Technical Side Lights staying on with Key removed

[Rizzla]

Hi all. I'm new to hear, but i'm on FCCUK and been a member on there a while. I thought it would be good to put my issue on here and see if there's anyone else that can help me. I have a 1997 Fiat Coupe 20v Turbo.

My Italian neighbour texted me yesterday and said have I left my lights on, I said no I don't think so but i'll check. The side lights were on, along with the lights at the rear of the car (plus the cigarette lighter and internal clock) but the Stick where you control the lights was set to OFF. I clicked everywhere else, everything else seems to be off. I spoke to Joe on FCCUK and he said it might be a faulty relay, so I removed the 2 relays he said (highlighted in the photo) and the lights stayed on. So for now, annoyingly, i'm detaching the battery everytime I park the car to prevent battery drainage.

Another member of FCCUK said about the black button next to the Ignition barrel and said that can be held in and turned to PARK, I tried that, it done that and then he said to put the key back in and put it to stop and you hear a click and the lights should go out. Nope, unfortunately. Lights are still on...

I have attached all of the images I put on FCCUK.

I'm at a loss. I really love this car but hate the little issues it has sometimes. It's off to Joe in Worchester sometime soon to get an engine overhaul but i'd like to get this issue resolved before then.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Kind regards

Matt

 

[varesecrazy]

Hi

I was going to suggest the key barrel..

All FIAT of that era did that..

You couldnt leave lights ON - once key was removed it was all off...
UNLESS you pressed button and rotated lock backwards

 

[porta]

It does sound like the ‘black button’ parking lights function fault. Take the steering cowls off and carefully remove the ignition switch rear, the electrical connection part…I say carefully as the plastic maybe brittle with age, you can then operate it manually to see if there’s a fault

 

[Rizzla]

Thanks for your replies, much appreciated. Is it a big job to remove the Steering Cowls off?

 

[porta]

Thanks for your replies, much appreciated. Is it a big job to remove the Steering Cowls off?

No, a couple of screws

 

[Rizzla]

Sounds good! I'll go and have a look now.

 

[Rizzla]

Ok about the Cowls, I have undone all of the bolts that I can visibly see, but the right hand side (near the Ignition barrel) seems tight like there's another hidden screw somewhere? Any ideas?

 

[porta]

It could be a clip latch. I can’t offhand remember how many screws there were

 

[Rizzla]

Ok all gold screws from the bottom have been removed, the plastic has fallen down. Can't see how the top part gets removed though. Does the steering wheels have to come off?

 

[Rizzla]

Plastic removed, two tiny screws behind the steering wheel. I see the plug now to the ignition switch. Once I remove that, how can I test the lock for a fault?

 

[porta]

You should be able to turn the switch to different positions…assuming the lights still on

 

[Rizzla]

Ok I have some news

I just went out to the car, remember we've had 2 dry and warms days now since the really heavy rain the other day, and that was the day when the lights stayed on, basically it could have happened during that heavy rain... anyway, re-connected the battery. All back to normal!

So this cannot be the Ignition Switch!?

So can water/moisture be the issue here then, clearly something has dried out and it's all back to normal? If so, where could the water have made it's way in and potentially affect the lights to stay on?

 

[porta]

Most common electrical faults (apart from bad earths) on the Tipo/tempra/coupe (and associated Alfas) was water getting into the fusebox, usually after a windscreen had been replaced, badly, and the useless ‘plastic bag’ material over said fusebox/wiring
Your particular fault was usually the ign switch, which is why we went down that rabbit hole

 

[Rizzla]

So can the Fuse Box be covered up, in a waterproof cover or plastic or is that dangerous? Just thinking of how to prevent this happening again. Also where is the IGN switch located? Thanks for all of your help!

 

[porta]

Ign = ignition switch
Yes, it was slightly thicker plastic bag material literally draped over the fusebox, it did little to stop water ingress as the water would follow the wiring into the fusebox.
Far better to stop the leak in the first place!
Usually you would get more than one fault, water can conduct electricity very well around the contacts and pcb.
As an aside, this fusebox was also fitted to the Iveco Daily and experienced the same faults with water ingress. I must stress though, that some functions were not assigned the same on the plugs so some have different fuse ratings

 

[porta]

You might want to look here too:

Fiat Coupe Club UK :: FCCuk.org

Fiat Coupe Club UK :: HOME (HOME)

www.fiatcoupeclub.org