2005 wiring problem

Have gone round and round with this problem. Off the battery distribution block,fuse 6 has a draw when parked. Kills battery after three days. It is not the battery. page 8w-10-11 in the manual shows coming off this fuse to S101.(S101 is supposed to be under driver's seat) This is not marked. This junction goes to fuse block 1 which is under the dash. Disconnected lead at duse block...still has draw. Sio1 then goes to C102 (which I can't find) but goes to S103 (can't find). Here it splits and goes to fuse 10 in fuse block 3. I CAN"T FIND FUSE BLOCK 3. Is this a misprint? Do they mean fuse block 2? I'd hate to have to cut harnesses apart to trace wires.

Been living with this problem for months. It has been in vehicle since I purchased it used 11 months ago Getting tired of disconnecting at the battery. Not healthy for me or battery.

thanks in advance.

The "S" numbers are Splices... places where one wire "splits" into two or more (usually of the same color)
Fuse Block 1 is under the steering column
Fuse Block 2 is the top row on the outside of the driver's seat pedestal.
Fuse Block 3 is, as you note, not shown in the "where things are at" diagrams!
(i suspect it's the lower half of the side-of-seat grouping).
Fuse Block 3 is shown on page 8w-11-5 (in the 2004 manual).
It's a bank of three rows of 9 fuses each. From the drawing, they may be "relay-sized" fuses.
According to the manual, only two rows (20 fuses) are populated, with at least 8 slots uncommited

hope this helps
--dick

I have been using a Pasar Current Tracer tester for years.... decades. It very quickly and easily will take you back to the breaker in an AC system. In the right hands it can be used to trace many problems. I once traced a 250 volt station battery ground problem shown by the ground monitor to a worn conductor in a 15 KV breaker cubicle in a fairly large switching station. It took me about 20 minutes to pinpoint. The ground had plagued them for literally 10 years before I got there. (It immediately spiked my value and credibility as a brand new employee.) There was no visual signs of arc or heat because it was an intentionally ungrounded system. Without the current tracer I doubt we ever would have found it, until a second ground happened anyway.

It works by pulling a high current, high frequency pulse of power from the voltage source. I have used it around main frames, telephone equipment, and personal computers with no adverse effects. The probe is tuned to that pulse frequency. You can scan or use "Scan, Breakers, Wires" selector switch to attenuate the signal and then follow along individual conductors. It works on AC or DC systems as low as 9 volts. I have used a couple 9 volt batteries clipped together as a source on dead circuits to trace back to a tripped breaker or blown fuse.

It should be capable of tracing back to the 12 volt source which feeds your wire. It is probably a bit too expensive to purchase for just this problem. Perhaps there is a local electrical contractor around your area that you could throw a few bucks to for them to trace your wire. As I said, in the right hands it is an awesome tool.

http://www.testmart.com/webdata/mfr_pdfs/FLUAMP/CT100.pdf

Good luck.
vic

Doug.
How much current is flowing? if you measure it you can calculate the power of the device that is running. for example if its 5 watts it could be the light in the glove box. Eric

it draws approx 400ma after connecting the battery and all the normal circuite settle down. The draw is on fuse 6 at the battery distribution block. Been dealing with this for months; I don't use the vehicle normally except for weekends. If I don't disconnect the battery block, the battery discharges. I have pulled fuses and relays under the seat, disconnected the supply to the fuse block under the sterring column with no solution.

Vic,

I actually have that equipt.

It seems to me that if the current draw has been constant over a period of months it is more likely to be a failed component than a wire insulation problem. About the only way to find it is to trace the current flow by tracing wires and disconnecting the junction points to follow the current to the load that is causing the problem.

You may have a relay problem. I’ve seen this happen with bad relays. Not failed enough to cause a short but enough to cause a draw and drain the battery over a several day period. If so, it is probably not a factory relay but one installed by the previous owner. It would most likely be left over from equipment that has been removed and it is installed in some obscure place that you haven’t found it yet. Sounds like you have been systematically working at tracing it down but you are still one or two steps away from finding it. Look for any left over non factory wiring. BTW, fuse block #3 is the lower have of the fuse block assembly under the drivers seat (as stated in a previous post). It mostly has to do with the ABS system. Hope this helps.

Thank you, John
Sprinter Store
http://sprinterstore.com/
A division of Upscale Automotive, Inc.
19460 SW 89th Ave.
Tualatin, OR 97062
503-692-0846

mendonsy said:

It seems to me that if the current draw has been constant over a period of months it is more likely to be a failed component than a wire insulation problem. About the only way to find it is to trace the current flow by tracing wires and disconnecting the junction points to follow the current to the load that is causing the problem.

Click to expand...

That is the problem I have...locating splices to disconnect. will get into this more deeply.

thanks

I went out to see if i could locate my own "fuse block 3".
It's obviously not on the side panel, and i can't access my under-seat area this week, due to having the Sprinter fully loaded (which restricts seat travel).
A clamp-around ammeter would let you follow currents, even without having to open splices.

Is your Sprinter a camper/rv, or "just a Sprinter"?

good luck
--dick

mendonsy said:

...
About the only way to find it is to trace the current flow by tracing wires and disconnecting the junction points to follow the current to the load that is causing the problem.

Click to expand...

Not necessarily....

Dougflas said:

Vic,

I actually have that equip.

Click to expand...

Doug,
You can use the Pasar Current Tracer to help find your problem. Did I read that you have it down to fuse #6? Using the low voltage Pasar unit (9 - 50 or 140 volts?) and clip leads, remove your fuse #6, then plug in a couple 3/16" male connectors (or 1/4"?) where the fuse was, and connect the tracer clip leads across the #6 position.

The current tracer will now pull current from the +12 and through your load, or device, to negative. You should then be able to follow the wire coming off the fuse position out to the connected device by using the probe set to "circuit breakers" or "wires". It may take a bit of tracing if the body ground gets into the mix, but I'm quite certain it will work. Let us know how it goes. Good luck. vic

I CAN"T FIND FUSE BLOCK 3.

Click to expand...

I think that's because it doesn't really exist.
I started walking the various citations of "Fuse Block 3" (especially those fed from Fuse 3 on the Power Distribution Block).
I find that -some- of them (such as Interior Lights) actually appear on my steering column fuse block
Some (such as Interior Lights) are combined with other functions (cigarette lighter, in this case) and had different amp ratings.
Now, i -could- just be seeing a "2004" (my Service Manual) vs "2005" (my Sprinter) model year differences, but...

"Auxiliary Heat Exchanger" is another example of "it went elsewhere".
In the manual, it's 25amp fuse 3 on Fuse Block 3.
In my Sprinter, it's on the driver's pedestal side block (fuse Block 2), as fuse 11, 25amp.

So i think it's fictional (for our model years)

--dick

autostaretx said:

...
In the manual, it's 25amp fuse 3 on Fuse Block 3.
In my Sprinter, it's on the driver's pedestal side block (fuse Block 2), as fuse 11, 25amp.

So i think it's fictional (for our model years)

--dick

Click to expand...

Dick,
I agree it's confusing. I haven't seen anything that specifically names Fuse Block (FB) 3.

I still wonder if the Fuse/Relay block included on the lower section of Fuse Block #2 isn't FB #3. This is one diagram.


Maybe positions 1 - 41 are FB #2, and the rest are FB #3? That is a guess. As you say, it may not exist at all. vic

Fuse Block 3 is referred to in the 2004 Sprinter Service Manual CD (cost $99 from Freightliner/Dodge at the time).

Here's the "layout" diagram:


Here's the "fuse sizes" (note lack of "duty assignments"):


Here's a typical wiring page that refers to a couple of the fuses in that block:


have fun
--dick

Doug
That is about 5 watts, you should be able to find that just by temperature. 5 watts will make the faulty component warm to touch. If you leave the battery conected place a charger on it then leave it over night, in the morning touch every electrical component. If you have a tow pack look at the relay box under the rear. It will most likely be a non factory mod. One interesting one I found was the central locking reacting to a RF signal from a chip scanner. Eric

autostaretx said:

Fuse Block 3 is referred to in the 2004 Sprinter Service Manual CD (cost $99 from Freightliner/Dodge at the time).

Here's the "layout" diagram:
...
have fun
--dick

Click to expand...

I guess that blows my fuse theory. (Pun intended.) Thanks, vic

Edit:
I believe I've said this before... some of this confusion is because of the way MB almost "custom builds" each electrical system depending upon options ordered. I really think the Detroit iron method of installing all harnesses the same and then using what is needed makes for more consistent and accurate, although also not perfect, wire diagrams (at the cost of more materials).