Here's an electrical conundram for you...
 

So, there I was, minding my own business as I drove through town, and the clock, climate controls and the cigarette lighter power to my phone went dead. I found out later that the power mirrors, visor lights and such are out, too.

So, I open up the fusebox, figuring something shorted. Nope. The # 3 fuse is still intact. I checked all the rest. They're fine, too.

Opened up the engine compartment fusebox. Same story. The clock fuse is fine, as are all the rest.

The clock is still unlit. The temperature readout is still out. When the cl/headlights are on, the background lighting for the a/c, defroster and such are all their pale green, except the fan contols are darker than the rest. But none of them is still lit like there's power to that console.

I'd prefer not to spend hundreds trying to get this fixed, so does anyone have some electrical advice or an assembly manual or something?

Have a voltmeter?
 

If you have a voltmeter, see if there is power to the fuse block itself. Pull the fuse, and see if there is 12 v. from the "hot" side of the fuse to ground. If so, then I'd look for an open circuit somewhere downstream from the fuse box. If not, then between the battery and fuse box. Also, check the continuity of the fuses themselves, or try new ones, just to be sure the fuse hasn't failed, in spite of appearances. I'd also look for any loose connectors - don't know for sure if there is one, but would suspect there would be.

Re: Here's an electrical conundram for you...
 

I had this exact same problem when I bought my car, but, it was actually blowing fuses. It turned out to be the cigar lighter circuit. Somhow, the clips inside the lighter were shorting out. I replaced the entire lighter assy, but found out later, I didn't really need to, all's I needed to do was bend the ends of the clips back in toward the center of the lighter. I can't remember which fuse it was, I can only remember it was a 10 amp. I now keep a ready supply, especially since it kills the defogging capabilities of the car. I'd change the fuse whether it was intact or not as a "first" measure.

Re: Have a voltmeter?
 

I checked continuity and replaced the fuses, in case there was one imrpoperly seated. They're all fine.

I didn't see a label for the negative pole on each fuse circuit. Are you aware of their being one, or should I trace the power into the box? The #3 circuit that handles the lighter and power windows is in the box under the dashboard, and it's hard to get to. I have a digital voltmeter, so it's not an impossibility.

Re: Re: Here's an electrical conundram for you...
 

I have an appointment to take the car in to the mechanics' on Tuesday, but I'd still like to see if there's something I can do about it before then.

Is the whole circuit in series or is it in parallel? If the cigarette lighter became disconnected in some way, would that disconnect the rest of the circuit? And is there a technical reference which would have this info somewhere?

Speaking of which, is there anything that gives the specs for the wheelwells and the suspension? I want to change out the wheels, and I don't want to go the trial and error route. I can't find anything that explains the dimensions so that I could figure out what will interfere with the suspension and steering components and what will interfere with the wheelwells. But that's another story...

Back to the electrical: How do I open up the console to look around at the wiring in there without breaking something?

Re: Re: Re: Here's an electrical conundram for you...
 

When I changed my lighter assy, it was a major PITA. Since the assembly is screwed from the back, I had to pull out the ashtray and squeeze my fingers in behind the assy and unscrew the retainer ring (notched ring around the base of the lighter assy, about the size of a half dollar. I haven't ventured into trying to take the whole unit out. Seemed like too much work. the area above the assemlby is covered with a little rubber flap, so, you can "kinda" get your hands above and below. Pull the ashtray and check with a flashlight, toward the assy first, maybe you can see something. Sorry I can't be much more help.

I did notice in the service manual that fuse number 12 also has something to do with that circuit. I don't know what, since the manual doesn't tell what each fuse actually goes to -- I'd have to check my owner's manual.

Can't help you with the wheels, deal, but, there's a wealth of info in the yahoo archives. You might try doing a search.

Re: Re: Re: Here's an electrical conundram for you...
 

You can unhook the Cig lither without changing anything else, just unplug the connector coming out of the back of it.

Hope this helps,
:rolleyes:

Checked out the owner's manual. Fuse #12 is the Horn/Brake Light fuse. Check for a lack of these two things. Then, check the fuse.

Horn and brake light check out
 

I checked continuity of the fuse, and it's okay. Horn works. Brake light works.

Re: Horn and brake light check out
 

Hmmmm. A conundrum, indeed. (BTW, I love the word "conundrum")

Re: Re: Horn and brake light check out
 

Is that what they use in the band on the Late, Late show?:confused:

(Is that the one O'brian hosts?):confused:

Wheel stuff
 

Speaking of which, is there anything that gives the specs for the wheelwells and the suspension? I want to change out the wheels, and I don't want to go the trial and error route. I can't find anything that explains the dimensions so that I could figure out what will interfere with the suspension and steering components and what will interfere with the wheelwells. But that's another story...

I can't help with the dimensions but what size wheels were you thinking of? I just put 17x7.5" (48mm offset) with 225/45R-17 on my '92 and they fit without any issues. Be very careful with offsets (AKA backspacing) when replacing these or any wheels. Using a different offset/width can change the loads on our already fragile wheel bearings. I avoided Discount Tire because they recommended wheels with significantly different widths/offsets from our stock wheels (16x7.5, 55mm) and I wasn't comfortable with making significant changes. TireRack was good to work with but the sales guys cannot check offset through their computers. BTW, many Japanese cars use our bolt pattern (5x114.3mm) and the Honda S-2000 uses a 48mm offset. This is the vehicle I chose to use for searches for wheels. I posted the details earlier and have a picture of the wheels I chose in my locker with more to come this weekend (along with those of the MI area extra-mini meet, 3 members with 2 SVX's)

Here's what they tell me... AND I got another problem
 

I brought the car in to Rafferty Subaru (Newtown Square, PA) and had them look it over. They charged me $160.00 for looking over the electrical system. I explained to them what I found, including the fuses which were all intact. I explained to them that the cigarette lighter was loose in its housing, which may be contributing to the problem.

They told me that the fuse is blown and that each time they replace it, it blows out again. Now, keep in mind that I checked continuity of all the fuses and replaced them, and they were all fine.

They diagnosed a short from the driver's side visor mirror light. The wires had chafed and come apart.

Now, I don't know if this is true, but they got everything working again, and it looks like the visor wiring was cut, so it looks like they did keep it from shorting there.

They want to charge me another $150 or so for a new visor, and I don't think that includes labor for the replacement.

Next problem: leaking ATF fluid from the steering. I can see it leak from a hose, they say it's from the pump and the rack, too. Replacement parts are around $400.00, plus labor. I have an aftermarket/used car warranty, and the warranty people only want to pay for a NAPA pump, not Subaru OEM. Is there a functional difference, or will an aftermarket steering fluid pump suffice?

Re: Here's what they tell me... AND I got another problem
 

The visor light is a good possibility. I remember hearing of one member who's car completely shut down as a result of the visor short. I'll have to put that one back into my memory bank for future reference. I'd only heard of that one time.

As far as the pump, I'd first demand that it be replaced with OEM. Then, if they absolutely refused, after a few choice deleted expletives, I'd offer to pay the difference (or, order from subaruparts.com which would be near the price of a NAPA.) Ask them, if it were their car, would they want to put A/M trash on it? The absolute nerve of these people.

Re: Re: Here's what they tell me... AND I got another problem
 

I haven't spoken with them about it yet, and that is the primary strategy for now. Still, what is the functional difference, trash or not? Do the aftermarket pumps wear out faster? leak more? pump less? need a different voltage, pulley or belt?