Fuse Box Replacement

A

andrew_oc42

New Member
Hey all! Okay so I'm adding things such as air conditioning, gas conversion, electric windows and such things to my p6. All up I have about 8 - 10 inline fuses and it's getting pretty messy trying to locate them all under the dash and if I had to replace one further down the line... god help me!

What I plan to do is add another fuse box. I have another fuse box in my donor p6. This is what I was considering to use.

Now.. I've read things in forums about the p6 fuse box not being that great. Catching fire and such... Should I just upgrade the entire box? I know it's a big job with the soldiering iron.. but if it saves my p6 then it's worth the time and effort.
This way I could keep every fuse in the one box. Although it doesn't bother me if I have a separate box for other things (hence me adding my second rovers fuse box)

Thanks alot, Andy.
 
Andy,

From my experiences there are 2 possible ways forward here, depending upon what additional equipment is involved. You could upgrade the fusebox to a new one (Vehicle Wiring Products sells a modern 12 way blade fusebox (LFB12) with similar dimensions to the original www.vehicle-wiring-products.co.uk). From what I can see this fusebox has male Lucar terminals, so you would need to invest in some female Lucars and a good crimping tool. Vehicle wiring sell the old type of non-insulated (factory type) Lucars with the separate clear insulators and a good crimping tool MP71, which will enable you to remake the various terminals to a factory standard. You should not need to use a soldering iron, thus reducing the risk of setting fire to the glovebox/carpet etc.!

The alternative is to keep your existing fusebox, provided it is in good condition. Depending on the type of additional circuits you have, the existing fusebox does have a number of spare ports. You need a thin screwdrive to flatten the barb that holds the terminals in (poke the end down the square hole in the plastic block adjacent to each metal fuseholder). The terminals then can be released from the rear. By the same method you can release the spare uncrimped terminals and crimp on your new wire using MB71. However, I would only recommend this approach if the additional circuits you have are low current drawing. You could take the opportunity to clean up the faces of all the fuseholder terminals and give them a squirt of Servisol. Remember to squeeze the fuseholder terminals together long nosed pliers to give a good connection on the fuses.

I hope this helps. Good luck!

Paul
 
Andy,

Vehicle Wiring Products also list a 16 way fusebox, so this should give you a few moe circuits over the standard setup. Rgs. Paul
 
Hello Paul, thankyou so much for the reply. The current fuse box in it is in perfect condition. So keeping it in there is preferable.
My fuse box doesn't seem to have any spare fuse places left.. so adding another box is probably the easiest / best solution. I have both a spare p6 original which I may very well just use...
There is plenty of room under the original fuse box, so mounting it underneath won't be an issue. Although is this what people would recommend? If not.. where would the best place be to mount it? I don't mind re-wiring things inable to mount it anywhere.

If I were to redo the entire fuse bay, I have a wedge fuse box from a commodore. Which would be suitable for this task.

What is the benefit of having wedge fuses over glass fuses? Are there any at all?

After all, I'm rebuilding the car, I would like it to the best of its ability. Rewiring everything isn't an issue, I don't mind aslong as it is the best approach.
 
Andy, if you unscrew the original fuseboard from the bulkhead you will see that each fuseholder 'end' comprises two brass terminals facing each other. On the P6 many are unused on the unfused side. There are a few unused on the fused side; you can prise these terminals out and crimp your new circuit wire into them to make new circuits, but you will need to review the fuse rating if you are looking to add additional circuits that require signifcantly more 'juice'.

I would suggest that if you have significantly more circuits and your existing board is good then you may want to go for an additional board. I probably would mount this in the engine bay, somewhere away from direct heat and gunge. I would perhaps avoid mounting this under the existing fuseboard purely as you are unlikely to be able to close the glovebox afterwards!

The modern blade fuses just provide a better contact with the terminals than the old glass fuses, so increased resistance that can melt the fusebox is less likely.

I hope this helps. Rgs. Paul
 
To summarise previous posts on this issue - The S2 fuse box has a bit of a reputation, particularely for the headlamp fuses, for melting a bit and allowing the fuse holders to go walkabout. There's even some suggestion of them catching fire. The same fuse box in the P5 apparently causes no bother at all.

A number of people on here have investigated this and the conclusions are:

1 As built the cables are inadeqautely crimped to the terminals. Likely the P5 loom was put together by a different subcontractor so wasn't affected.

2 This causes the terminations to warm up

3 Once warmed up the plastic of which the fusebox is made is extremely susceptable to heat and goes out of shape very easily. This gets the fuses out of contact with the holders compounding the heating problem.

4 If it should get hot enough to catch fire the plastic of the fuse box burns very easily and very enthusiastically.

All the above cause me to want to change a P6 fuse box on sight. If you don't feel up to changing it or want an original appearance then at the very least you should go round and tighten up all the cable crimps!

Hope that summarises adequately to the heroes who did the practical investigation.

Chris



Edited By chrisyork on 1213907447
 
Thanks guys. Okay so I may just go through and remove the fuse box and replace it with the wedge fuse box I have.

Should I mount it in the engine bay? I know it's a big job.. although is it the best option?

I don't mind this as I want it right the first time. And causing a fire isn't preferable!! Considering how much work I'm putting into it.

Thanks.
Andy
 
Andrew,

There is no definitive position to mount the new fusebox. It will depend on a number of factors you will need to consider and weigh up, including:

(1) Best position for you to be able to take the existing unfused and fused sides of the loom to be able to work on fixing the new terminals on easily (without taking yoga lessons)

(2) Best position for mounting the new fusebox is dependant upon access for fitting (again without yoga lessons and 8" long fingers), and accessibility to the fitted unit (i.e. away from heat and filth etc) and accessibility for servicing purposes.

(3) If you mount the new fusebox in the engine bay, it is likely that you will need to extend the unfused and fused sides of the loom to the location where you intend to mount the fusebox. The existing wires are fairly short.

My approach would be that provided you can fit your new fusebox in the location of the existing and close the glovebox OK then I would retain the current location. This will involve minimum additional work in re-routeing the loom. My tip would also be to remove the front passenger seat before you start and replace it with a nice thick cushion. After all this job will take a little time and you want to do this in reasonable comfort. The last thing you want to do is hang upside down under the dashboard like a bat! Rgs. Paul
 
For anyone on the forum reading this thread re the original fusebox, I have come across a problem where many people fit 30mm metric glass fuses. The fusebox is designed to take 'old money' fuses which are 1 1/4" long (i.e. 31.8mm long). Surprisingly this does make a difference - the correct fuses ensure that the maximum area of the brass fuse caps sit within the contacts. Maximum area in contact=less resistance=less heat buildup. My fusebox was fitted with decrepit 30mm Lucas fuses where the brass end caps had corroded significantly on several fuses.

Even more surprising is that good old Halfords sell the correct 31.8mm long fuses and in the correct range of ratings, i.e. 5 amp, 8 amp, 15 amp and 25 amp!

My advice is for owners who have not checked their fuseboxes to do as follows:

If you have the 30mm long fuses (they are evident as they do not span the full width of the holder section) then bin them and get some new 31.8mm ones from Hlafords. These are not too expensive.

Gently clean the inner faces of the fuse contacts with a little Autosol or similar metal polish (not too much) on a cotton bud. The brass will shine brightly if your are thorough.

Clean off the autosol thoroughly with a cotton bud. Apply a little Servisol contact cleaner to the shiny contacts (again with a cotton bud).

Obtain a nice thin pair of long nosed pliers and gently pinch the contacts together to ensure the fuse fits in tightly (the insulation blocks next to each contact has a very small square recess to accommodate the open jaws of the pliers).

Refit the new fuses, start the car and put all circuits on (inc. headlights and fan blower) and check for any heating of the fuses. They should stay tepid. Any hot-spots should be investigated.

Clearly if your existing fusebox displays any signs whatsoever of melting then change it as soon as possible - don't leave it!
 
Hi Paul, thanks again for your detailed responses. It makes it easy to decide on what to do and how to go about it. I really do appreciate it.

Currently mounting it anywhere for the "comfort" factor will not be an issue. As there is no dash in it. The second fuse box sits next to the current one easily with no problems. As does the wedge box. There really is only about 1mm out on the screw holes between the 2, so using 2 slightly smaller bolts without having to drill further into the firewall.

Strongly considering just using the wedge fuse box. As these fuses are all everywhere and easily purchased.

Thanks, Andy
 
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