70 satellite instrument cluster problem

[Vertburt]

Hi. Trying to get me 70 satellite running. Been sitting for 35 plus years. The only power I had was the the headlights and after new ignition switch I can crank the car. I took the cluster out today and if I hooked the battery up nothing would happen. So I put the cluster back in and hooked the red and black wires , I thank amp gauge wires and it started smoking at the bulkhead, Blue wire and I think a black wire. Then hooked everything else up and screwed it back in and still with switch off, if I hook battery back up, the blue wire starts to smoke again. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[BeepBeepRR]

What cluster do you have? Standard dash or Rally gauges. And the blue wire that you speak of where on the board does it go? Into a round plug? If so that is the fuel gauge. And could be pinched anywhere from the dash to the back of the car where it goes through the trunk pan into the sender. Amp gauge should be bigger RED and BLACK wires. I think there are only 2 blue wires in the cluster area. One being the fuel gauge to sender and the other is a wiper motor wire and it could be shorted out as well. I would say narrow it down by unplugging the wiper motor. And also unplug the plug that is behind the drive side kick plate. On the left side that plastic panel. Your fuel gauge wire runs through that plug. You can isolate the problem by unplugging both items. I mistakenly did these with one of the dark blue wires.. One is supposed to have a tracer color. But I did it blue. You can disregard that one.

 

[Vertburt]

Hey. Thanks for the reply. Standard gauge cluster, The blue wire and possibly the black wire I mentioned, that are smoking are the ones coming out of the bulkhead inside the engine compartment . The blue wire is short and has a fuseable link and goes to the starter relay.

 

[Vertburt]

Can I bypass the ammeter by connecting the thick red and black wires together. Thanks

 

[BeepBeepRR]

Yes you can bypass the ammeter. Like I said there are only 2 dark blue wires one for the fuel and the other for the wiper motor. By disconnectin those 2 items you can narrow the short down.

 

[Vertburt]

Ok thanks. But why would the blue wire coming out of the bulkhead on the firewall be smoking.

 

[BeepBeepRR]

The blue one going to the starter relay is going to have a pretty good load on it. If something is shorting out it could cause it to smoke.

 

[Demonic]

Anything that has smoked likely needs to be replaced. The heat damages the wire, softens it. You have a short. Alternator output, brake and hazard circuits are constantly hot w key off, so I'd start there. Get a new engine harness if it is 50 yrs old - that run along the valve cover leads a hard life.

 

[jonny0666]

check the plugs at the bulkhead... more than likely you have burn damage in one of the ports and its shorting the wire out. also, check the wires going into the plug. I have actually had wires that burn inside the insulation and detach by the bulk head plug.

 

[Vertburt]

Ok will do. Thanks

 

[Nacho-RT74]

On diagram you are forgetting a blue wire arriving to the cluster multipin conector... traced. This is to source the VL, and also the brake and oil idiot lights. It comes from the RUN circuit coming from IGN switch and spliced on the run. The other blue wire arriving to conector, but solid is from the gas gauge sender.

the other blue wire also traced gets to the key in buzzer, from the same splice to the cluster, between ign switch and bulkhead

You are saying a blue wire smoking, but... where ?

 

[Vertburt]

Yes. Hey. It’s the blue wire coming out of the firewall bulkhead that goes to the starter relay. Yes the smoke is only coming from bulkhead and not behind gauge cluster.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

ok, that's the fuse link itself you have a heavy short which is not on the fuse box protection. This takes to anywhere into the Ignition circuit, Charging circuit or headlights ( but not parking ) circuit

Ignition circuit can take to the alternator brush blue wire, ballast, regulator.

Charging circuit, red and black thick wires up to ammeter ( alt stud, amm studs, and straight to the fuse link )

Light circuit, just the black traced wire which feeds the ign switch light.

or also the red wire up to the fuse box, but just before the fuses itself

unplug the ammeter, link them together out of the ammeter ( screw and nut, then tape them ). This will discard ammeter itself.

Once I got the blue wire up to alternator ( alt field ) burning because brush isolation was cracked. I didn't have the fuse link on that moment, but just a regular wire, so this blue line burnt from alt up to cluster!!!!.

 

[Nacho-RT74]

however, since you are saying the smoke begins as soon you conect the battery, this discards the ignition circuit, because you need to put the key in RUN to activate this circuit, so the problem is mostly sure on the Charging circuit

 

[Beep!Beep!]

If it is going to the starter relay unhook it then hook up the battery, relay short? Also pull the bulkhead apart they are bad many times

 

[Vertburt]

Ok will give it a shot. I did connect both my ammeter wires together and hooked the battery up and no smoke. But. I have a ground problem I have created. If I have my positive battery cable on and negative discounted I have power at the starter relay But if I connect the negative cable also I have no power plus if I put my test light on the neg and the probe on the positive my test light will not even go off. Remember all this was working before I took the gauge cluster out. One thing, the collection of wires 10 or so that are in a circle that connect to the gauges, the black wire came out of the holder. There is a few spots that are blank and I thank I put it back in original spot but not positive.

 

[Vertburt]

Also. I know I had to unplug this white double wire in order to take cluster out or lower dash. Any ideas. Ty