guage lights and cigarett lighter problem

[96 GL Purple(ish)]

ok, so i recently replaced the wiring harness in the passenger front door with a junkyard harness from a 95 GL.
since that time the gauge lights behind the speedo/tach and the HVAC lights no longer come on with the headlights. I found that fuse #27 was blown, so i replaced it and the new fuse blew immediately, with the ignition off! next I resorted to the tin foil method, but smoke started trailing out of the cigarette lighter and my cell phone charger got melted, again with the key off.
I suspect that I blew or shorted something when the previous wiring harness went bad, i just don't know what.
Any help is greatly appreciated since i drive about 60 miles home from work at about midnight, getting the speedometer to light back up would be nice.

btw my car is a midnight red 96 gl 2.5L ATX with 140,000 on the odometer, if that makes any difference...

 

[Tony2005]

ok, so i recently replaced the wiring harness in the passenger front door with a junkyard harness from a 95 GL.
since that time the gauge lights behind the speedo/tach and the HVAC lights no longer come on with the headlights. I found that fuse #27 was blown, so i replaced it and the new fuse blew immediately, with the ignition off! ....

Remove one by one (the wires from the passenger front door). And "test" using many fuses. The wire removed which does not blow the fuse is the culprit. Then check all connectors and associated wiring.

 

[96 GL Purple(ish)]

thanks for the help.

update, I completely unplugged the new wiring harness and popped the fuse back in, it did not blow this time. reconnected the wiring harness and it still didn't blow. gauge lights still don't work and the car threw a CEL as I was driving home after some quick braking (looking at the speedo, not the road)

ill work on it some more tomorrow and update if i find anything.

 

[Tony2005]

thanks for the help.

update, I completely unplugged the new wiring harness and popped the fuse back in, it did not blow this time. reconnected the wiring harness and it still didn't blow. gauge lights still don't work and the car threw a CEL as I was driving home after some quick braking (looking at the speedo, not the road)

ill work on it some more tomorrow and update if i find anything.

By now, the instrument panel fuse (fuse 31) may have blown. Reinstall a new one and see if it works. If it doesn't, then check if your rear lamps work. If it doesn't, "headlamp switch recall".

Eidt. Headlampswitch

Turn on the lights. Go out and check if rear lamps are working. If they are not, then it is probably the headlamp switch or associated wiring. There is a recall on most 95 to 97 models (Headlamp Switch Recall 99S14). Check with your local friendly Ford dealer or register at www.fordvehicles.com. You need the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN).

Read this.
http://www.contour.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=trouble&Number=1172316&Forum=trouble&Words=headlamp%20switch&Match=Entire%20Phrase&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Old=1year&Main=1172187&Search=true#Post1172316

and this for a how to from Autozone
http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiBroker?ForwardPage=/az/cds/en_us/0900823d/80/1b/d1/17/0900823d801bd117.jsp
As for the temp, if it isn't close to the Red zone, don't worry about it. You should check the coolant strength ($5 tester from Autozone or Advance).

 

[96 GL Purple(ish)]

By now, the instrument panel fuse (fuse 31) may have blown. Reinstall a new one and see if it works.

you are right, fuse 31 was blown. replaced it, but I can't tell if it worked (it is sooo sunny outside). headlights and taillights still work fine, fingers crossed about the interior lights. ill find out tonight, thank god for cruise control and dome lights.

I reset the on board computers and the CEL went away, lets hope it doesn't come back.

 

[96 GL Purple(ish)]

ok, today I chased out the last electrical gremlins. the cigarette lighter works (cell phone charger is melted, but thats a different issue) the A/C works again, the gauge lights work, and all the windows excluding the drivers window go up and down.
I'm not sure how the cigarette lighter and A/C got fixed, but they were broken yesterday and work today, I can live with not knowing how it got fixed.

Thanks for your help Tony, I hope I never have to mess with the electronics again.

in other news I'm picking up a glasspack muffler to replace my resonator tomorrow . I'll post a clip somewhere if I can find a good camera.