Ok so here it goes. Finally got my del sol running after owning it for 12 years.. D15b7 block, z6 head, proper wiring harness in the engine. Kept the interior stock. Tried not to mess with wiring at all. FINALLY got it running the other day and went to drive it. Got .3 miles up the road and stalled out. Cranked a few times and then got NOTHING, no dash no domelight absolutly nothing (as if the battery was dead). Also no zap sound, or burning smell...
after pushing it home tested the battery and noticed i had continuity to my ground from the positive terminal. After leaving the continuity tester hooked up to ground and the alternator wire i proceeded to disconnect EACH connector one by one to see what would make it stop. No avail on the engine bay side. Found out the light will go out when i disconnect the option fuse under the hood. Now im under the dash testing the plugs going into the fuse box... I know there arent that many grounds in each plug. Pulled the main relay, cruise control unit, every relay systematically. Tried disconnecting the cluster and still same result... I checked each side of the harnesses for what i could get to. Key switch harness is good, and seems to be stemming from the light green plugs from the back of the fuse box. Anybody know of a common wiring issue as it seems like this is in the main harness of the dash? I dont want to pull the entire dash but if I have to then so be it.

 

What year del sol is this?

 

93 si. Came stock with a z6 i didnt cut any of the engine harness or the factory harness in the dash removed the old security system but that was simple enough. I should also add that im still getting the same short with the ecu disconnected and sitting on the bench. Im almost to the point of pulling the dash and wiring it back up without the dash in the way....

 

Under-hood Fuse No. 36 (50A) - Option is the power distribution to under-dash fuses 3 and 11, Power windows,Option connector A.

For a 93' Del Sol: Under-dash fuse no. 3 protects the Integrated Control Unit, Ceiling Light, and Trunk Light. '94 Del Sol includes the Data Link Connector (DLC).

Under-dash fuse no. 11 protects the Auxiliary Light Relay circuit.

 

Problem im getting is ground continuity to 90% of my fuses. This is carrying it all throughout my dash. I have no power in acc or on with the key. My thought was to look at each individual ground and see if any of them are beat up at all and sort through every wire. I figured the short would stop once i disconnected the offending circuit. Short stays there with all fuses and relays pulled. Also pulled the fuse box and tested every lead on it. Seemed like it was in good working order.

 

Check the power cables at the under-hood fuse box; T102 and T1.

Remove T102 which is from the alternator to see if the short still exist.

 

Yes the short is still there, i have the battery in the trunk but disconnected on both sides.... Im in the process of pulling the dash right now.

 

Do you have anything plugged into the battery power option port in the dash fuse box? If not, the dash fuse box itself likely has the short to ground.

This^ statement is inconsistent with the fact that removal of 50A hood fuse 36 eliminated the short to ground. Correct?

 

Removal of the 50a fuse under the hood stopped the alternator wire and battery power wire located in the underhood fuse box. However i also noticed the 7.5a fuse next to the ecu fuse under the hood was also showing continuity to ground. I also double checked this with pulling the underhood fuse box and unhooking the connectors from the box. With both disconnected i still have continuity to ground on about 90% of the wires on the green connectors in the underdash fuse box.... Most of the fuses have it also and this is to ground. To my knowlege fuses on a positive circuit shouldnt have any continuity to ground if not shorted???

 

And yes i had one item in the power port option (trunk release solenoid) that is now disconnected while i try to get any life back into the car

 

After you unplugged the connector from the dash option port, was the short to ground at fuse 36 eliminated?

 

No it was not

 

If this helps at all the car did this while i was cranking it trying to get it started. Crank to dead silence

 

Sounds like a wire harness is crushed, cause grounding of the wires. Focus on identifying the source of the fuse 36 circuit short to ground because it will likely lead you to the cause of these other shorts to ground.

 

A Wht/Red wire runs from hood fuse 36 to the dash fuse box. Did you test this specific wire for a short to ground with the hood and dash fuse box connectors unplugged?

 

FOUND IT!!! Seems stupid to me now.... Battery box is in the trunk... Negative wire is attached on the top of the strut tower with a strut bar running laterally... I pulled the wire off before but didnt pull the strut brace. Looked underneath it and found the paint perfectly preserved between the brace and the strut.... Now i feel pretty dumb as i look at my dash on my bench and wires all about... Have my cluster back and can crank... Now no start but ill put EVERYTHING back together and see what happens.