smoke pouring out of dash

[trebor 0]

Me and the Misses were on our way back from B&Q in whitstable. When smoke thick burnt plastic smell started choking us... We were on a brow of a B road hill. Stoped car and Misses just jumped striaght out with out a word. Apparently images of volvos 4X4 bursting into flames (on "watchdog" last week)...Anyway engine stoped but key in ignition still pouring smoke. Removed key poped bonnet and got out.. Engine bay seemed ok........ Smoke started to clear...........

 

Removed stereo unit.. There are two plugs coming from car one for speakers and the other for power/earth. The power plug was melted the wires are as follows;

 

1)red with white 2) brown 3) grey and blue 4) brown 5) blue and white... Ok..! wire 4) brown is melted there is no plastic coating left AT ALL.

 

 

As Im still at the road side at this point. I trace the wire as far as possible inside dash. Behind 3 Dial heating which pushes inward. Remove cig lighter,ash tray etc. Also remove lower trim under steering wheel. Cut All stereo wires pulled them through to lower side of dash and tape ends..Its hard to see where the burnt wire goes after that.. So decide to try and get home....There's no smoke so every thing seems Ok.

I have totally traced wire from stereo to ignition (riped out now) Is this right there's is no fuse. It did (past tense) run from ignition switch around the back of fuse box. Across steering column and up the stereo. All other wiring around the stereo wire is abit black other wise is ok. What the hell has made it melt like that... I have recently changed the ignition switch and swop the stereo a few times.

 

Im going to need to run another wire from the Ignition plug or may be striaght from the battery would that work...? Which is the best way to power a basic stereo

 

Regards Rob

[andy 0]

However you do it make sure you use a fuse, otherwise it might happen again. :shock:

[trebor 0]

However you do it make sure you use a fuse, otherwise it might happen again. :shock:

 

Ok ...wire number 4) must be the power source for the radio but there are 4 other wires one of them must be a earth. Whats the point in having a fusebox when the radio is not going through it..... It does not make sense......?

[DANG60 0]

Aren't brown wires usually earth on a car? Could well be wrong tho.

[yalan 0]

not a particular high power unit is it? Some HUs can draw a fair bit of power these days - certainly more than OE looms were designed to supply.

 

Other things could be a chaffed wire causing a short?

 

Or perhaps a poor connection somewhere on the block > high localised resistance > heat.

 

HU malfunction drawing too much power?

 

AFAIK brown is indeed the earth (lucky this one had burnt off its sheath not a +12v wire - probably wouldn't have been such a safe journey home had you set off again with a bare +12v wire floating around under your dash!). Get that circuit properly fused for the gauge of wire.