[V8] Electrical Problems....and Water Leaks

[Buchholz, Steven]

... thought I'd provide an update ... 

I did get a chance to spend some time with the wiring diagram and almost
immediately I realized that fuse S4 was probably blown.  This would explain
the behavior of the instrument cluster, the lack of a radio and the fact
that I couldn't connect to the ECU.  Sure enough I found the fuse blown ...
and shortly afterwards I found out why ... and I don't think it was related
to the water event.  The amplifier in the driver's door speaker had failed
and was drawing enough current to blow the fuse ... I'm beginning to wonder
if it is even practical to retain a Bose system in an older car ...

After replacing S4 I found I still was unable to read from the ECU ... so I
started digging.  What I found was that the water had fully corroded through
one of the wires on the power plug for the VAG1551 ... kluged a fix and I
was able to determine that the engine does not show any fault codes (which
was my main purpose).  I also loosened, cleaned up and re-tightened the
three ground points just to the right of the relay box.  

I'm still having problems with the illumination and function of the console
switches ... from the wiring diagram it looks like I've got to track down
ground point #81 ... which is purported to be in the dashboard harness ...

Steve B
San José, Kaleefohnia (USA)
> 
> I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you're probably 
> going to have to go
> through the electrical system fairly thoroughly to get all 
> the gremlins out.
> The water has probably caused a good bit of oxidation, even 
> in areas that
> were not subjected to liquid water.  Get a copy of the wiring 
> diagram and
> find out where all the grounds are ... this will likely give 
> good results.
> I know that this will be something I will need to do ... the 
> illumination
> for the console switches goes out when the headlights are 
> turned on ... a
> classic symptom of ground problems.  When you have the wiring 
> diagram, find
> the areas that are and aren't working right and look for 
> common threads ...
> this is likely to be the next place you will make the biggest 
> gains.  The
> wiring diagram will be a big help in figuring out what circuits may be
> related.  In the end you will probably have to trace down 
> each remaining
> fault individually ...