swp

It seems when I was running my wires for the amp in my trunk I may have hit the fuse box... It doesn't look like any of the fuses are blown but my Radio won't turn on.. the Anti-Theft light blinks.. neither of my 12v Power outlets work.. and the A/C screen doesn't light up but I can still hear the A/C turn on.. As far as the Radio it won't turn on at all..It seems like there is no power going to the Radio or the 12v Out's.. any ideas? Is there another fuse box aside from the one above the Hood Release

garpt

That is EXACTLY what happened soon after I got my car stereo installed and was running some accessory wire off the fuse box. SAME symptoms, exactly. Unfortunately, it's not a pretty solution. Involves the alternator and battery. See this thread.

http://www.acura-tsx.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14051

Keep in touch. I'd be happy to find out I was wrong, but it would be quite a coincidence.

GARY.

swp

The problems seem to be something involving the fuses.. I had my power cable electrical taped up while i was running it but iwasnt disconnected from the battery.. when i was running it by the fuse box i heard a little zap, I'm assuming thats where the problem is

garpt

Well, my post link above takes place AFTER the incident I had with the fuse box. While trying to hook up a radar detector straight to the box, I shorted a fuse. (7.5A acc.) When I replaced the fuse, all fuses were OK. BUT...The radio didn't work. The NAV didn't work. Ditto the top dash display, radio lights, screen, 12V outlets. The red security LED was blinking. Some of the "idiot lights" were on. Sounds pretty close to your situation. According to the dealer, all the extra current from the aftermarket amps, lights, etc. was overloading the electrical system. The innocent little short circuit I made was simply the "straw that broke the camel's back".
I simply hastened it's demise. The electricals were bound to go sooner rather than later.

GARY

swp

yea i fixed it with a simple fuse.. but now it seems after hooking my amp back up that i blew something else.. my engine wont even turn over with the clutch pushed in

garpt

Well, swp, my car did manage to start the next morning so I could drive it to the dealer. But you are probably looking at a new Batt. and alternator, unfortunately. You could try to blame it on a defective battery, possibly, but if the dealer sees any high-current amps or other aftermarket stuff (video, DVD, radar, lighting, etc.,) you are probably going to foot some or all of the bill. The TSX has an electrical system that can just about carry the electronics that come stock. It doesn't take much to pop it. Best of luck. I went thru it. It sucks.
GARY

swp

It blew my Radio fuse again.. I fixed that but can't seem to find why the engine won't start.. the battery and all runs fine.. this all happened after i tried connecting my amp's power back into the amp.. i accidently touched the side of the amp and it sparked.. who knows.. i got a break the first time but now it may be more serious.. The engine won't even click so it seems the power isnt even getting to the starter.. if anyone has any ideas about this or knows which fuse could possibly be causing this please post a reply..

garpt

swp,
Let's try it this way...
IT AIN'T A !@#$%^&* FUSE!!!!!!!!!

swp

Lies... this will be fixed.. I would hear some indication of a malfunctioning starter or something of that sort.. there is no power going to the engine at all

garpt

I realize human nature is to not wanna believe there is a problem more serious than they want to believe.. But such is life.

swp

If this isn't a fuse problem please elaborate on what the problem could actually be..

garpt

See my posts above and the link I provided. It should be clear. Your starter is making a clicking noise because your battery is bad and cannot supply enough current to turn over the starter. Your battery is bad because the diodes in your alternator have shorted and it cannot charge the battery. Your alternator is bad because it has been overstressed by too much current in the electrical system. The current overload in the electrical system is caused by running high-current accessories (i.e.:, stereo AMPLIFIERS,) which are overloading the system. The cures, as well as the necessary fixes, can be found in the link I provided, assuming you want to continue using a high-power stereo and accessories. But we are getting ahead of ourselves....

swp

I'm not even getting a click though.. it seems as though when i turn the key nothing signals the starter to even try and turn the engine on.. thats what im tring to say, it seems like there is a fuse that is blown that isnt telling the engine that the key is tring to start it.. i unplugged the amp from the battery

garpt

I understand your previous post better now. It wouldn't matter at this point if the amp is connected or not. The damage has probably all ready been done. The short circuit in the alternator, (or batt.), could have created an "open" connection- (think of a wire cut in two, similar to a blown fuse.) That would be my best guess. In fact, the electrical engineer at the dealer couldn't believe that my car actually DID start the next morning. And the only other fuse box in the system, if you are not aware, is under the hood towards the back right side when you are facing the front of the car.
Gary.

swp

Yea.. I'm tring to figure out which fuse in that fuse box has anything to do with my engine and the battery.. if that fuse isnt blown than we obviously know it's something greater than that.. if I find out which fuse has anything to do with starting my car, maybe even if the fuse for the theft imobilizer has been blown, this could cause my car maybe to not start thinking it's tring to be stolen... im getting normal power coming from the battery, everything works it just seems that i cant get the power to go to engine's starter.

925tsx

i was gonna post a reply, but this looks like a private post between the two of you..
fight nice kiddies

gCHOW

this happened to me when i installed a bad bulb. the fuse for that circuit is blown.

just get a box of 10AMP fuses and replace it. simple as that.

swp

Which fuse is it though.. which fuse acts between my key and the starter.. or my battery and the starter?

garpt

Still don't think its a fuse.. You might get some progress if you get unstuck about the fuse thing.
And I'm stll willing to place a small wager I'm correct about the system being overloaded.

swp

I'm sure it was... it sounds like i can hear something coming from around the altinator

jiggaman

this thread is absurd. suck it up SWP and have your car towed to the dealer. face it, you are not going to fix this problem...

Dan Martin

jiggaman

was i too harsh on that one?

Dan Martin

swp, since I'm such a nice guy, here's the troubleshooting guide for starter problems:
http://www.mtmsteel.com/starter/index.htm

swp

ironicly my car is now working fine.. There was nothing but my ground hooked up to my amp and the rca's.. the ground was grounded to some part of the trunk.. i unplugged the ground (the hot has always been unplugged including from the battery) and i unplugged the remote wire.. and bang it started right up.. i feel like i got such a big break D: <3 my TSX


Thanks for that starter page also, that may come inhandy.

jiggaman

i stand corrected. :wtf:

guess you got lucky this time. atleast we know it wasn't the fuse!

Dan Martin

:wtf: +1

I don't know how to explain that one but it's good that all is well.

RMATIC09