well after a couple of tedious hours of pulling out bad wires and fixing others i finally got the dash wiring fixed and the truck is on the road again, finally, something with my headlamp switch went bad and fried some wires, so i replaced the headlamp switch and all works well. all i gotta say is WIRING SUCKS i wouldn't mind doing it if i was starting from scratch, but i hate haveing to fix and figure out existing wiring harnesses, its a PITA.


jason

 

Witnessed a ramcharger start smoking out the windows a couple of months ago. It was on the oposite side of the dash though. The older heater boxes get filled up with junk and the resistor block starts it on fire.

Hers went out on its own but melted a hole in the heater box. I pulled the connection to the resistor block and she drove away. I guess it made it home?

Andy

PS: this isn't just a 1st gen problem. My dads 98 melted the wiring at the headlight switch this winter. The wiring on those trucks is no heavier than ours is.

 

I am not of an electrical background, and know nothing about diodes, resistors, and the like; but, wiring vehicles better than new is probably my favorite part of vehicle up-keep.

I wire something like I think it should be at that moment; then, a few days after, I see a better method, or a way that I can improve it, and back in there I go, cutters in hand, and make things even better.

Contrary to popular belief, vehicle manufacturers do not wire things the safest best way that can be done, but do it to expedite assembly-line production methods, hence the controls of many functions being wired into the stupid steering column, where none of it should be, and the electric-fuel-pumps being prewired into the fuel-tank, the absolute WORST place they could be.

 

Just this past week, my cousin's 96 Dodge/Cummins burned to the ground, due to an electrical fire.

 

Nope, it's not just a 1st gen problem, or just a Dodge problem. The headlamp switch and blower switch circuits are poorly engineered on many makes of vehicles. They simply aren't designed for the high current that must run through them. Seen several burnt headlight switch connectors on Ford and GM trucks, several passenger cars (so you know trailer towing isn't always an issue), and blower switch wiring can overheat right back to the ignition switch.

 

We were just discussing blower wiring over on a Ford forum that I frequent.

Some have done the headlight relay trick, except to the main hot-wire for the blower, thus taking the load from under the dash.

I have that modification on my list of things to do.

I am not sure, but I guess it would also be possible on a Dodge.

 

Yep, I think it's a great idea. I seem to remember a recall or bulletin regarding installing a relay retrofit harness to the blower circuit on 2nd gen trucks. I'll have to do some research to refresh my memory.