The $1200 fuse - Lessons Learned

What's interesting is I learned about that on a '88 Aerostar I had. It didn't lock for the same reason of course, but it does mean that escape hatch has existed a long time.

I also seem to recall reading about that in the owners manual. Not being critical here, just pointing out that I think it's in there.

 

First option for me is to make a tee, and leave the factory wiring alone, if possible. But, if that isn't an option, I would recommend Posi-Taps.
Posi-Tap- No Crimp Tap (posi-products.com)
They are available at Amazon and Crutchfield for sure. The reason I like these as opposed to regular T-taps is that T-taps work by slicing the insulation to make contact with the sides of the wire. Not a terrible thing in the right circumstances, but since they are designed for multiple gauges, that means the usually cut deeper in larger gauge wires, and usually through the insulation and cut a few conductors as well. Then the real issue comes later as they conductors start to oxidize and get further weakened from vibration and the usual wear and tear. Positaps pierce the center of the wire, so one hole in the insulation, and it puts the same hole regardless of gauge (positaps do come in different sizes, but the hole is the same within the range they are made for) that hole is better protected from the elements (not perfect, but much better) and you don't have cut conductors on top of it. That makes for a more secure, more durable connection. Hope that helps!

 

I like keys too; that blown fuse will still immobilize an automatic transmission as it will not let you fully engage the brake and shift out of park.

The wires on the third twilight of my camper shell wiggled out and shorted the braking system fuse a few months ago. I couldn’t move anything because I could not depress the braking system to unlock the shifter from park. It took me an hour or two of troubleshooting to figure it out, and I had to go to the store for more fuses since there’s only one of the appropriate type in the OEM fuse panel cache. PSA: carry extra fuses.

 

OP, for posting this I’ll send you a brake T for your GFC, no charge. Just DM me an address for someone willing to receive it for you.

 

No, they charged him $570 to find out why the fuse blew and what caused it vs just cramming another one in it and sending him on his way. Takes time to diag circuit shorts.

 

OK, that's a reasonable point of view, however, my local dealer did not charge anything close to that for similar airbag light review on my '02 Tundra. They quickly zero'd in on the scangauge I was using as a root cause, disconnected it, and re-tested. Now, was that perfect? No, the root cause appeared to be a faulty passenger airbag which they diagnosed on the 2nd trip, I think the scangauge pinched cable was only causing the VSC failures which I reported together with the SRS since they showed up at the same time. And that dealer, by acting prudently, has earned my trust. I mention it as evidence that a good dealership really _should_ rule out any aftermarket device trouble _before_ proceeding to diagnose potential problems with OEM components.

To any qualified dealer tech, it should be fairly obvious if not a written down first step to look for aux load on a shorted light circuit before proceeding to diagnose potential trouble with the truck itself, particularly a vehicle so new. Remove taillights and inspect or replace the bulbs and review the shell chmsl feed at that time, or trace back the shell chsml to it's source if it's not wired to a taillight (spoiler, 99% steal from a taillight since it's the easiest spot to get a clean brake signal). Provided it was clear the the blown fuse was causing the symptoms experienced, it's not clear to me that the dealer knew that up front. I get the feeling that OP would have done this type of review if he knew that the STOP fuse was blown, that was the piece of info which would determine the proper troubleshooting steps.

More to the point, someone at that dealership really should have done a little hindsight review of this at payment time and bounced it to the service manager. I think splitting the cost or eating 75% of it would be entirely reasonable, this was not top notch service and would not qualify this dealership as one I'd return to. This wasn't the first time a shell 3rd brake light caused trouble and it won't be the last.

OP, next time, post up the symptoms the night you get to a hotel and see if the TW community can't save you that dealer trip. Hopefully, though, there isn't a next time for you.

 

Thanks for posting this. I have my camper shell wired in a similar way. You have reminded me to get back in there and wire it better.

 

Yeah, that might have saved me the dealership costs. To be honest, all I was thinking about at that point was getting out of Stockton as fast as possible so I could mitigate hotel costs. But I'm on the road a lot. There will always be a next time.

 

Sooooooo glad I found this thread. Going on two weeks fiddling with this after and 800 mile track over the Siskiyou. Luckily didn’t have the loss of power and starting issues and I’m a manual so no issues there. Just no brake lights and a damn Xmas tree on my dash. There is a billion threads about this and none more detailed but also simple as this. After pulling my hair out (not really, I’m bald) and trying all the other dumb$hit I’ve read I found this thread and revisited the 3rd brake light wiring for my Super Pacific. That just happens to have a trick little factory plug jump harness………. That clearly is broken somehow. Simply removed it and plugged my oe tail bulb back in and VIOLA. Problems all solved.


Thank you. Seriously.