My 1993 1.9 tracer wagon just had this problem show up where the interior
fan wont turn on, and none of the wiper functions work.

I checked all the fuses and relays, and they were all still intact. I''m not sure
where else to look other than possibly a short in the wiring somewhere.

Any other ideas?

 

In your engine compartment under the hood, on the drivers side, is the high voltage fuse block which feeds the entire vehicle. Pop the cover off and check the fuses in there. You also have fuseable links located in the same area. They usually have a small rubber tag denoting at what amperage the link breaks.If one has fried, it will look and smell burn''t. The wpier and heater circuit are seperate at the internal fuse block (under your dash) , but may get the same feed from under the hood. I can''t say for sure. Do you have an OHM meter?

 

I do have an ohm meter. I went through the high voltage fuse box; none of
the fusible links were damaged. Everything was as it should be.

I am starting to wonder if this is two separate issues. The car has certain
quirks- like needing to hit the dashboard to get it to light up sometimes-
that make me think that one just might be a short or a loose wire. Or come
to think of it, that both might have shorted against each other.

I won''t know until Friday when I have the time to run some tests further on
it. Where would be the best place to test the lines for shorts? I have some
experience with electrical work but not a ton.

 

For the blower motor, first I would check the plug on the motor itself. I think you may be right. It may be two issues. On the passenger side under the glove box against the firewall, the motor sits facing up in the heater. I can''t remember if you need to remove the trim panel to get to the plug. Turn it on and start by wiggling the plug (I don''t know if the high speed resister is internal or located at the switch). If no go, pull the plug off and check for voltage at the plug. If you get voltage, then the motor is bad (check it for contunuity to be sure). If no voltage, then you need to go to the blower switch. I think you need to pull the front trim off to get to the screws to remove the heater controls. Do you have A/C? The compressor won''''''''t kick on unless the switch is in one of the on positions. Get to the switch and wiggle the plug. If no go, Pull the plug and check for voltage to the plug. If you are getting voltage to the plug, check the switch for continuity in the running positions. If the switch is ok, the wire(s) going to the blower motor is the problem. If you have no voltage at the plug for the switch, then you need to go the fuse block. You said the fuse (and relay) was ok, but did you check for voltage getting to the fuse block? Pull the fuse and use the meter to check for voltage between the feed terminalin the fuse block and a ground (any body metal). If you get voltage, then the problem is in the wire(s) from the fuse block going to the switch. If no voltage, then you need to trace the wire back further. For your multifunction switch, remove the top and bottom trim panels from around the steering column. There are three plug connections, lights, turn signals, and wipers. It will be tight, but you should be able to get to them. You need to find which one is for the wipers. Do the washers work? Once you find it, do the same as you did tracing the blower motor back. Let me know what you find. Good Luck!!


Edited by: Uncaged91

 

Thank you for all your help, I will post my results as soon as I do it.

Some little tidbits of info ahead of time: The AC works because I can feel
cold air when I have the vent set on fresh air while the ac switch is pushed
on. Also, neither washer works. I tried for both the front and rear.

Thanks again.

 

Well, if the A/C compresser is runnung, that means that the switch is sending a signal to the compressors clutchs. And the switch has to be in a running position to do so. But that''s not to say that there isn''t a problem with a chaffed wire. I would check the blower motor first for sure.

 

Hey, Haven''t heard anything. Have you had a chance to trace the problem(s) yet?

 

yeah, sorry about that. I traced the wiper problem back to the multifunction
switch. My dad, who owned the car previously, had a rigged ignition
system- basically, his old ignition died, and it was going to cost more than it
was worth to get new locks and a new ignition put in, so he made a simple
flip to turn power on, push button to start ignition. Problem was,
somewhere along the line it shorted out on the wiper switch, and overheated
itself. So that is what nixed the wiper in. Also, I did find that the blower
motor is bad. Thanks for your help!

 

btw, any idea what the largest diameter wheel is that the tracer will accept?
I''m contemplating either just buying the alloys from the escort gt or sticking
a pair of 15s in there...I''m not sure if its worth it with this car.

 

That''s cool. Glad you got it figured out. If you''re looking for better handling, a 15" rim will only slightly improve the handling with a little wider tire. Unless your just looking for a better looking rim, you would accomplish the same thing with an upgraded tire. Your stock size is a 175/65-14. I would go with a 195/60-14. It''s about 3/10ths. taller, and almost a full inch wider! I''m running Cooper Cobras with raised white letters in that size on my ''91 Tracer LTS. Maybe you could find a set of the LTS rims like what''s on mine (''91-''93)? They are sharp, and are unique to the LTS. Oh, if you go to 1010tires.com., they have a neat tire calculater that you can punch the numbers in and compare your stock tire to the size you''re thinking about. Thier prices aren''t that swift though. Check it out!! It''s cool. [img]smileys/smiley2.gif[/img]