!985 Excel Wiring diagrams

[DavidOliver]

No side lights front or rear while everything else works fine.
I have the Owner handbook showing the footwell fuse panel and the wiring diagrams from the Excel Manual.
Nothing matches, the fuse box has 18 fuses and the manual calls out over 24.
The wire colour codes in the Manual do not match to on-board wiring.
The owner manual fuse box description numbers do not respond to on-board wire testing.
I have disconnected the battery and released the footwel fuse box and batterry source connection, source point. and am trying to trace each fuse position to find which coincides to the rear position lights and front positions lights.

Does anyone have a wiring diagram and fuse boxnumbering for my 1985 model for me to avoid doing a Bletchley analysis of all the possibilities and
locate the corresponding wires between relays, fuses , power supply cables and earth routes.

All this with a continuous struggle in the Lotus position to carry out circuit testing and the need to get out and see if the 12Volt connections have lighted up the intended circuit.

No lights no MOT.

Dave the cog

[rbgosling]

There are different wiring diagrams for different year cars in the Workshop Manual that I have, so it is quite possible that the wiring diagram you have is not the right one for your car. Can't check the details now as I'm at work, and the Workshop Manual is at home!

I saw a device similar to this reviewed in Practical Classics recently. I'd not heard of it before, but it seems like quite a cunning tool for helping track down electrical faults. I might get one (but probably only once I've developed a problem, and am swearing at myself for not buying it before the problem arose!).

[Alan_M]

I’ve just scanned all of section MA for pre 86. Pm me your email address and I’ll send it to you.

[Marten]

https://lotusmarques.com/info/technical ... section-ma

[MetBlue]

Interesting link. Thanks for posting.

Road test on an SA if anyone's interested. (Struggling to paste a link on my phone).

Tony

[DavidOliver]

Alan m. My e-mail address is Would you like to Know and I would be very pleased to receive your info.

I am looking into the lotusmarques page and will try that as well.

I have rigged up a circuit tester on the fuse box connections, car battery disconnected to try and individually power up each circuit down the line from each fuse and discover the real purpose of each circuit, but the Lotus position reduces the time I can spend testing before cramp comes in.

Many thanks to Forum members for their replies... wonderfull.

Dave the cog.

[Alan_M]

Email with PDF sent.

[Alan_M]

Ps. Might be worth removing your email address.

[pistolpete]

There are different wiring diagrams for different year cars in the Workshop Manual that I have, so it is quite possible that the wiring diagram you have is not the right one for your car. Can't check the details now as I'm at work, and the Workshop Manual is at home!

I saw a device similar to this reviewed in Practical Classics recently. I'd not heard of it before, but it seems like quite a cunning tool for helping track down electrical faults. I might get one (but probably only once I've developed a problem, and am swearing at myself for not buying it before the problem arose!).

Great spot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhH-2OnCo4I
this is an upgraded versions looks really useful but seems you have to get it from the states

[DavidOliver]

The failure of front and rear lights has been traced to the toggle switch on the dashboard.
Quite a Heath Robinson invention, with floating brass strips and contacts which had dirtied up. Solved with a bit of Emery paper.
For a car kept outside with humidity is likely to develop switch failure.
Tracing electrical faults is impossible without the correct Wiring diagrams, the S.E. models are very different to the earlier models. Thanks to Forum members for sending me the diagrams.
The location of the fuse box and relays down by the accelerator pedal make access painful, was there not a better position?
The early models also have the forward fusebox and relays for headlamp motors are located by the Left hand side headlight pod, not inside the car body, quite a damp location and requiring pod removal for access.

I am now ready for the MOT (ITV in Spain) next Friday.

Dave the cog

[rbgosling]

As predicted less than a fortnight ago, I now have an electrical fault (well, the return of one I never properly fixed before) that demands the use of this tool, and I haven't bought it yet!

I've actually now ordered this



Cheaper, and since it connects directly to the multimeter I already own it will allow a wider range of measurements than just the Amps that the previous device does.

My problem... when I turn the rear screen heater on, it blows the 2A fuse that feeds the switch. This also supplies the heater fan switch and the horn switch, which also die at the same time. Only happens 50% of the times I turn the rear screen heater on. Hasn't really been an issue for the past 6 months or so...