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Old 05-16-2019, 07:28 AM   #1
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Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: California
Posts: 5
Year: 2000
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Ford e450
Engine: 7.3L Diesel
2000 Ford Minotour electrical problems.

I just got my bus back from the mechanic and they reported my brake lights are out. I've been looking into it and it seems like my pcb1 & 2 panels above the driver's seat don't have power. I've checked all the fuses I can see, but I don't see where the problem is.

Any help on this would be tremendous as I feel stuck in place without my brake and tail lights.

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Old 05-18-2019, 05:01 PM   #2
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Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: California
Posts: 5
Year: 2000
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Ford e450
Engine: 7.3L Diesel
Fixed It

It turns out the 150A Circuit breaker in the engine compartment wasn't quite closed all the way. I reset it and that fixed the problem.
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Old 05-18-2019, 05:58 PM   #3
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Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 1,349
Year: 1990
Coachwork: Thomas 4 window w/lift
Chassis: G30~Chevy cutaway
Engine: 5.7/350 Chevy Vortec
Rated Cap: Just me and my "stuff"?
Electrical issues can leave one banging their head against something hard.
Then there are those who take a deep breath and dive in, until the problem is found.
Glad you figured it out.
How did you pinpoint it to that particular circuit breaker?
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Old 05-18-2019, 06:24 PM   #4
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Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: California
Posts: 5
Year: 2000
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Ford e450
Engine: 7.3L Diesel
So the shop where I was getting all the problems associated with my check engine light fixed let me know that the only lights working were my blinkers and my headlights. Before I had dropped the bus off though, I had noticed my power mirrors weren't working (first major clue).

When testing my brake lights, the first place I checked was the brake itself. I depressed the brake, and I could hear the relay click whenever I did. So the brake switch was working. I then checked the fuse for the brake lights and it was perfectly intact. I checked the bulbs and the bulbs were fine as well. I checked all the harnesses and wiring to make sure there weren't any loose or bad connections, and everything was fine. But when I realized my taillights weren't coming on as well, I figured the problem had a little less to do with the brake system.

Then I remembered the problem I had with my power mirrors, which run off the same fuse panel as the brake light power. I listened to hear if the solenoid clicked on whenever I turned the ignition, and sure enough it did, so I was relatively sure that wasn't the issue.

I had previously fried the fuse on my multi meter when I was working on the AC system, so I didn't have a working one at hand. I had just dropped $2800 on my repairs, so the less money I spent fixing this problem, the better. I decided to test the circuit with some of the LED lights that I hadn't yet installed in the overhead areas do see if I was getting power through the solenoid. Sure enough I wasn't.

Now I spent an inordinate amount of time looking for a 35A breaker that someone had mentioned in another thread, and I could never find it. I had already looked at the 150A breaker, and it looked like it was closed, so I ignored it. After futzing around forever trying everything else, I decided it was worth a shot to reset the 150A breaker. I mean, what could it hurt?

And Bingo, tail lights, power mirrors and brake lights were back on.

Likely cause was a short from the AC circuit which I had removed the hardware for. Occasionally I bump my shoulder on the AC switches on the overhead panel. I need to remove the fuses for those circuits and disconnect the switches so that never happens again.
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Old 05-18-2019, 06:31 PM   #5
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Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 1,349
Year: 1990
Coachwork: Thomas 4 window w/lift
Chassis: G30~Chevy cutaway
Engine: 5.7/350 Chevy Vortec
Rated Cap: Just me and my "stuff"?
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