I thought it was all going to well the truck has been running ok for almost a whole day and then it decided to set itself alight !

Fitted new back box this morning and started it up to get the exhaust hot and nice and sealed , ticking over for 10 mins and smoke started belowing out the bonnet ! Turned it off and popped bonnet and the relay for the heater plugs was literaly on fire. I had to dows it in water then it just smoked and smouldered for 5 mins.

This relay has only been on for a few weeks, could it be the wrong kind ? have i wired it wrong ( wouldnt have thought it would work for 3 weeks ) The weird thing is the fuse didn't blow for it so i pressume the wiring was ok.

It is (was) a durite 80 amp relay and brand new.

Probably one for LezT but any help would be good

blimey bud, that was a close one

I would guess that it wasn't man enuf, bust at work at the mo, I'll work out the current draw later...

cheers Lez.... after having a proper look it seems as though the terminal with wire that goes TO the heater plugs is black and it was the rubber cover that caught fire.( i removed the wire ) When i turn ignition on now the relay still clunks ! but obviously with the wire to the plugs removed it doesn't heat them.

Very confusing this electrical mullarky ?!@:$"?>

the relay should be a 80amp as standard
if the relay still clicks then it is ok i reakon

I thought it might have been a 100 amp as standard but i am not sure. The fuse is an 80 amp.

i think you are right mate they are 100amp as standard but the draw on the plugs shoulnt be more than 50amps or so and you said the relay is still working

It sounds like it is still working but i dare not connect the offending wire cos it didn't just burst into flames for nowt. I think i need a way of testing everything before i can re-connect cos something aint right.

In hindsight i should have put a can of petrol on the bonnet and took the dogs for a walk......

get the multi meter out dude

I have a multi meter but i need some specs to compare the readings with. Talking to someone last night and they thought maybe the connection might not have been tight and this makes the wire get very hot and that could have been the ignition point for the rubber cover and not the relay burning out, not sure how plausible that is but it is something to look at

yeh i would say that too if the connection aint tight it can create resistance and heat or it can be arcing accros the loose gap
if the relay is still ok sounds like it is it aint that.

the resistances for the plugs are in the classic how too section

100amp mate i brought this as a spare a while back

did ya test ya circuit

check the connections as said, a dirty connection will cause resistance and heat, also check the cables to the glow plug, should be 4 guage really, if its too thin, the load will soon heat the wires and set them alight. if your relay wasnt clicking off then this could also cause it. i would have a check that no conections are touching earth either

I couldn't do nowt with it today as between the wife and child they had MY day fully booked until it was dark so hopefully tommorow i will get the tester on it and get some readings. The wire to heater plugs is pretty thick (not much smaller than a battery wire ) and is original so i would think it is ok. The relay did click off as i don't start it until it does as the heat light on dash goes out after 3 seconds ! What is puzzling is there deffo seemed to be power going through that wire even though it had clicked off as i yarked it out after i had put the fire out and the smouldering died down quicker.

Have a good look in the morning anyway and test a few wires/connections

Loose connections could definitely be the cause. I worked on a job once where the electric wall heaters were arcing inside the faceplate and started a fire/melted some stuff. Is the wiring 'beefy' enough to accomodate the load?

Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

The new relay on the left and the old on the right....

Both relays have the same terminal bent and burned out ?? what would cause that ?

The connection did seem a bit slack on the terminal that is burned out but surely the 2 pictured and the previous one all couldnt have been loose on the same terminal

using the multi meter just showed me i dont know how to use a multi meter LOL

that shows me there is a problem with your glow plug circuit some where is the bar clean? are the connections tight and clean all of them?

I cleaned the bar when i done the head about 8 month ago but it does have some surface rust on it now. There was one morning when there was no "clunk " from the solenoid and i basically wiggled all the wires for the heater plug system and then it worked ! so i think i need to strip the lot out and find the weak connection.

Would a starter solenoid work as a glow relay ? as they are less than half the price of a glow relay and to me a relay is a relay !

a relay is a relay lol as long as it is man enough 100amps
yes u need to check the connections first i think. when u say no clunk from the solenoid u mean relay right?

yea i meant relay.

I was thinking what is the difference between a 100amp starter relay and a 100amp heater plug relay ? apart from about £40 ! surely a starter relay will work the same as a heater relay as they are basically just a switch/connection point.

I am sure someone will put me right as me and anything electrical just don't get along.....

The bolt connections on a starter solenoid will be bigger as they have a larger terminal and cable but personally I can't see a problem as they are both used for switching high draw currents

is the glow plug relay clicking off after its cycle?
did the 80amp fuse blow

The fuse didn't blow and it has always clicked off after heating as i normally wait for the click and not the light as the light means nowt imo. The relay is still clunking but no power is coming out to go to the glow plugs so i guess it's goosed

Anyone got their truck handy ? As my wiring had been fiddled with at the glow fuse to stick a manual button in can someone tell me if the thick white wire is a constant live or is it connected to the glow fuse ? i have 2 wires one white one black one is obviously for the glow relay but not sure which or both.

After another fiddle i have deduced that it is the relay feed wire connection that keeps nuking my relays but as someone had bodged the fuse holder and wires i am trying to find the correct connections

not got truck here at work but look here
http://www.silent-cities.com/L200forum/W...rams/L200F4.pdf