nicholi2789 Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 (edited) Hey everyone, got a small electrical issue going on with my 95 legacy. And since I'm not electrical expert I thought I would ask you guys. I've posted about my beloved Legacy I bought for 700$ before. Anyways, I've noticed this issue since I first bought the car bit haven't really worried about it because I had other small issues to deal with. So, the problem. When I first got the car I noticed that it didn't have any dash lights. I mean, the CEL, e-brake, airbag, and all other indicator lights work. The backlight just doesn't work. I checked the fuse box and of course the 10A fuse was blown, so I replaced it. It worked fine for a while after that then it blew again. Sometimes a new fuse will last a few days other times it will blow in five minutes. But it will happen. So I just bought a thing of fuses and A cheap LED light for when I run out of fuses. Figuring it's a problem for another day. The other electrical problem is when I'm driving with my low beams on they will work fine until randomly they click off. I mean all the way off. If I switch to my high beams then back to low beams they will work again. If I drive with just my high beams on it won't happen at all. Only on the low beams. Strange. It happens completely randomly like my dash lights. Since I know next to nothing about electrical issues like this I don't even know where to start. The most I can do with electrical stuff is wire a cd player and stereo system. Could it be a bad relay? Anybody got a suggestions on where to start? It's not exactly a dire issue, but it is certainly and irritating one. Edited July 9, 2014 by nicholi2789 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john in KY Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 My guess is both problems will be resolved after the combination switch is replaced. My limited understanding is the headlight circuit uses circuit breakers and not relays. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nicholi2789 Posted July 9, 2014 Author Share Posted July 9, 2014 My guess is both problems will be resolved after the combination switch is replaced. My limited understanding is the headlight circuit uses circuit breakers and not relays. Combination switch? Can you point me in the general location of it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 No circuit breakers in the Subaru. At least not that year. The combination switch is the headlamp/turn signal switch. This switch only grounds the headlamp relays, so would affect both low and high beams. A relay problem would likely affect either left or right side only as there are separate relays for left and right headlamps. Both headlamps are grounded through the dimmer switch in the steering column. The switch selects the ground side for either high or low beams. A poor contact in the dimmer switch would affect either both low or both high beam lamps. As for the dash lights, does the car have an aftermarket radio? It's common for people to cut the plug that supplies power for the backlighting in the radio. If this is shorting on a part of the metal dash it will blow the illumination fuse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nicholi2789 Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 No circuit breakers in the Subaru. At least not that year. The combination switch is the headlamp/turn signal switch. This switch only grounds the headlamp relays, so would affect both low and high beams. A relay problem would likely affect either left or right side only as there are separate relays for left and right headlamps. Both headlamps are grounded through the dimmer switch in the steering column. The switch selects the ground side for either high or low beams. A poor contact in the dimmer switch would affect either both low or both high beam lamps. As for the dash lights, does the car have an aftermarket radio? It's common for people to cut the plug that supplies power for the backlighting in the radio. If this is shorting on a part of the metal dash it will blow the illumination fuse. Yes it does have an aftermarket cd player and system. I installed the system but not the deck. I thought that maybe the cd player was affecting it too and pulled it out to look and everything was wired surprisingly clean. How can I check to see if that's happening? What wire do I look for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 The illumination wires for the radio are in a separate plug. Only 2 wires. White with green, and Yellow with blue or purple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nicholi2789 Posted July 10, 2014 Author Share Posted July 10, 2014 The illumination wires for the radio are in a separate plug. Only 2 wires. White with green, and Yellow with blue or purple. Just so I understand this correctly: There is a wire that runs to the stock deck that provides illumination. When somebody removes it they just snip that wire since it serves no purpose anymore. So basically just open it up and look back in there for a wire that was snipped and not capped? Exposed wire randomly grounding on the frame blowing the fuse.. I suppose that makes sense because the fuse blowing is 100% random. So it's just when I happen to hit a bump and that wire just perfectly touches something. Sometimes it will last 2 minutes, other times 2 days. The fuse I'm on right now has been in for 5 days. Longest yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 There are two wires for the illumination. They run to the same two wire plug. I think the plug is white. One wire is White with either a yellow or green stripe, the other is Yellow with a blue or purple stripe. Sometimes people cut the wires thinking they can connect them to the new radio for illumination control, but it just doesn't work that way. Even of they didnt cut them, there are plenty of sharp edges in there and the wires could be rubbing on the dash frame. Look for any loose wires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 If you have a wire harness connection for a trailer then check that connector. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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