Q:I have a 1996 Ford Contour sedan. The tail lights, and the dash lights have gone out. The head lights, high beams, turn signals, break lights, everything else is working fine. The last time this happened, I replaced the headlight switch and that fixed it. But this time, I replaced the headlight switch again, and it still doesn't work. I checked all the fuses in the box under the steering wheel, and all of them are fine. Any guesses as to what else could be causing the problem?

See Ford Contour Recall # 8779. If you have NO blown fuses, your problem is almost certainly the light switch.

Q:I was restarting my computer, and it started buzzing.It was coming from the mobo speaker, and now it won't turn on.On the front of it, the 3 and 4 lights are lit up.Can anyone help me?

It sounds like your speaker fuse blew. Check to see if the fuse is still intact, if it is, then you may have fried a component inside the speaker. Time for a new one in that case. If the fuse blew, you can easily get a new fuse. I had the same problem with an older set of speakers. They were really good ones with a subwoofer and all. I heard the buzz for a few days, then, Pfffft! it went out all at once. Fried components inside the speaker and had to replace the whole speaker unit.

Q:I have an old Lennox unit. The AC still runs fine. Heater quit on me back in March. not sure if the elements or what. winter coming soon and need to get this up and running again

Check the fuse's first. If they are good and the blower fan motor is running, the problem is probably either the heating elements or a disc limit is bad. The best way to check these components is ohm them out with a multi-meter. If you have not worked with electricity before I would call a qualified service tech to check on this problem as you are working with high voltage and it can be very dangerous. When you find which part is bad you can call a certified Lennox dealer (just look in the phone book) and give them the model number of the unit. Lennox is very good about keeping parts in stock even on older units.

Q:I had lab and I don't quite understand why I did what we did. We used an analog and digital VOM and used it to record the ohms and volts of various electrical components. I was wondering why when using the analog that different devices read completely different ohm readings. Take for example, our Buss fuse didn't even make the needle move, but the diode and the resistor made it go to infinite ohms. How do I figure out what they are supposed to read, and what to expect before going to lab. I couldn't find anything in my book or the lab manual. Also, I was wondering why a resistor would measure outside of its' tolerance range. Is this because it was faulty? Any help is appreciated.

hmm - the fuse resistance was very low, the diode was infinite 'cos it didn't conduct - it would have done if you reversed the polarity ( turned it round!). This was an experiment - you do not ask what they are supposed to read, it's your job to find out by measuring.!!! That's Physics, not Criminology! The resistor could be out of tolerance, but so what? Just measure it's value as it is now.

Q:I recently lost my internal lights, clock and annoying whine that tells me I left the lights on. I worked out where the fuse was after like, an hour of searching the internet forums and found the fuse that deals with the internal lights and clock. Low and behold, it was blown, replaced it with the spare 7.5 rated fuse, checked it, lights came on and clock, and then after about a minute, the fuse blew again. Any ideas what the prob could be? Plus, I couldnt find the fuse for the annoying whine that lets me know the lights are on. Neither could I find any fuse box layouts on the internet, anyone able to help me out?

You most likely have a short that is causing the fuses to blow. First you need to find out if the short is in the wiring for this fuse or wiring from this fuse and another. To do this remove half the fuses prior to replacing the blown fuse. If it still blows then all the fuses are eliminated. Now remove the other half and if it still blows then the problem is within the wiring for just that one fuse. Next unplug the items connected to that fuse and then replace the fuse. If it still blows you have a wiring problem. Either seek help or run new wires. If when you unplug a component connect to the wires for this fuse and the fuse does not blow most likely that part is your problem. Hope this helps But it won't hurt anything

Q:Hi, I have a 1996 Cadillac Eldorado ETC with 180K miles. It has been running fine except for starting, it used to take a few cranks at times but other than that it was fine. My fuel pump seemed to have had failed and I replaced it with another but I still don't get any fuel pressure to the fuel rail. I have replaced the fuel filter, and a fuel pump relay located in the engine bay driver side fuse box. I have also installed an inline fuel pump and that get gas to the rails but it lack the high pressure required for EFI. My original fuel pump works now that I have tested it, so that was not the problem, it seems it might be an electrical issue since there seems to be no power getting to the in-tank fuel pump. My question.- Is there any other electrical components I need to look for and replace that control the power sent to the fuel pump? I cant afford to take it to any shop, or put it on a diagnostics system, I have to be able to bypass or rigg or fix myselfwhat do you think?

Put a voltmeter or test lamp between the pump power connection and ground. Switch on the ignition, and see whether the voltage is there. If not, and you reckon the fuse and relay are definitely OK, you have a problem with the power wire or connections, or the earthing of the pump. If the voltage IS there, your pump is stuck or burned out or bad earth.

Q:I tried both slow-blow fuses and fast-acting fuses, the fast acting fuses are blown immediately, and the slow blow fuses allow the amp to turn on, but it doesn't work correctly. The amp is a fender personal small amp. How can the amp be fixed?

There's an excess current drain in the amp. A component has failed and needs to be replaced. Replacing the fuse won't be of any help until the amp is repaired. Without technical know-how yourself, you'll need to take the amp to someone that can fix it for you.

Q:I had the fuse break on a Joker 200 light, but I don't know what could cause a surge of electricity (no lightning storm at the time). If it matters, it could have been on the same line as a coffee maker/toaster/microwave. Please help me out. Thanks!

The main component in the ballast is a large inductor, and if a turn gets shorted, it will draw high current. Suspect the ballast. Also, with a coffee maker and a microwave, the total current could be too high for the circuit breaker.

Q:I have a 1999 ford escort station wagon 4-cylinder 2 liter engine. i had a problem with the fuse that powers my dash lights and tail lights frying and the wirring to my ASl component are fried. now whenever i touch my brakes it blows multiple fuses so that my transmission locks up,my engine shuts off and will not start back up without new fuses. could my ASL component cause all of this to happen or is it the cars main computer messing up?

its probably some wires that are touching the frame of the car or something, causing it to short out.

Q:car will not start, could it be some thing to do with time for oil change. Have new starter andd battery. Still can not turn motor over. Turn key loud clicking from fuse box under seat!

It would have nothing to do with an oil change. Would need more info. But it sounds like maybe an electrical issue. Could be something with the starter or a bad connection to that. I don't understand the fuse box under the seat clicking.