Fuse keeps blowing

Tiny
STOPTHEBLEEDING
  • MEMBER
  • 1997 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE
  • 4.0L
  • 6 CYL
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 206,990 MILES
15 amp fuse in number 20 slot for air temperature control, stereo, display module, keeps blowing as soon as put in. Removed stereo, pulled atc and disconnected harness. Blower motor comes on when touched with test light at number 9 harness wire. Is this blower motor resistor bad?
Thursday, May 10th, 2018 AT 9:46 AM

5 Replies

Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,873 POSTS
Does the fuse still blow after the radio was unplugged? Do you still have the original radio or is it an aftermarket radio?

I will be looking for a wiring diagram shortly, but in the meantime, a way to find a short without burning through dozens of fuses is to replace the blown fuse with a pair of spade terminals, then use small jumper wires to connect them to a twelve volt light bulb. A brake light bulb works well. When the circuit is live and the short is present, the bulb will be full brightness and hot so be sure it is not laying on the carpet or against a plastic door panel. Now you can unplug electrical connectors and move things around to see what makes the short go away. When it does, the bulb will get dim or go out.

The blower resistor is not a suspect. Physically it is just about impossible for one to short between two terminals, and even if it did, that short would not appear in the circuit, and the fuse would not blow, until you turned on the ignition switch.
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Thursday, May 10th, 2018 AT 2:22 PM
Tiny
STOPTHEBLEEDING
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Thanks for getting back doc, disconnected stereo and temperature control unit. Still blowing fuses. Going to piece together your spade terminal set up and go from there. Thanks again.
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Thursday, May 10th, 2018 AT 4:56 PM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
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Wonderful. I am headed home now to my service manuals. I will check back tomorrow to see if you made any progress.
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Thursday, May 10th, 2018 AT 5:22 PM
Tiny
ZJAY
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I did anyone ever find the issue with #20, 15a fuse to ATC and VIC blowing on 97 jeep zj 4.0? I have thr exact issue. Have rigged up brake light with bulb soldered on, disconnected atc and radio. Have moved wires going back to resistor and blower motor, no int
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Saturday, March 4th, 2023 AT 3:46 AM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
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First let me verify I'm in the right fuse box. The first drawing shows the location of the Junction Block, down by the right kick panel. If that is correct, verify I'm looking at the right fuse, # 20, a 15-amp as you said. That's in the second drawing.

The third diagram is an expanded section that includes fuse # 20 and the three things it feeds, which you also already found. There are two 12-volt feeds to the radio, one switched with the ignition switch, and this one that's for the clock and station preset memories. My experience at the Chrysler / Dodge dealership and with years of repairing their radios, is that memory circuit has almost always been tied in with the interior lamps circuit as that also always stays powered up. According to this diagram, your interior lights are on a totally different fuse and circuit. Please verify your interior lights still work to avoid confusion on my part.

If you have the original radio and it works properly, that should not cause this fuse to blow. If it doesn't work properly, unplug the gray 7-pin connector. The other two modules are likely to also have two 12-volt feeds. If you have them out already, just unplug all their connectors for now.

I don't see any reference to this fuse feeding anything else, so if the fuse still blows, it is likely to be due to a grounded wire or, given the sad location of the Junction Block, corrosion build-up from road salt.

Next, I'm including drawings that show how to connect the bulb to replace the fuse. This is very basic and is intended for anyone else researching this topic. Rather than pick out bits and pieces, posting everything ensures I don't forget or skip over something.

Assuming the short is still present with the three things unplugged, my recommendation would be to remove the Junction Block and check the wires on the back side, especially if there are rust holes on the body in that area. I have a very rusty '88 Grand Caravan with a large rust hole through the "B" pillar, right behind the driver's seat. In Wisconsin, they throw a pound of salt onto an ounce of snow. As a result, that salt got into a body connector for the many interior lights. That connector was only there for ease of assembly on the assembly line. My students cut it out and just spliced the wires together to get the rear lights working. That corrosion caused an "open" circuit, meaning it had a break. That is the opposite of a short circuit like you have. Two things to look for first on the back of your Junction Block are a large mass of corrosion between two or more points, and wires with deteriorated insulation that are now touching. Keep in mind you have a second model with this problem, so think in terms of things that are likely to occur the same way on multiple vehicles.

Let me know what you find up to this point.
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Saturday, March 4th, 2023 AT 7:07 PM

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