No power to TAIL fuse????

[ratmaster808]

CAR - 1986 Corolla USDM LHD
MOTOR - 16v 4age bluetop large port
USE - Daily/Weekend drift sessions
PROBLEM/QUESTION -So the other night I noticed my dash and parking lights weren't coming on when I turned my headlight switch to the first position, checked all my fuses and noticed the 15A TAIL fuse was slightly melted so I changed the fuse and changed the 10A RH fuse just to be sure, and still no dash or parking lights. So I tried my spare headlight switch and the lights worked, then I tried putting the old headlight switch back to see if it was indeed faulty but the lights worked with the first switch back in.
So I left the car over night and today I went to try the lights and no parking or dash lights would turn on with either switch, so I:
- jumped pin 1 and pin 9 and still no parking or dash lights.
- I checked all the fuses and tested volts when the car is on and the headlights on.
- When I tested the 10A RH fuse with the headlights on it showed it was getting power.
- then I tested the 15A TAIL fuse and it was not getting power with the headlight switch in any position.

My question is does the 60A or 30A fuse on the positive battery terminal supply power to the 15A TAIL fuse and can I just run a new wire from the fused battery terminal to the back of the fuse box where the 15A TAIL fuse is?

Summary: No dash or parking lights 10A RH fuse gets power but 15A TAIL Fuse does not get power, tried changing headlight switches, don't know what to check now; radio, headlights, and clock all work and brakes illuminate when the pedal is depressed.

OCCURS/STARTED WHEN - Problem happened 2 nights ago

[Lexsmaz]

Have you checked / cleaned the metal contacts where the blade fuse actually pushes into, for a fuse to slightly melt I would say its getting a bad / dirty connection as poor connections create high resistance which leads to excessive heat to the fuse or whatever connector is loose / dirty .. Technically a fuse should blow before it starts to melt unless the heat source is a poor connection near the connector .. If the connectors are all good, which headlight switch do you have in now ? I would be putting the spare one back in .. Also the big 30 or 60 amp fuses wont be the fault as you would have a lot of other things dead in the car too if one of the Big fuses had died ..

[Hen may possibly be a nut]

Not sure if this is your problem, but AE86 light switches are renowned for getting dodgy. Dash lights will stop working and sometimes headlights will get iffy. Pull them apart and resolder all the solder joints, clean and lube the contacts and it'll usually go away.

[ratmaster808]

I did clean the contacts where the blade fuse goes in, and still nothing, and I have my spare switch in.
My 30 and 60 fuses are both good I was saying what if I run a new wire from those fuses to the back of the fusebox; im assuming the wire to the fusebox is bad since the dash warning lights and turn signals work

I pulled apart my main headlight switch and one of the flat contacts that connect to the switch terminals was broken, So I took apart my spre switch to see if the same connection was broken but the spare headlight switch and solder points are all clean and intact; but it still wont turn on the parking lights :/

[Hen may possibly be a nut]

Even if the solder contacts in the switch look good they can still cause problems. Redoing them with a touch of new solder fixes it.

Though again, I'm not 100% sure it's what you're experiencing here. However I'm sure some time with a wiring diagram and multimeter will show what's wrong.

[ratmaster808]

I re-soldered and still nothing.
Been looking through my diagram and testing voltage across the circuit; the thing that confuses me is the headlight switch is getting power thus being able to raise and lower the headlights but the TAIL fuse which controls the parking/dash lights isnt getting power
and according to the diagram I have the headlight switch shouldn't have power if the fuse isnt getting power.

[*E7*]

I had similiar issue with AE71, fusebox inside drivers kick panel had water leaking into it, the connectors in the back of the box had fried from resistance. solved it by replacing the entire fuse box.

[ratmaster808]

Thats most likely my problem, I re-cleaned the fuse holder and the lights started working fine as normal, only thing the fuse gets pretty hot so I gotta check the wires in the back for resistance, but im not too sure which wire supplies power to the 15A tail fuse the book I have doesn't mention which color wire it is

[Matt]

This diagram should help you a little, there is a relay before the fuse on the USA model.