High beam fuse melts due to high amperage?

alpax · Jun 30, 2011

Hello,

I bought a 99 Eclipse GSX recently, and now have a problem with high beam fuse. The high beam indicator on the instrument cluster was on when the headlights were off, I checked the "hi beam" 10A fuse and found it and everything around it in the fuse box melted and burned. I put a new fuse, the high beam indicator turned off, and everything looked normal, but when I checked the fuse a week later, it melted again!
That's how it looks:

It's strange it didn't blow, just melted. Probably the amperage was still below the limit, but something is definitely wrong. I've just checked the current and it constantly shows 7.3A when the headlights are off (and engine not running). I guess it's too much, and if this high current constantly flows through the fuse, it may get hot and melt.

Can someone tell me what current is normally supposed to be there, and what could be wrong in my car? Seems like the headlights I have are the halo ones, which AFAIK require special connection, and probably the previous owner screwed something up.

Any clues, what to look at to fix the problem? I'm afraid the car may go on fire next time.

Thanks.

PS. I did search the forum, but haven't found an answer yet. There was some mentioning of the non-standard headlights polarity in Eclipse, but not enough details. Could that be related?

SLEEPS · Jun 30, 2011

What headlights are in your car?

alpax · Jun 30, 2011

SLEEPS said:
What headlights are in your car?

Frankly speaking, I have no idea. Here's the picture:

Blurred Talon · Jul 1, 2011

Wait so when the lights are off and you test towards them you are getting 7.3A?
Sounds like a short to me.

alpax · Jul 1, 2011

Blurred Talon said:
Wait so when the lights are off and you test towards them you are getting 7.3A?

Yep.
But when the lights are on (the headlight switch is in the second or third position), I see 0A there.
Hmm, I guess I have to check the electric diagram to see what exactly goes through that fuse.

Blurred Talon said:
Sounds like a short to me.

Might be. But where to start looking for that? Headlights themselves?

Blurred Talon · Jul 1, 2011

I'd start at the fuse box and work my way forward.

SLEEPS · Jul 1, 2011

I cant see the pic. Are they aftermarket want to be HID's, maybe someone misswired something. You should not have power to the lights when the car is off, sounds like a relay is stuck and or missing.

alpax · Jul 1, 2011

SLEEPS said:
I cant see the pic. Are they aftermarket want to be HID's

Yes, something like that - they are some kind of projector ones, but not HID.

SLEEPS said:
maybe someone misswired something.

I bet that's it. The previous owner (or rather pre-previous) didn't seem to be very accurate, the car is quite a mess. Audio wiring under the back seat looks like a spider web. I'm pretty sure he messed up the headlights too.

SLEEPS said:
You should not have power to the lights when the car is off, sounds like a relay is stuck and or missing.

Good call - I'll check that. Thanks!

e30_fiend · Jul 3, 2011

I would bet that there is a problem in the headlight. disconnect the plugs to all bulbs going into the headlight housing and test the amperage coming out of that fuse port.

I bet there are no amps at all. . .Thats why people should steer clear of cheap aftermarket replacements. I had a buddy's car BURN TO THE GROUND because of an ebay taillight kit. Crazy stuff.

Taylor

alpax · Jul 3, 2011

e30_fiend said:
I would bet that there is a problem in the headlight.

That's my prime suspect too.

e30_fiend said:
disconnect the plugs to all bulbs going into the headlight housing and test the amperage coming out of that fuse port.

Actually I wanted to do that, but the space under the hood there is so cramped. I could get only to the bulbs, but not to the housing connections. I'm afraid I have to do it properly by removing the whole bumper to have full access. I will need to do that anyway, as the bumper needs to be replaced. I guess I will just replace the headlamps at the same time.

e30_fiend said:
I bet there are no amps at all. . .Thats why people should steer clear of cheap aftermarket replacements. I had a buddy's car BURN TO THE GROUND because of an ebay taillight kit. Crazy stuff.

Wow! That's scary! I was actually planning to buy the new headlamps on eBay. So you're not recommending anything from there? But I believe there should be some known-to-have-good-stuff sellers. Anyone has any specific recommendations besides the stock ones?

e30_fiend · Jul 7, 2011

I wouldnt say that will be the case with anything bought on ebay but that was a one time experience. As far as trouble shooting the problem at hand. Just unplug the bulb connectors and test the amperage. Im willing to bet that will be your problem.

Taylor

alpax · Jul 7, 2011

e30_fiend said:
As far as trouble shooting the problem at hand. Just unplug the bulb connectors and test the amperage. Im willing to bet that will be your problem.

Will definitely do. I'm going to replace a bumper in a week or two, and will try to fix the headlights at the same time. Cannot reach the connectors without removing the bumper.

By the way, there was another guess, and I think this is the right one. This car was imported from the US to Canada, and as there is a requirement for the daytime running lights here, seems like someone did the "conversion", that's why there is some current when the light switch is in the off position. But apparently that non-standard wiring was done incorrectly, shorting the high beam line.

foz · Jul 7, 2011

Sounds like you are on the right path looking into the headlights. It's the most likely cause.

Just to give you one more place to look... in my 1G, the high beam switch itself went bad and caused the wires to melt together. The previous owner put a larger fuse in to cover, but it was starting to melt as well. I had to replace the switch and the wire running down through the column.

Most likely it's the headlight wiring, but it wouldn't hurt to poke around under the dash and check the wiring there as well. If it all looks kosher, it should be. If they are melted together, it will be fairly obvious.

e30_fiend · Jul 8, 2011

^^^^^this is a definite possibility

High beam fuse melts due to high amperage?

alpax

SLEEPS

alpax

Blurred Talon

alpax

Blurred Talon

SLEEPS

alpax

e30_fiend

alpax

e30_fiend

alpax

foz

e30_fiend

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