Half my fuse box seems not to work? 411LE variant

[jonny rock]

Evening folks,
blimey, I'm having a right mare at the mo with my 411.

MOT time, doing a few checks and blow me if the hydraulic clutch pipe in the foot well went and burst. Sorting tomorrow.
Still got a slight issue with my flasher relay to sort out

So cars on my drive up ramps, been there for 2 days. Reversed up, turned off. squirted all nuts and bolts with release spray ready for a few jobs. And on big job - Clutch pipe and bleeding.

Replace dodgy heat exchanger, went to fire her up and nothing...... check fuses on board and all good.

Does turn over. But then realised I couldn't hear the fuel pump so checked other things.

What doesn't works
Horn
Wipers
Ignition/oil light on clock
indicator arm/switch
No fuel pump noise
No dash fan
No rear screen demister

What still works
Hazard lights
petrol heater
Lights

Is there something simple I could have knocked/unplugged when removing front carpet when dealing with hydraulic pipes?

Iv checked all connections/ joins around fuse box.

Could it be the ignition switch?

Stumped and frustrated.

Any suggestion and ideas greatly welcome
I can't for the live of me think what I could have possible done.

Thanks in advance for reply post, Jon

[937carrera]

I think you are on the right track. The things that are working are items that generally work without the ignition on. The non working items generally need ignition on, so I suspect it is a wiring problem to or from the the ignition switch.

I was going to look at the wiring diagrams, it would help if you could say what year your 411 is. Do you have a digital multimeter ?

[jonny rock]

Hi David, thanks for your reply.
1971 and I can get my hands on a multimeter.

Jon

[937carrera]

If it's turning over then the ignition switch is providing current to the solenoid, so the switch must be receiving a feed.

You can get wiring diagrams on here at http://home.clara.net/hallvw/wire411US72-.htm or from the Samba at http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/wiringt4.php. The ones on Samba are better quality and in colour, but the one on here shows the fuel pump relay wiring ('72 is on Samba too)

I would suggest tracing the feed to the fuel pump relay, here's my reading of the diagrams. Fuse 4 (16A) should have a live feed from the battery and from terminal 30 of the ignition switch when in the run position. The black/red wire then carries current to terminal 30/51 of the fuel pump relay J17, which will be supplied by terminal 86 if there is a switching current to terminal 85.

Hopefully that makes some sense for you, I'm assuming you know how to carry out the checks with the multimeter.

[jonny rock]

Thanks David.

I Will have ago at your suggestion.
I have a mate who I can bully in to helping out. I'm a bit hit and miss with electrics.

I am hoping that I have just dislodge a wire somewhere with my rummaging around. Its the only thing that make sense to me.
Since driving up my ramps, all iv done is take up the carpets and removed the busted clutch pipe for the master cylinder.

Thanks for the links, will post my progress.

Jon

[937carrera]

A couple of follow up quickies:

Is your car LHD or RHD (if it's RHD then you are unlikely to have disturbed wiring to the fusebox itself)

Are you sure that you replaced all the cables on the positive terminal if you disconnected the battery ?

[jonny rock]

RHD
The wiring around the base of steering column/master cylinder is abit of a birds nest. Just thinking i may have snagged something when pulling old pipe out.
I didn't disconnect battery.

I think it really is something simple. Just need to find it!

Thanks again.

[jonny rock]

I knew it...
Something simple.
Ignition wire on back of fuse box was off. How this happened is a mystery.
But sorted and roaring like a lion. Grrrrr.

Just a new clutch pipe to fit now and bleed. Front to back. Wish me luck.

Thanks david for your help.

Cheers, Jon

[937carrera]

Glad you found it....... and probably fortunate that it didn't decide to short to earth

[Editor]

Agreed David! You're strongly advised to disconnect the battery earth before playing with the wires under the dash to prevent accidental short circuits cooking the wiring. The other hazard is the wiper mechanism, which can cut pieces off a finger if it starts up unexpectedly. At least we don't have an exposed fan-belt - I get shivers down my spine when I watch a Type 1 engine running.

[jonny rock]

I agree too and noted for the future.
Just a moment of madness.