ol_blue

Alright so hopefully one of you guys can help me diagnose this. I've had reverse lights (with a relay mounted at the spare tire and a switch in the cab) in working order on my truck for about a year now. Then all of the sudden they quit working. I unhooked the switch to find that the "load" lead on the switch had blown? (see picture) And so had the fuse. It shouldnt matter, but my power for the switch is run off of a fuse tap, not directly to the battery.


I tried cutting off the blown portion off the lead and reinstalling the switch. but i didnt have another 10 amp fuse handy, so I put a 20amp in its spot. They lights didnt work and the switch didnt light up. I dont think its because of the higher fuse though?

I checked the ground for the lights and the ground for the switch, both seemed to be fine. Any suggestions as to why the wire would have blown like that?

jedimasterbrad

My truck is designed so that I cannot accidentally leave the headlights on. I would like to wire my offroad lights so that they cannot accidentally be left on. Is there a a headlight/parking light relay that achieves this auto-off function? Is it possible to attach the wire for the switch power to such a relay? Or can I safely splice into the power wire for the parking lights (or headlights) for the switch power? Would this achieve what I want, or would this simply automatically kill power to the switch only?

In other words, if I left the offroad lights on, and turned off the truck would the offroad lights remain on while the switch becomes dormant due to the auto-off feature?

Does this make sense?

eric70634

Tap a relay into your parking lights then run that to the switch. Switch will only have power when parking lights are on and will shut off with the auto off feature. Follow me?

jedimasterbrad

Not sure I follow. My plan is to wire like this diagram but draw power for the switch from somewhere other than directly from the battery. Will I need another relay? Or if I draw the power for the switch from splicing into the parking light power will this achieve my goal? Thanks.

eric70634

On the right side of the relay where you have the switch.....tie that into the parking lights instead. Then put the switch between the relay and the lights. That allows the lights to be switched....but also only have power when the parkin lights are on...which would shut them off with the auto lights.

mr7confused

I have only seen that kind of short happen once before, and it was because the terminal itself had somehow grounded itself out. Too much voltage sent through that connection burnt up the insulation around the end of the wire. I'd replace the switch and bare the wire back. Sorry for the super late reply.

M0RRIS

Thanks for the write up. This simplifies things for me. Question tho, do I mount the relay under the hood somewhere or do they leave room in the fuse box with spare spots?

mike1245

i recently bought a 2013 ford f150 xl single cab with 8 ft bed. this truck is base model no power windows no power locks and no inside light when doors are open. trying to find a way to add some interior lighting that works when the doors open. any suggestions on where to get power from ?

642doorhardtop

I'm not sure how you want to accomplish this, or what your criteria would be for making this happen, but you could grab power from the fuse block would be my first guess. Are you saying there is not even a door switch in your truck? If you're handy, you could try adding a microswitch if you want it to light up with the doors open, but that seems a little janky. Is there even a dome light? Is there a switch to activate it with the doors?

I just have a hard time believing that something made in 2013 doesn't have a dome light turn on with the doors...