals. After a few painfully months trying to figure out the problem and removing the cluster, driver fuse panel, and a lot of other stuff a friend of mine told me to check the bulbs, I remembered that I replaced those to pass inspection test and never took them out. After removal of those bulbs the shorth was fixed.. so the problem were those bulbs. It will be whorth a try.

[led_fut]

i was curious before about the turn signal bulbs too, so i replaced them all. but the fuse doesnt blow when i use my turn signals. plus, the hazards, which are on a different circuit work fine.

right now its blowing all the time but before it was blowing completely at random times... adding to the frustration... sometimes when i get in its fine and then i have to drive for a few minutes before it goes.

But i think oldblueaccord is on to it... i can hear the short near the coil, and the only thing connecting the coil to the circuit thats blowing is the tach (as far as i can tell)... so, when i have some daylight hours to spare, i will find the tach wire and check for a break...

does anyone know what colour the tach wire off the coil is?

[led_fut]

update:

checked all wiring to coil...not breaks, taped anything that possibly could be. then thought maybe the sparking sound was coming from rotor area, so removed all spark wires and rotor cap...suddenly fuse doesnt blow. so, replaced all of that, started the car up, all good still. but as soon as i started rolling...SNAP. (insert word of your choice here)!! FOR CRYING OUT LOUD.

the only explanation i can think of is there is a loose wire somewhere, and the fiddling around is causing it to make a good connection, but as soon as the engine vibrates (like clutch shudder when starting off), it shorts again...

i really dont know.... i just have to walk away and try again...but really...soooo frustrating

[88Accord-DX]

Electrical problems will break or make you trying to work on your own car. Without a good Fluke digital mulitmeter & wiring schematic, good luck man. (all I will say about it)

[led_fut]

so, off i went to crappy tire to get new cap/rotor/plugs/wires... and while i was installing the rotor cap (which turned out to be the wrong one of course)
i noticed a wire that was dangerously close to a pipe coming directly off the exhaust manifold..

sure enough, it was melted and almost burned right through, as you can see in the pic. you can see the pipe it was touching to the left with the sleeve.. at this point i had ziptied the wire out of the way to determine if it was the cuase, it was right up against it originally. sure enough, the fuse hasnt blown at all.
http://img78.imageshack.us/img78/2906/house011circledtb9.th.jpg (http://img78.imageshack.us/my.php?image=house011circledtb9.jpg)
but this explains alot... the wire runs straight to the thermostat.. i assume its for temp guage, explains the one time i got a temp reading in the red on a cold car.... guess it was measuring exhaust temp and not coolant lol.

so, im a happy camper once again, spent alot of hours working on this

thanks alot for all the help, both from hours of searching and those who posted, and hopefully someone else solves their problem faster if this proves to be a trouble spot for other 3gs