Fuse layout to add piggyback connector

[fladavid]

I have the updated fuse box in my 55 plate Focus and need to add a piggyback mini blade fuse connector for a dead audio live supply wire but it needs to be an ignition controlled fuse to isolate the radio when leaving the car.

Is the current audio fuse holder F112 switched or permanent live? F128 and F130 say not used, would they be wired already to use and if so are they switched? If neither of these options are available to me can someone suggest the best switched fuse holder to use for my radio live and I assume I would have to uprate the fuse too to what size? 

Many thanks. 

[JW1982]

F104, F105, F109, F112, F118 and F120 are all connected to the same conductor inside the GEM module/fuse box. These fuses are all powered by the 60A F4 fuse which is installed at the front of the battery box. This is a permanent power supply.

If your car does not have rear power windows fuse F118 or F120 can perfectly be used as a replacement for fuse F112.

Fuse F130 is an ignition switched power supply. This fuse is rated at a maximum supply of 10A. The size of the wiring/conductor inside the GEM module fuse box does not allow to draw more power. You should not insert a larger fuse. 

 

Personally I would use fuse F118 or F120. If you want to use an ignition switched power you can add a relay between the wire from F118/F120 to the radio. The relay can be switched with a wire that is connected to fuse F130. 

 

[fladavid]

Not being totally up on electrics at all would I get away with inserting a piggyback blade fuse connector into F130 and the radio being ok working on a 10 amp fuse only? Your suggestion is a bit beyond my limited capabilities unfortunately. 

[JW1982]

If your car just has the standard audio system without the optional Bluetooth/Voicecontrol system you can get away with connecting to fuse F130. The standard audio system consumes less power than 10A. 

 

[fladavid]

Thanks. Really helpful. 

[Stoney871]

I'd start by connecting the piggyback to the original radio fuse location first just to rule out a burnt out wire.

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[fladavid]

I thought that but JW1982 says it's a permanent live fuse. 

[Stoney871]

Thete are 2 feeds to the radio.
One is permanent live for clock/code/timed radio operation etc from the main fusebox.
Other is a switched live for standard usage from the footwell board.

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[fladavid]

Regarding running the power cable up to to back of the dashboard and running new Speakers wires down to the front doors only is there room to push them through into the footwell either side so that they can be run through the doors to the existing Speakers? And any ideas how to get them down each side of the dashboard to the footwell? 

[fladavid]

Also looking online just now I assumed that the cables went through the rubber grommet into the door and on to the speaker connection but a guy on the Ford Focus ST site said that it isn't possible as the door has a Molex connector. Does anybody know if that is correct and how I can get round it if it is? 

[JW1982]

Inside the rubber grommet are indeed connectors that are mounted in the bodywork of the car. To be able to even disconnect these connectors the doors will have to be removed. 

Another problem is that at the location of the connectors the bodywork frame is basically a reinforced box section with insulation material in between. Without removing the entire dashboard it is close to impossible to have access to the wiring at the back of the connectors in the bodywork.

[fladavid]

This job is turning into a nightmare tbh.

So without being able to run new speaker cables to the existing Speakers in the doors the only option I have is to run new cables to surface mounted Speakers placed possibly in the footwell. 

Has anybody got any ideas what reasonably priced ones to buy and where I should site them? Can you use normal door  speakers in a mount that attaches to the interior somewhere? 

[JW1982]

What is wrong with the original speaker wiring? Defective wiring is absolutely no Focus MK2 problem. Even if the wiring inside the door grommet is damaged it can easily be solved by reparing/replacing the damaged wires or replacing the door wiring harness. 

If the Speakers are intermittently not working this can also be caused by the radio. In the past I replaced a lot of amplifier IC's on original Ford radio's because of this problem. A defective amplifier IC can also cause the Speakers to break down.

[Micro]

On 2017-6-2 at 10:59 AM, fladavid said:

I assume I would have to uprate the fuse too to what size? 

No, you'd only put the correct rated fuse in the "tap" section of the fuse tap. You'd put the original fuse in the lower position.

If you are looking to pull more than 10A (and even so, if I was pulling 5A+) i'd probably look at getting a relay sorted out and tapping off the cigarette lighter supply (internal Fusebox/electronics box capable of 30A - wiring diagram) or a separate feed from the battery.

I'm sure a bit of extra wire and a relay is cheaper than a new fuseboard :P

[fladavid]

The issue with the Speakers is that they all intermittently go on and off randomly. Bizarrely it seems that if the car has got hot in the sun they might work but if the car is cold they dont work at all. I thought it might be the quad lock connector so I removed it and wired the speaker cables individually with bullet connectors but it is still the same. Ironically both tweeters were working even when the four main door Speakers weren't but now only the right door tweeter is working. I'm not much of a mechanic so dont know if the Speakers are all earthed at one point and that is the problem? 

[fladavid]

Just fitted the radio with the piggyback connector in fuse holder 130. It already had a 7.5 amp fuse in the fuse box so I put that into the lower part of the piggyback connector and a 10 amp fuse in the upper part. Is that the correct way to do it? I also noticed that no power is supplied to fuse 130 in the first two ignition positions, only when the car is running. 

As for the Speakers cables I connected them up and I got the rear left speaker and the front right tweeter working. Bizarrely I tried pulling apart the speaker cables and noticed that the purple/white and grey/white cables which should feed the rear left speaker was feeding it but was also feeding the front right tweeter. I think something nasty has happened to the speaker wires somewhere down the line. Think my only option is to buy two surface mounted Speakers and run new cable to the footwell and forget about the old wiring completely. 

[MACH_Chris]

if you want an ignition (switched live) - F100 is your easiest bet. I've got my dash-cam and a couple of other extras taken from this feed with no issues at all. 

[Micro]

F130 appears to be for the AWD module according to the wiring diagram, although I know the fuse boxes are slightly different between the Facelift and non-facelift Mk 2 - but that would explain the live only whilst engine running scenario.

The speaker wires (2 of for each speaker run) run back to the radio - the tweeters seemingly run off the main speaker cable for each speaker.

Have you tried measuring the resistance for each speaker run? (Left Front, Right Front, Right Rear, Left Rear) - you should get a reading probably from 2 ohm to 16 ohm - a short or a high resistance would indicate a problem with the Speakers or wiring.

Is it possible that the Speakers have been overloaded at any point?

[fladavid]

I'm not really up on electrics at all tbh and wouldn't know how to go about that test. 

I really believe that at some point a fitted phone cradle was in the car due to the holes left in the centre console and before I bought it someone removed it badly and the wiring to the Speakers were left wired up incorrectly. God knows how anyone would work out what had happened there! 

I've also come to the end of my tether with it and have bought a bluetooth speaker for the car and added another post here asking for advice about a facia to block the head unit hole. 

Thanks for everybody's help over the last few weeks but this one has beaten me. Any ideas about the fascia posted above? 

[Stoney871]

It's probably time to get advice from a car audio specialist.
Sounds like something severely bodged somewhere.

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[TangoDaz]

Sorry to hijack this thread but I would like to use a piggyback fuse to power up both dash cam and dab radio amplifier cauldron I do the same and solder both wires together and piggyback fuse F100?

[Peter Ramlochan]

I have a 2009 ford focus c max and I am trying to locate the fuel pump relay