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HELP my Freda keeps blowing the 15amp fuse/diesel solenoid

Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 3:17 pm
by macandnic
Please advise: My Van keeps blowing the light blue 15amp fuse which is attached to the fuel shut-off solenoid and this instantly cuts power to the engine and steering etc [twice now and led to a frightening episode whilst on a country road...] The nice man from the AA found this after about 10 minutes after we'd checked the diesel pump, and [new] filter. It lets a little metal box [solenoid I think] bolted to the driver's side bulkhead under the bonnet 'click' as the solenoid activates.. this can also be heard when taking your foot off the throttle at low speed. This is to the rear and left of the 100 amp fuse behind the main [only] battery when viewed from the engine bay looking towards the rear of the van. I thought we'd sorted out just a random fuse pop, but it did it again last night and then 5 minutes later and I ran out of 15amp fuses and had to abandon the vehicle at 3am!!

I've read threads about my Haydn Low Coolant Alarm [fitted wired through a live feed at the back of the driver's right knee fuse box [no leisure battery fitted as it's an 8 seater tin top minibus] 2.5 TD 4x4 1995/N] being affected due to newly changed antifreeze or additives like K-seal. Although I have anew head, rad etc etc a local garage put in a bottle of K-seal when bleeding the system out with new blue Wilco A/F and water in the correct ratio... is the sensor screw in the header bottle desensitised due to the particulate in the K-Seal and shoving extra voltage through to counter this and cooking my 15 ampers??? ps I've done almost a thousand miles on the new head, rad and w/pump without issue... but this is a recent thing and the K-seal went in recently after I had aleaky hose fixed and the fluids topped up and the K-seal went in to check any leaks..

ANy ideas gratefully received as I'm now cancelling my Easter break and gnashing my teeth.... #-o :o

Re: HELP my Freda keeps blowing the 15amp fuse/diesel soleno

Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 5:17 pm
by g8dhe
That fuse feeds several engine related solenoids including the fuel cut-off see here:

the fuel cut-off is on the link 22 so the are several possibilities that could be causing the problem :-(

Re: HELP my Freda keeps blowing the 15amp fuse/diesel soleno

Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 6:50 pm
by mikexgough
my thoughts are like Geoff's, you have an intermittent short somewhere, I'd hazard a guess it's happening over bumpy roads. 2CV's...bless 'em suffer similar symptoms of random and intermittent short circuits and one of the 4 fuses blows...rendering several items useless......
Many an hour is spent tracing back cables and checking for like places for a chaffed insulation or trapped cable....which I guess you need to do......
Quick tip....can you remember what equipment you were using at the time of the fuse blowing....and do any of them link to the fuse as Geoff suggests...?