I picked up my truck after having a new stereo head installed... yeah, I know.. But I was just too dang lazy today.. anyway:

After driving the hour to my hometown, I pulled into the diner and hit the remote lock- nuthin.. I figured the batteries are getting low, and just walked back to the driver door and opened it- and hit the button... nuthin... I just pushed the lock down and went on about my business...

I got back into the truck and stuck the key in the ignition, and hit the door locks- they work with the ignition 'on'.. I noticed when it was getting darker (and getting out again) that the dome light, the dash lights, or the headlamps aren't working unless the key is in the ignition.. When I DO put the key in the ignition, there is the brief red flash on the instrument cluster that usually indicates a low/dead battery.. But the battery is fine (according to my nifty multimeter, and the contacts are clean and seated well)..

I pulled the dash panel- and looked to see what this guy tapped for power.. I was told when picking the truck up that he had a hard time finding constant power, and ended up tapping (splice clip) the lower panel cigar lighter.. Well, he did.. and it wasn't a good splice, as it lost power when it was wiggled.. Anyway, he also said "And I blew a fuse or two until I found something to tap into".. But, he didn't share 'what' fuse he blew.. I didn't think much of it because I was in a hurry and (screwed the pooch by) not inspecting closely..

What would cause total loss of power in the cab without ignition being 'on'? All the fuses are good.. relay? Which one?

Any thoughts would be appreciated, I hope I was clear enough in the description..

 

Well i would take it back to him and figure something out. Thats bs...

 

yeah, I talked to him on the horn, and we finished the conversation with him saying "well, good luck..".. I got something for him though- and he isn't going to expect it or like it.. hitting him square in the purse.. ouch.. I'm a vengeful rascal like that..

It's really my fault when it's all said and done- I've never been to ONE place that takes interest in doing a job right on my truck like I do...

I'm guessing it's a relay, but I'm drawing straws as to which- I bet HE knows, and I bet he didn't fix it because of the expense of relays.. gotta love what service has deteriorated to, huh?

 

I want to know why he was even splicing into wirers when they sell a plug for the factory stereo to adapt to the aftermarket. There should be no need to even look for a live wire.

 

I fully agree with you.. I even bought the harness adapter.. I had everything I needed except for a mounting kit (went from 1 1/2 din to 1 din).. I was going to do it myself and obviously should have...

Now, to elaborate- it's a jvc Arsenal DVD player- and though I don't know a whole lot about them, it wouldn't surprise me if it did in fact need more energy..

I called him this morning and he said (quote now) "Installing that head unit and tapping into the cigar lighter doesn't have anything to do with the issues you're seeing.. I'm not going to touch it".. I responded "Look, I agree with you that tapping the cigar lighter should not have caused an issue, BUT, where else did your tech poke around? What and where are these 'fuses' he blew? What did he TRY to tap until he settled on the lighter? AND- you mean to tell me that I brought you a perfectly functional vehicle, and you screw with the wiring, and after I leave I have wiring issues and YOU had nothing to do with it?"...

I live in a military town.. I work for the commanding officer of the bases office as a technician.. this audio joint will find his business on the 'black list' next week.. I can't wait until he calls to find out why..

I still haven't tracked it down.. the ONLY thing in the cab that works with the key in the OFF position is the electric seats.. the relays and fuses are all good.. does anyone have any idea what's going on? Any help would be appreciated..

 

Yup maybe after he is on the black list he will fix it. That sounds really messed up. To answer your question, i have no idea what he could have done... Maybe the central timer got messed up?

 

If he really needed more power then he should have ran a thicker wire straight to the battery, but I would just start pulling and testing fuses and relays. Then disconnect the battery and reset the computer. Just try anything really.

 

Take pictures and make notes too! So you have some proof.

 

It's a long shot, but did you try disconnecting the battery for a few minutes to reset the computer. There are a LOT of functions on these trucks that seem to depend on the computer, unlike the old days.

 

I started from the top and methodically plodded through the steps. I found several wires that were 'tapped' at some point or another, and one that was mangled. I repaired them all (about four of them, one I just taped up for a total of five) and none of these were the issue. I'm thinking not all of those were from the audio joint, but some appeared 'fresh'...

I pulled the relays and fuses and inspected each. I found all were good- but I swear this thing acts like a bad fuse... Anyway-

I pulled the dash panels. Took me a while. I found a splice and fusable link under tape, and the worst job ever seen- he twisted and pigtailed the lead together from a beige and white lead of about maybe 14ga, with 10ga wire. It looks like he cut it (my guess while trying to tap into it), and put one 14ga cut end to the 10ga fusable link, tapped into the hot side of the fusable link (providing no protection for whatever he had connected, presumably my new radio) and the other cut 14ga beige and white line to the protected side of the fuasable link.

Guess what? The fuse (20a) was blown. I cleaned up that mess re-using the fusable link and a fresh 20a fuse. Guess what else? All is well now. Errrrrrrrrrrr.

So- first I gotta figure what constant power rides a 14ga beige and white wire, and second: what caused the fuse to blow, because the radios wire was on the hot side of the fuse, and the fuse blowing makes no sense unless he tapped (tried) it somewhere on the other side and maybe grounded it.

Now, back to this audio shop: there is no way this guy wouldn't have suspected that rats nest wasn't the issue. There is no way he wouldn't have recalled what a mess he made down there and just forgot to tell me. He knew what, where, how, and when- he just didn't want to accept responsibility for his goof.

Lesson learned: do it yourself. I spent more time tracking down and fixing this mess than I would have installing the head unit myself.

I still think I'll kick his *** though. :-)