Ribbon on tilt motor in steering column caught fire.

[Alrightchief]

So might be worth checking... So iv been fixing the column adjust motors , TILT one wasn't plugged in!! I thought it was strange, well as soon as I plugged it in and tried the switch "crackle and pop" it melted and caught fire! so someone must have unplugged it as a quick fix!

Anyway iv managed to rip everything apart and solder the Ribbon on to the terminals with the black connector removed, some patience/time later and its as good as new!

In the pic I have removed the tape to expose what you can see.

 

[Ian Rubie]

Nice save. To prolong the motor life you can turn off the auto retract feature using TechStream.

 

[Alrightchief]

Nice save. To prolong the motor life you can turn off the auto retract feature using TechStream.

Yes I had thought of doing that but I do like the feature and they are like brand new now so fingers crossed few years in them with maintenance

 

[StarCruiser]

Hmm, not good but a good save. I expect you’ve checked that your fuses are the correct rating as I would have hoped one would have popped before this sort of thing happened.

 

[Alrightchief]

Hmm, not good but a good save. I expect you’ve checked that your fuses are the correct rating as I would have hoped one would have popped before this sort of thing happened.

I thought this but no all original fuses and rated correctly. It was the first thing I checked when the column motors weren't working at all.

 

[StarCruiser]

Maybe it was a loose connection rather than a short circuit so didn’t blow the fuse but blew the joint clear. This can sometimes happen and is often not critical but it’s still unnerving to say the least.
Sounds like you’ve made a nice repair.

 

[Alrightchief]

Maybe it was a loose connection rather than a short circuit so didn’t blow the fuse but blew the joint clear. This can sometimes happen and is often not critical but it’s still unnerving to say the least.
Sounds like you’ve made a nice repair.

I think so yes.

Touch wood it will be all good but to service/Rebuild the motor again it would have to be unsoldered, etc they are design to come easily apart.

 

[StarCruiser]

I think so yes.

Touch wood it will be all good but to service/Rebuild the motor again it would have to be unsoldered, etc they are design to come easily apart.

Not the end of the world. It’s the approach I would have taken.

 

[Alrightchief]

Not the end of the world. It’s the approach I would have taken.

If they go again I’ll buy new ones as the newer ones were beefed up and last a very long time!!

 

[StarCruiser]

They clearly sorted the problem then. Well done Mr T.