Horn wire and ?...
Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 11:13 pm
Hello
About two weeks ago, I got in the pinz while it was raining. Everything seemed fine except I smelled that hot electrical smell. I looked around for that wisp of smoke, but saw nothing and everything was working fine. On top of that, the smell was getting fainter. So, I continued on driving, cautiously. Now, last Thursday, I noticed a very faint trail of oil running down the body, starting under the steering gear box. It was a very small amount. It looked like a snail-trail and there was no pool at the end. While wiping it up (to have a clean slate for locating source), I noticed a wire that runs up through the steering gear box. Is this the horn wire? Also, my investigation found the source of the electrical smell. One of the translucent connector-sheaths had melted enough to fall off. I can't see any missing under the dash, so I assume that this was from the horn wire under the steering gear box.
So, now, the questions are:
1. Is it, indeed, the horn wire coming up through the steering gear box?
2. Is there a connector under the steering gear box that used the
translucent connector-sheath?
3. Is there a common leak point for the steering gear box? (The oil is not
coming from the adjustment screw or filler holes.)
4. Is the oil conductive enough to create a short at the horn wire
connector such that the connector got hot?
Again, there are no other symptoms. What do you think?
Eric P.
About two weeks ago, I got in the pinz while it was raining. Everything seemed fine except I smelled that hot electrical smell. I looked around for that wisp of smoke, but saw nothing and everything was working fine. On top of that, the smell was getting fainter. So, I continued on driving, cautiously. Now, last Thursday, I noticed a very faint trail of oil running down the body, starting under the steering gear box. It was a very small amount. It looked like a snail-trail and there was no pool at the end. While wiping it up (to have a clean slate for locating source), I noticed a wire that runs up through the steering gear box. Is this the horn wire? Also, my investigation found the source of the electrical smell. One of the translucent connector-sheaths had melted enough to fall off. I can't see any missing under the dash, so I assume that this was from the horn wire under the steering gear box.
So, now, the questions are:
1. Is it, indeed, the horn wire coming up through the steering gear box?
2. Is there a connector under the steering gear box that used the
translucent connector-sheath?
3. Is there a common leak point for the steering gear box? (The oil is not
coming from the adjustment screw or filler holes.)
4. Is the oil conductive enough to create a short at the horn wire
connector such that the connector got hot?
Again, there are no other symptoms. What do you think?
Eric P.