Dauphine Electrical Problem

D

Dauphinegordini

Member
Tadpole
Joined
Jul 6, 2020
Messages
57
Location
Perth
Hi gurus I have a weird problem with my Dauphine which I need some guidance on. It just happened on Sunday the headlights, tail lights, windscreen wipers/washers and interior lights have stopped working. I still have brake lights, indicators and oil and charging lights operational on the dash. I cannot see anything obvious wrong and I don't believe there are any fuses to check.

Any clues as to where I should start looking?
 
Don't have a Dauphine circuit diagram here but at a guess it would be the feed that is common to the above mentioned parts. I would look under the dash and see if you can see a wire that has broken off or fell off.

Be careful poking around under there to not dislodge anything or you may have another fault to find.
 
I haven't experienced that sort of problem with my Dauphine, but I have needed to fix corroded &/or loose connections on most circuits at one time or another. The electrical system is fairly simple - it's just a matter of following each circuit until you find the fault!
 
harrisonati said:
I haven't experienced that sort of problem with my Dauphine, but I have needed to fix corroded &/or loose connections on most circuits at one time or another. The electrical system is fairly simple - it's just a matter of following each circuit until you find the fault!
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...you should fix your brake lights, the last time I followed you into a corner they didn't seem to be working :unsure:
 
If the Dauphine is anything like a Caravelle the items described would be on one fuse under the dash.
Check the fuse has not gone to start with. There are two fuses ( I think ) for the whole car.
 
59 Floride said:
...you should fix your brake lights, the last time I followed you into a corner they didn't seem to be working :unsure:
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That would be a while ago - Inverell? I've improved them since then. However, all of the Dauphine's lights are dim by modern standards.
 
Phil, I think Graham was suggesting you don’t brake for corners.
 
Found the fault. There is a single fuse which did look to be intact when visually inspected, however when measured with my multimeter it was open circuit. Pulled the end caps off and it's a poor quality fuse which had not been soldered/spot welded on one end so the fusible link had separated from the end cap.

Thanks for your suggestions and guidance.
 
Dauphinegordini said:
Found the fault. There is a single fuse which did look to be intact when visually inspected, however when measured with my multimeter it was open circuit. Pulled the end caps off and it's a poor quality fuse which had not been soldered/spot welded on one end so the fusible link had separated from the end cap.

Thanks for your suggestions and guidance.
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Probably caused by vibration, have seen this many times when fuses look OK but when tested are open circuit.
 
Re brake lights, Mr D-G, you might just check sometime whether they only come on with a fairly hard push but not for light braking? Those pressure switches can lose sensitivity with age. Just mentioning it while I think of it.
 
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I had similar intermittent problems and ended up replacing the fuse holder with a modern version. I tried cleaning the old one numerous times but it seemed to have a lot of resistance/heat being generated. Changing this alone brightened up headlights.
 
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jjperko said:
I had similar intermittent problems and ended up replacing the fuse holder with a modern version. I tried cleaning the old one numerous times but it seemed to have a lot of resistance/heat being generated. Changing this alone brightened up headlights.
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Relays plus QI bulbs work wonders. With the right wattage delivered they are bright and the relays near the headlamps ensure no voltage drop.
 
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