Help: 6 volts to part of the dash??

[SethM]

So I am readying my 85 SR5 T4WD for a road trip (see thread on 14" rims/tires) and I decided it might be nice to have the radio working... Ever since I bought the car the radio, the cigarette lighter and the clock have been out. Then the other night I noticed for the first time that the factory original radio/tape player has a button for a "light"-- I pushed that and viola! the radio lit up. But still no sound. So today I hooked a multimeter up to the cigarette lighter (I didn't have time to pull the dash apart and figured this would be an easy place to check for power with the key in the on position) and found I was getting 6 volts. I check another car I have and got 12 volts on that lighter. Originally, I thought perhaps I had NO power but now it appears I have some (but only some). Any idea what this means, how I could be getting only 6 volts to part of the dash? I'm assuming the radio light worked because it doesn't require a full 12 volts.

[4wdchico]

Check the voltage from the center of the cig lighter to the battery ground with a long wire. If you get your 12v then it is a simple fix of running another ground lead to the outside of the cig liter socket. Note: don't get rid of the original ground to the outside of the cig lighter as it may back feed a good ground to other parts of the elect. system that were on the same line and make them happier also.

[SethM]

Thanks 4WDchico. Tried your suggestion today but was getting nothing (well 0.6 volts). Don't know if I misread the reading the other day (don't think so as I got nothing on some tries and 6 volts on others) but in any case I pulled and replaced the fuse for the lighter that is located in the panel by the driver's left foot. Didn't look bad but thought it couldn't hurt to try replacing it. Presto, 12+ volts at the lighter. Was then fiddling with some of the other fuses and at some point I noticed the digital clock had come to life! I pulled the dome light fuse and the clock went out again but it sure seemed like the initial action of changing the lighter fuse had something to do with the clock coming back on...

In any case the radio is still not working. I change the radio fuse in the same panel but noticed the panel says radio 2--- where is the radio 1 fuse?

[takza]

There is a tube type radio fuse on the drivers side near the accel pedal .

[SethM]

There is a tube type radio fuse on the drivers side near the accel pedal .

Thanks! Just took a look but couldn't find/see it. Do I have to remove a panel? I'll look again tomorrow when I can get a brighter light in there-- was just using a small flashlight I happened to have in the car.

[splatterdog]

The only way you have a glass tube fuse is if you have an aftermarker radio. Then it would be right at the radio on it's own harness.

Have you checked all the fuses? Shows a fuse in both underhood and underdash. Labeled radio1 and radio2.

[SethM]

Yes, I have the factory original radio/tape player.

Have you checked all the fuses? Shows a fuse in both underhood and underdash. Labeled radio1 and radio2.

OK, thanks--- my problem (well ONE of my problems...) is that the top of the fuse box in the engine bay is so worn I can't read the label/guide to which fuse is which.... I checked the underdash fuse, labeled radio 2 and thus suspected there was a "radio 1" somewhere but I can't find this discussed in the FSM and, as noted, can't read the underhood fuse panel labels... I DID figure out from the schematic in the back of the FSM that "radio 1" is 15 amp so I think I will take a look for 15 amp fuses in the engine bay fuse box.

[SethM]

Well.... all the 15 amp fuses in the engine bay fuse block seem to be fine. One of these has to be the "radio 2" fuse. So I guess the next step is to pull the radio so that I can get to the back of it and check for power with my multi-meter. Anybody know if the factory radios are prone to blowing? Thanks.