I'm trying to fix a list of electrical faults on my car. I'm a novice when it comes to this stuff so I thought I'd ask here first in case some of these things are connected. Thanks in advance for any advice.

1. My left parking lights and right taillight come on and stay on the entire time the ignition is switched on.

2. Right parking lights keep blowing fuse.

3. Switching to highbeams turns the lights off completely.

4. Emergency flashers stopped working.

5. Turn signals won't self switch off - is this mechanical or electrical?

Not sure if this is relevant, but this is a 914/6 conversion with the side marker delete.

John

Ah!!! What a great time to learn the entire wiring and PATIENCE!

First you need a good wiring schematic and a good ohn/volt meter.

Now I will start at the bottom statement: . . . .914-6 conversion. . . .!
What type of fuel system and year of engine, type of engine, etc. If it has been converted to injection via a late model Porsche engine, it will matter; carbs only as it relates to the car ignition, etc. harness.

#5 can be something as simple as the mechanical breaker lever settig under the steering wheel miss, broke, in backwards. You will need to pull the steering wheel for this as starters.

quesstions 1 to 4: Problems are quite common to 914s or any car that has been setting for sometime. It just needs sorting out. It will require you learning the wiring schematic, tracing with ohn/voltmeter and patience. This should be a fun time for you. The year of the car may make a difference since, for example, the 1974 had a seat relay built in requiring the driver to be setting before starting the car (only year).

With all that said, how does one get started; first and first and firsst and again first - grounds have to be cleaned and made sure they are working. Grounds can create similar problems you have mentionedl Once the grounds are good, then power up to see what problems you have at that time. If you are having the same problems or similar, you will need to break the problems down into segments: Parking lights - wire condition, connections, cross feeds, etc. All electrical problems should be worked from the fuse box and the battery. Fuse box and its related wiring should be of concern and looked at in the problems you mentioned.

It is hard to say what the cure for each of the listed problems until we know how the grounds are, conditions of wiring, resistance path checking, etc.

A resistance check will give you a path but sometimes not the only path that you need to examine. What I mean by this there may be other wiring paths connected, grounded, shored, etc. so you have to understand what is going on in the wiring. It does take time.

After checking ALL the grounds and then seeing what you have in problems. We should start running the trace paths to see where potential problems are/can occur. With the mentioned problems above power is not needed until we understand what is going on from the resistance path check.

Check and clean all grounds; start with the fuse fox and run the wire legs out (try of understand what each is doing), looking for chaffing etc.
Take your time. Get a hold of someone from this board and can visit to see your car; many people are willing to help and maybe there is someone near by.

I have said enough; I am redoing the wiring under my dash on my 914-Sixer (motronic, 1974 car, 1987 3.2 engine). If I can help you in looking at your problems via e-mail, please feel free to contact me of line. email is under my "shoguneagle" name or somewhere on this board.

Steve

Thanks Steve.

So, reading between the lines, I'm actually going to have to learn something? My worst fears have been realized.

I have a multimeter and all the wiring diagrams in the back of the Haynes manual. That said, it's the 914 manual, not the 914/6 one - is that a problem if I'm only trying to trace auxiliary issues?

The car's a 1973 and the engine's a 1973 2.7RS spec build with webers. Not sure if it's relevant, but the ignition is an MSD.

I'm taking the car into the shop tomorrow to have some work done on the engine, but after that I'll start cleaning the grounds and then go from there. In the meantime I have a couple of books on auto electrics so I'll try to clue myself up.

John

Go to www.pelicanparts.com; check headings for Porsche cars and enter. I kinda forget the headings and cars covered. On the left side of one of the Porsche pages is a listing which starts with 911 and then the 914; look under the 914 heading to electrical circuit diagrams; there I think you will find a good colored wiring diagram for 1973. You can save these pages to your computer and then make colored photos of them. If you do not have that capability, I can make copies (colored photos) and send them to you. The Haynes manual is something less than desired.

As I said before, we need to try to find someone near you which is experienced in wiring. I am not an expert but I have completely cleaned up the wires and added new ones for the Motronic engine conversion I put into my car.

We should be able to give you a good start and assistance to get you along the way.

These wiring problems are not difficult just patience and time. You will get frustrated but do not give up.

Go to www.pelicanparts.com; check headings for Porsche cars and enter. I kinda forget the headings and cars covered. On the left side of one of the Porsche pages is a listing which starts with 911 and then the 914; look under the 914 heading to electrical circuit diagrams; there I think you will find a good colored wiring diagram for 1973. You can save these pages to your computer and then make colored photos of them. If you do not have that capability, I can make copies (colored photos) and send them to you. The Haynes manual is something less than desired.

As I said before, we need to try to find someone near you which is experienced in wiring. I am not an expert but I have completely cleaned up the wires and added new ones for the Motronic engine conversion I put into my car.

We should be able to give you a good start and assistance to get you along the way.

These wiring problems are not difficult just patience and time. You will get frustrated but do not give up.

I did go to www.pelicanparts.com and they do have wiring diagrams for 1973. Should be five pages which does include everything including the relay board. This board is where the fuel pump is fused and gets its power along with other items. This area could have been affected in the conversion and relate to fuel pump, ignition,etc. We should not be getting involved too far in advance since we have to learn the wiring system.

Ground locations: left and right front head/running lights (you may have to look for them), driver's side next to the front hood lever (hidden by lever and fuse box) inside in the footwell, engine compartment left side down under the relay board location (have to look down in the corner), left and right tail/brake/backup light housing underneath.

there is what is called the "14-pin connection" which plugs into the relay board. This wiring may have been changed inside because of the conversion, fuel pump, MSD ignition, etc. I am giving the pin assignments for possible later use. I have to be careful not to overload you with too much information. This information can be hard to find so I am giving it to you now for later possible use:

1, yellow (10 or 12 ga large wire) starter

2. Red (12 or 14 ga. large wire) B+ source from alternator

3. green/black oil temperature gauge

4. green/red oil pressure gauge

5. red/green from ignition to backup light switch

6. gray/brown backup light switch to lights

7. open

8. brown/black temperature switch for fresh air blower

9. green/white oil pressure idiot light

10. open

11. blue alternator control light or D+

12. open

13. black/yellow power source for fresh air blower

14. red source from alternator B+


As you start through the wiring and get use to the wire colors, you will find they do start to make sense; the codes for relays are usually 85 ground, 86 input, 30 B+, 87 application; brown wiring are grounds, red primary power, 15 is usually key power. Only given since it will be needed.

All this information makes me tired. Hope you will help you since you will be running into some of these things and the others you may need later. Take everything with a grain of salt and learn things as they are needed.

I do get involved so forgive me for providing too much information.

Steve

will add a suggestion. chase one circuit at a time and make sure it is good. it may be tempting to "test them all at once" but that is how you miss something or get confused.

bad grounds seems to be a common theme with these cars so cleaning the grounds might not be a bad idea.

Did these problems all start at once? If so, what work was done immediately before they started? Was the car at a body shop, perchance?

It's easy to get the wire connections swapped around on the headlight and/or taillight buckets. The side marker delete only makes that a little more complicated. So double- and triple-check those connections.

--DD

Thanks Dave, I'll give those connections a check once I get the car back.
I inherited the problems when I bought the car. It was built by GD Racing in SF for a customer, I think as an auto x car, but not quite finished before it was sold to the guy I bought it from. He then tidied it up a lot and amongst other things had the engine bay and rear trunk repainted. The only thing I know for sure was that the engine was out before I bought it for a compression test.

Got the car back from the shop. What I thought were the tail lights coming whenever the ignition was switched on was actually the brake lights. So I've been driving around with my brake lights permanently on...

Anyway, they put in a new brake light switch and when I went out to try and figure out some of the stuff on my original list the right parking lights and emergency flashers are now also working??? And the fog light switch now lights up, although the fogs don't come on [that's also on my list of things to do.] So, the list is getting shorter

I moved on to trying to diagnose the cause of the turn signal arm not self righting but hit another problem. All the allen bolts holding the steering wheel onto what I assume is an adaptor that fits it to the steering column are rounded, so I can't undo any of them. Any ideas how to get them out?

Thanks
John

Just when I thought this had sorted itself...

I was hardwiring a dashcam into my car on Saturday night and after running the power wire from the cam mounted behind my rearview mirror along the top and down the passenger side of the windshield I, well, let's say 'wiggled' the dash gently to make room for the wire to fit down the side between the side of the dash and the door frame. As I did, pop, the fuse for the right parking lights blows again.

Now my right parking lights and right rear tail light aren't working.

I'm considering removing the dash top so I can get a good look at what's going on with the wiring routed beneath it, but before I do I wanted to ask if it sounds like a bad idea - i.e. once I get it off is it going to be a real pain to get back on?

John

There's a guy that sells laminated large wiring schematics. Don't remember who, but someone else might. They are GREAT!