Fuse keeps blowing

[Dr4Film]

Logic tells me that you had better get rid of that re-settable fuse before it starts a fire. The circuit is not designed to have that type of fuse there.

Obviously you have a direct short to ground otherwise the fuse would not blow or the re-settable fuse would not be hot to the touch.

I would look for a bare wire somewhere.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[CampDaven]

I suggest looking at the steering column with the cover removed. I suspect the wires are sheathed until that point. And the pivot rod is an obvious wear point, as the entire bundle tends to rest against it.
Any time the wheel is tilted up or down is friction on the wires.

[JohnBoyToo]

Agree - why I unplugged and turned off all disconnects... then ensured there was no power going through there until I had more time to crawl around

[YC1]

Get an extra pair of eyes to help you. Pull the breaker out and build a couple of wires with flat spades and plug those into the breaker holes. Now put a 12 volt test light across those wires. If you can get help. Run fifty foot wires and tape things together so you can wander around with the test light. Now carefully move those wires about under the area suggested. It really looks like a good place for a rub. If barely rubbed through only a tiny bit of wire could be drawing some constant current. When you turn things on the increase just takes you over the top.

Or, turn things on and when the breaker is warm to the touch so you know it is shorting, use a Signal tracer you can buy at Lowes etc or Amazon. Find which side of the breaker is the hot side and then inject the tone into the cold side. Now use the sniffer to follow the wires. This should at least help you with the routing.

[JohnBoyToo]

HappyCars - is your pic from under the dash ?

I only had a few minutes yesterday so I pulled the steering column plastic off (and based on the different screws there - it's been pulled before) and mine looks like this - very limited 'rub' places looks like...

so trying to find someone to work on it...

[CampDaven]

If you pull the plastic off where the wheel tilts you will see the pivot pin where my fraying was. For the pic, I pulled the bundle away to see the rubbed wire. You can also see a burnt spot on the pivot pin.

[JohnBoyToo]

Dave, would the ign sw circuit go up to the smart wheel ?
was yours in the upper portion?
Not sure how to take that off... no screws I see on the upper portion...
just these pins, but I didn't look closely...

[CampDaven]

Originally Posted by JohnBoyToo

Dave, would the ign sw circuit go up to the smart wheel ?
was yours in the upper portion?
Not sure how to take that off... no screws I see on the upper portion...
just these pins, but I didn't look closely...

2 screws on the ignition key cover and the rest just pops off.

[JohnBoyToo]

Yours must be different from mine then - my key is in the dash not on the steering wheel column

[CampDaven]

The issue is most likely at the pivot pin, as motion is more likely to cause problems. Best of luck!

[Happycarz]

I reached behind the ignition switch, grabbed the harness that plugs into the switch and pulled it down for the picture. Fortunately, there was enough slack in the harness.

Take a look at the wires from the dash to the first connector going to the steering column. Look for one labeled VEC-1. If none are labeled as such, your problem is probably elsewhere. Be sure you can see and identify each wire. The label is stamped on the wire every few inches. Above the connector the wires are usually supplied by the maker of the switch, with no labels.


2008 Monaco Camelot 40' PDQ

[RobRoy]

Originally Posted by JohnBoyToo

Dan - thanks for the post...
Being in the software business for a very, VERY long time,
I understand getting the conditions at the time of the failure to debug it...

but it's blown in all KINDS of scenarios....
this last time it was in storage plugged into a 15 amp circuit - not even moving with everything off in the rv - so I turned both disconnects off and it cooled down and started..

before it was when driving and ac on, genny on, dash air on, normal driving, and any combination of all those as I tried to limit the number of breakdowns on the interstate way out in west Texas nowhere land...

to your last question, right above the fuse it says Ign Sw... and the paper diagram says VEC-1 Ignition Switch Power, which it certainly kills...

Possible try making a homemade short finder.

Take a 12v 3156 light bulb and socket from the parts store and some 14g wires and hook the wires to the 3157 bulb. IMO make the wires 10ft long so that you can see the 3156 bulb from the area you are working in.

Then remove the fuse in the problem circuit and run one wire to side of the fuse connector and one to the other or solder the wires to each terminal of a BLOWN fuse and install it.

Remember a short circuit is that the hot wire is going to ground and causing the fuse to blow. So now with NO problem in the circuit the 3156 will be NOT lit.

With the 3156 bulb wired in place of the fuse, you’re going to see the 3156 bulb light up when you shake and wiggle and short out the faulty wire so that you now know that you’re on the right path to the issue.

As Dr4film said … dump that circuit breaker …it’s a problem with it getting hot and just waiting to becoming a very BIG problem.

Now with a fuse in place of the circuit breaker when it blows in many cases it can be telling as to what is happening when it fails , such as , if the fuse is exploded in the center like an old flash bulb you know that the circuit was suddenly and a massive overload. If the fuse is looks like is was hot discolored and burnt on one end it a pretty good sign that the circuit was gradually overloaded and took some time to blow, both cases are telling you a story and a direction to guide you in.

With Digital Volt Ohm Meter with Min-Max and a audible alert you can disregard the above and use instead.

Happy Hunting

ps: sure would be nice to have a electrical diagram of that circuit to know what all is on that circuit, and also an inductive amp probe

[JohnBoyToo]

As usual, great forum and another great post !

Unfortunately, you've exceeded my sponge I'm a user, not a mechanic nor do I want to be... making me rethink the nice motorhome I have :(

appreciate the comments... and know I'll never recoup all the money I've put into it...

[CampDaven]

Yes, the wires went up to the smart wheel. The voltage comes from a common bus, and any of the hot wires that get rubbed can cause the short to ground. In my case it was right at the pivot.
This is your pic:
The covers should come right off.
It's a snap-together thing.
The hump on the left is where the pivot pin is.