1995 Buick Century - Electrical Problems

Aug 28, 2007 10 Replies

I own a 1995 Buick Century with about 135,000 miles on it. When I drove to work today, I noticed that my anti-lock brake light was on and wouldn't go away. The brakes worked just fine though. Doing some digging, I found several other issues that weren't there yesterday: the radio/clock worked, but would lose its settings every time the car was turned off, the interior lights won't work, the power doorlocks don't work, the power seats don't work, the headlights won't turn on (high and low beams). The hazard lights won't turn on, but I can turn on either turn signal just fine. The dashboard lights turn on/off as usual. The AC system seems fine. The power windows roll up and down as usual. The car drives just fine - no handling problems at all.



I've checked some of the fuses, and none of them look fried. I'm kind of at a loss, and I'd rather not pay the mechanic at the Buick dealership 90 bucks just to poke around inside if it's something I can figure out and fix.



Any ideas? - Justin



Done - all the fuses are good. Unless there are some hidden I don't know about. Which wouldn't surprise me.

- Justin

Did you check the fusible links ?

That I haven't done - not quite sure how to go about doing that. Any suggestions on how/where to look?

Haven't worked on any GM vehicles for some time but the fusible links were always down at the starter. A fusible link is a special piece of wire that will melt like a fuse if overloaded. They also seem to fail with age. Look for the insulation to be burnt off or melted on the fusible link wire.

Reading through the power distribution wiring, I see all those components are related to the fusible links at the battery. Check for +12VDC after these fuses and you'll be sure to find the culprit. If not, check the wiring between the battery and the fuse panel.

Also have your battery and battery terminals checked while you're there.

Steve

I popped the hood today and poked around a bit - I believe I found the fusible links. There's a power line that runs from the positive terminal on the battery out into a small box where it splits into 3 lines. Did some poking around on the 'net for pictures, and it looks similar to some I saw. On the outbound side of this little box, there are 3 red wires coming out, one of which is blackened and a bit bubbled for about an inch past the box, after which it returns to normal. Does this sound like what I'm looking for?

Thanks for all the help! - Justin

OH! I forgot to add - when I messed around with the box, I couldn't get it open, but after my efforts at poking the thing, all the afore mentioned dead systems now work again. I'm assuming though that it will still need repair?

- Justin

That sounds like the beast...and yes, you will still need to repair it.

Steve

replying to justin, Sliver wrote: I have those same issues, all fuses good. No head lights, auto seat, and all the above as justin

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