[marcpilot1]

Man, this is going to be a hard one guys. Last week the radio blew the red 10 amp in the inside of car's fusebox..Its the #5 one, says int lamps-radio mem. Now, when it would blow the radio would not show the time when it was off or come on at all. I'd slap a new one in and it'd work for a week or less even. But no biggie, just pop another one in and back to normal. Well, now I got some problems. Other day I put one in and it worked for 10 secs and blew quick this time. I got mad and threw another in and this time it blows basically right in my fingers. I get mad and go through a box of about 12 or so more. They keep popping in my hand right when i barely get em in. And now the rearview map lights dont work. And also now, the keys have to be in the ignition with the key turned to the one before it cranks for the trunk button to open the trunk or the key fob to unlock or lock the doors. I tried 3 other radios and none come on so its not the radio. Also, the fuse doesnt blow anymore. No fuses are blown in the entire fuse box in the car. I also switched the bigger two silver ones in the fuse box and the big black square one just for heck of it. I get em almost free so i just tried that but that didnt do a thing. Its weird, now the fuse doesnt blow at all. half the interior dioesnt work now either and the keyfob doesnt work unless ignition is turned on. Any ideas ya'll. Im in trouble over here. I have that 25 dollar meter from Advance. That black one.

 

[Bob Lincoln]

Sounds like a short circuit in the radio harness. Maybe the insulation is nicked and it only blows a fuse when a bare portion of wire touches another, or something metal behind the dash.

 

[ImperialCrown]

Is there 12 volts at either end of fuse #5 in the Junction Block (JB)? If not, you will have to work back towards the underhood PDC and battery feed (A7).
Do you still have brake lights?
The fuse #5 output is a Pink or Pink/stripe wire. Somewhere there is a short to ground.

 

[Jerry Simcik]

Yeah, that circuit is more than just the radio. I'd start by examining the other systems mentioned to see if they are working. You've got a short somewhere, it's just that you need to find it.

My guess would be one of the lamps or the amp, as they tend to be the cause of these issues...

Anyway, there are two fuse boxes on this car. Have you checked the fuses under the hood? If you blew one of them, it will kill the circuit but not blow the interior fuse. So, do you have any blown fuses under the hood?

 

[marcpilot1]

Blown fuse under the hood. 20 amp. And that took care of the radio, the keyfob, the trunk button, but the lights arent coming on still at the rearview. I guess i'll check that connector up at the rearview tomorrow. But again, big help you guys. And heres something i learned. The lone little black wire behind the radio with the tiny black clip on the end, it HAS to be clipped up to the silver piece of metal on the backside of the radio or you get problems. Thats where the shoirt was. So I def had a short and def had a blown fuse but blown in the junction block under hood, not inside car. Thanks! Oh, theres still another wiring issue. The a/c was wired straight to the control module from the batteryh or somewhere undert the hood. It caught on fire because the floor and around the door then under the hood all the way to the battery area has a burn line. A big thick one too. It runs out the pass door then back under hood across top of motor all the way to battery somewhere. What weould I need to do to 1st to get a/c back working? Any ideas?

 

[marcpilot1]

Is that diagram for the sebring? Im sure it is. It looks like I can trace things all the way to the relays in the junction block under the hood. Id love to know how to interprate the thing. I think it would help me check voltage maybe. Or help with some pretty important things I could poss figure out with that new voltage meter i got from Advance. Thanks for the help with the radio,, shorts and the other things that were not working. Its def almost all working now. Big help.

 

[Bob Lincoln]

The lone little black wire behind the radio with the tiny black clip on the end, it HAS to be clipped up to the silver piece of metal on the backside of the radio or you get problems. Thats where the shoirt was.

That wire is a ground wire, not energized. So it was not a short circuit in itself. It has to be connected to the male faston tab for the radio to work properly, but it won't cause a blown fuse unless an energized wire touches it.

 

[Jerry Simcik]

Bob is right about that. Your short is most likely somewhere else. It that ground cable is not connected though, you will have issues with the radio - like the clock losing time, and radio stations not working, and a few other things could happen.

Anyway, to interprate the diagram it helps to know what you're looking at:

The "C#" notations are connector numbers. The numbers next to those notations are the pin locations of that wire within the given connector. If you had a factory service manual, it would show you exactly where that numbered connector is.

The "S#" notations are splices.

The three lines of letters and numbers in each line (which represents a wire) are the subsection of the wiring harness, the guage of the wire, and the color of the wire. (PK/WT is Pink with a White tracer.)

The dashed squares indicate areas where other sub-circuits or systems exist.

The circles with x's in them are bulbs.

 

[ImperialCrown]

The PDC (power distribution center) is the fuse/relay box under the hood. The JB (junction block) is the fuse/relay box in the dash. The JB also includes the BCM (body control module) on this car.
The short-to-ground may be still in the interior lighting circuit. Since the overhead map lights aren't working, there may be a problem in that circuit. Follow the Pink wire up the 'A'-pillar and along the windshield header to the rearview mirror. Do the visor vanity mirror illumination lights work?
The burned A/C control wire (?) will also have to be addressed. It almost sounds like someone may have added that wire.
No doubt that you will need wiring diagrams with color codes and harness routing information if you are going to be doing this level of diagnosis and service. A factory service manual is the way to go. A large local library may have factory service manuals or a subscription to Alldata or you can purchase a set for the car. Consider them as a tool purchase. They can pay for themselves in a short amount of time:

http://www.amazon.com/Convertible-Including-Powertrain-Transmission-JX-Platform/dp/B002ZNDS0E

 

[Jerry Simcik]

Completely agree with ImperialCrown, the FSM is the way to go, especially if you intend to keep the car long term.

However, while you're waiting on your FSM to arrive, go here:

arrc.ebscohost.com

Login = tech
Password = tech

There is a very nice wiring diagram section there for that car, which may help you out quite a bit.

BTW, which fuse was blown?

 

[marcpilot1]

The blown fuse was the 20amp under the hood and I think theres only a couple 20's under there. All the rest are the big 40's and black relays. Man, sorry it took a while to respond. Id sure hate it if it took you guys a long long time to help me when im having a problem. And it never does take ya'll long. At all! So thats what fuse it was. And it fixed almost everything. The only thing not working is the rearview reading lights. And you gotta have them because theres no other light really when you need some. And Simick, I thought Id let ya know, the one link you sent a couple weeks ago was ex. It helped quite a bit but Im realizing that you guys, Imperial Crown and yourself plus everybody else, that a FSM is the way to go. Im not sure where to get them or how much but I think you guys said a while back that they were about 50 dollars. Thats a little bit of money for me but, if ya gotta have one, you just gotta spend the money. OH yea, Simick, the very last link you sent wasnt as great as the 1st one you sent that time a little while ago. This one says "error 404", "this page does not exist, please try going back" or something like that. Thought Id let ya know so you could figure out what deal is with that. Sorry such a long post, i guess you end up with a lot to say when you havent checked in for a week or more. And last thing, I sent a new topic I really need help with. Its about swapping a trunk and how the lock part dont want to go to a new trunk. It likes its home right where its at and I dont wanna break it. If anyone can help with that then THANK YOU! Id owe ya a big one.

 

[ImperialCrown]

If everything is plugged in connector-wise to the rear view mirror and you have 12 volts at the Pink wire to it, then the courtesy/map bulbs under the clear lenses may be blown. They should gently pry off.
I'm glad that you found that 20 amp fuse blown in the PDC as that powers your rear brake lights also.