Have an OEM Cigar Lighter to Install in an OEM '73 Dash

[broncodriver99]

Do you have a meter or test light. Have you checked for voltage at the fuses? There is a fuseable link that could have popped.

 

[Bigbeardbiii]

Do you have a meter or test light. Have you checked for voltage at the fuses? There is a fuseable link that could have popped.

I do have both a meter & a test light & have not tested the fuses, however I did remove all of them & none are burnt, broken, etc... Where is the fuseable link?

That is the voltage regulator for the alternator and the cylinder is a noise suppressor(small capacitor). Even if you fried that it shouldn't affect power to the dash. Sounds like you may have something causing a direct short. I would start with the wiring you did since that is where the problem started.

The only change that was done was one splice with a plastic shell with a metal crimp that presses into both the wire wanting to connect to & the end of the wire to be connected (i.e., I didn't completely cut the "red" wire to the lights & then splice into it). Once I discovered nothing worked after splicing I removed the plastic covered splicer & made sure that the splice crimp didn't cut the wiring in the "red" wire & still nothing. Currently, I have the negative removed from the battery & the cigar lighter wire not connected but have no idea where to go from here to determine if I shorted something out. Any assistance on where to go would be terrific! Thanks

 

[69red]

pull the lighter socket you just installed.

on the back is a stud for the power wire, there should also be a rubber/plastic washer to keep the wire from shorting to the shell of the lighter socket.

that's where I would check first.

 

[Bigbeardbiii]

pull the lighter socket you just installed.

on the back is a stud for the power wire, there should also be a rubber/plastic washer to keep the wire from shorting to the shell of the lighter socket.

that's where I would check first.

Yeah, the reddish rubber washer was there & I placed the clip end of the wire on top of it (b/t it & the nut).... Can anyone direct me to where I should begin (somewhere that has ALL the electrical house in one central place or junction point where there's a relay or something that had to have either tripped or burnt)? Thanks

 

[69red]

have you checked the fusible link at the starter relay/solenoid? it is on the thick black-red wire from the hot side of the starter relay, about 6 inches up. that wire provides all the juice to the fuse block, so if the link is fried, then you get no power to anything.
If the link is fried, you need to figure out why, because that means you have a major short and if you by-pass the fusible link you could burn your bronco down. you can get replacements at a parts store. its a 16ga link.

also take off and clean all of the contacts at the hot terminal of the relay as well as the battery terminals. sometimes its as simple as that with these 40yo beasties.

good luck!

 

[Bigbeardbiii]

Thanks BroncoDriver99 for the wiring diagram which allowed me to find that it was prewired for a cigar lighter even though mine did not come with the lighter from the factory & to 69Red to try & trace down what caused nothing to have power! I undid the splice I made into the "red" wire going into the lights, traced down my cigar lighter wire from the factory & plugged it to the cigar lighter.Then, I started at the starter soleniod & found the large black wire & sure enough it had been cut & spliced back together by the PO & the electrical tape had rotted off the spliced area, the wire was dirty & only hanging on by a couple of pieces of the inside metal & appeared to be frayed. I discarded the old splice & an inch or so of wiring on each side of it http://www.supermotors.net/registry/27354/85051-2 . I then put a new wire connector on it & EVERYTHING works now! I don't understand what could have happened since I didn't touch that wire at all when installing the cigar lighter. The only thing I can figure is that it must have sent an overload through the wire & it fried the wires at the old splice (?). Any way it works now! Thanks for all assistance! Regards, Dean