Strange noise coming from the direction of the fusebox! | FerrariChat
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Strange noise coming from the direction of the fusebox!

Discussion in '308/328' started by John J., Sep 7, 2008.

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  1. John J.

    John J. Karting

    Sep 4, 2007
    86
    South West England
    #1 John J., Sep 7, 2008
    Went for a drive this morning and had been crawling in a traffic jam for a few minutes when there was a strange crackling type sound (hard to describe) coming from the direction of the fusebox, it may have been coming from the wheel arch beyond but I don't think so. The sound happened twice and lasted only a second or two each time. Anyway I whipped off the trim panel to see if I could tell what was going on. No smoke, no burning smell, all seemed ok. I was stuck in the queue for another 10 minutes or so and was home in 20 minutes with no further reoccurrence.

    When at home I had a closer look, the fuses were fine, I replaced all of them about three weeks ago because they looked to be very old and had oxidised. The only thing to note was that some of the relays were warm to the touch, any ideas!
     
  2. JF308

    JF308 Formula 3

    Jan 17, 2007
    1,263
    Boulder, CO
    Full Name:
    John Feeney
    #2 JF308, Sep 7, 2008
    Last edited: Sep 7, 2008
    Uh, oh. JohnJ.....

    Sounds like you have the same thing happening that occurred with my Mondial t fusebox. See my thread below.

    I don't know if the QV has the same sort of fusebox as the Mondial (I know the Mondi QV and 3.2 do)...but my symptoms exactly until the MELTDOWN, I guess. Luckily, I am nearby to Scuderia Rampante...

    (relays often chatter or whine when the current flow gets impacted. They can get quite noisy)

    Check out the thread, and definitely look to your box for symptoms. You may have caught this in time.

    Posted in the Tech section, but wanted to share with my 328, Mondial t, TR buds..... A FIX !

    http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?p=138010471#post138010471

    Best luck, John
     
  3. FasterIsBetter

    FasterIsBetter F1 Veteran

    Jul 22, 2004
    5,855
    NoNJ/Jupiter FL
    Full Name:
    Steve W.
    #3 FasterIsBetter, Sep 7, 2008
    IIRC, the QV does not have the same fuse box as the Mondial. Have you done the Birdman fusebox upgrade? If not, you might want to. But for the "crackling" noise, check the relays. Also, are you sure it wasn't coming from the speaker in the door? If you have a loose speaker wire, it could be causing the speaker to pop on you. Just a couple of thoughts.
     
  4. JF308

    JF308 Formula 3

    Jan 17, 2007
    1,263
    Boulder, CO
    Full Name:
    John Feeney
    #4 JF308, Sep 7, 2008
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    I had photo's of the fusebox in question for John J to compare to...but for some unknown reason, my thread has been taken off of FCHAT. I am checking with moderator (DM n Stuff) to see what happened to it, and why. Perhaps I cross referenced the thread elsewhere? No-no?

    Either way, here is one photo to compare fuseboxes with. You can start to see one of my "issues" brewing.

    J.
    Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
  5. Birdman

    Birdman F1 Veteran

    Jun 20, 2003
    6,689
    North shore, MA
    Full Name:
    THE Birdman
    #5 Birdman, Sep 8, 2008
    I've never heard of a crackling fusebox, though possibly a chattering relay due to a poor connection in the fusebox.

    Melting fuseboxes, well that's a whole different story! ;)

    Birdman
     
  6. John J.

    John J. Karting

    Sep 4, 2007
    86
    South West England
    #6 John J., Sep 8, 2008
    Last edited: Sep 8, 2008
    Thanks very much for the input. So in your case was the crackling coming from the fuses or the relays? I see from your photo you had some browning to the fusebox casing, mine is surprisingly clean with bright contacts which is why all I have done so far is replace the fuses.

    The case of the disappearing thread!
     
  7. John J.

    John J. Karting

    Sep 4, 2007
    86
    South West England
    #7 John J., Sep 8, 2008
    Last edited: Sep 8, 2008
    I guess it could have been a chattering, a very strange noise thats for sure! Very strange that whatever it was soon stopped, will have to keep a very close eye on it and leave the lid off so I get a better idea where the noise is coming from if it happens again.

    Do you know if it is normal for the relays to get slightly warm to the touch? Do they age and burn out like fuses sometimes and need replacing?
     
  8. JF308

    JF308 Formula 3

    Jan 17, 2007
    1,263
    Boulder, CO
    Full Name:
    John Feeney
    #8 JF308, Sep 9, 2008
    Last edited: Sep 9, 2008
    The thread is back in the tech section with details and photos of what I did.
     
  9. John J.

    John J. Karting

    Sep 4, 2007
    86
    South West England
    #9 John J., Sep 9, 2008
    Thanks for tracking that down. "China Syndrome" lol :D
     
  10. SonomaRik

    SonomaRik F1 Veteran

    Dec 15, 2006
    6,904
    Folsom, CA (formerly Sonoma)
    #10 SonomaRik, Sep 9, 2008
    Start checking under the driver's side dash. Check for cracked wiring and such. Wires bending down near the upper part of your feet.

    DO check that fuse box...especially in the area pictured. You might even take it out to look at the back side as a precaution anyway as they start to delaminate due to heat over time.

    First sign of smoke, of any kind...pull over turn it off AND turn the batter switch to the off position....
     

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