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Igntion Short

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Old Jan 15, 2015 | 09:01 PM
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ebteckx's Avatar
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From: Colorado
Question Igntion Short

Hey Guys, I havent been on in a long while. I havent been driving my truck because life has gotten in the way of me being able to work on it and now I have a problem. Few weeks ago went to move the truck and nothing. No ignition hot. The headlights and all of that stuff worked. I changed the ignition switch in a shotgun style attempt at diagnosing the problem and it didnt fix the issue. The strange thing about this problem is that sometimes you turn the key and everything fires up just fine. It runs for a few minutes then loses all power. I have instead of the fusible link for ignition hot a self resetting circuit breaker and it seems to be resetting itself. Normally I would just trace wires with my wiring diagram and be done with the problem but with all that I am doing, my service manual is packed away in storage and I seem to have a total of like an hour a week to do anything besides work. Does anybody have an idea to point me at least in a direction? Of course this problem occurred right before my blasted plates expired and now Im trying to get it fixed fast enough to get them renewed without paying the fee. Sorry for the long post but everyone on here has always helped out. Thanks for any information
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Old Jan 15, 2015 | 09:26 PM
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From: Isanti, MN
Short.....
After Storage.....
Intermittent......
Fusible link replacement breaker.......

Likely you're looking for a short in the blue wired circuit that goes just about everywhere. It might have gotten chewed on by a rodent, and/or is chaffing on something moving.

Look around the throttle linkage, as that wiring goes to the fuel pump.
Look around the transmission, as it also goes down the harness to supply power to the OD solenoid.
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Old Jan 16, 2015 | 12:02 AM
  #3  
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It is possible that the terminals within the firewall bulkhead connector have corroded.

There is an article floating around here somewhere that explains how someone drilled through the faulty connector and routed continuous wires through it.

That may not be your problem. but it is somewhere that should be checked.
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Old Jan 16, 2015 | 11:14 PM
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Thanks to both of you. Hopefully I will actually get to look at the truck tomorrow.
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Old Jan 17, 2015 | 04:04 AM
  #5  
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KRB
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From: Central KY
Intermittent sounds like a loose connection, bad wire or bad ground. BK's idea on the bulkhead could be checked quick and easy with a test light.

Good luck, I HATE chasing these electrical gremlins...
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