The
1964-1965 Lincoln Continental has three weak points. Their potential for damage
can be summarized as 'clunk, burn and crash '. Today we address #2: burn.
The
in-dash ammeter or amp gauge is notorious for having corroded terminals. This causes weird
electrical problems. It has also proven to be a fire hazard: many '64 and '65 Continentals have burned to the ground because of an
electrical fire started by the ammeter as it shorted to ground (in effect: the chromed
dash panel). To add insult to injury: this is a non-fused circuit.
Heading home from a car show I saw smoke coming from the dash. The ammeter needle was all the
way to the right. I pulled over immediately and turned the engine off. The chrome
dash bezel was very, very hot. The top right corner of the ammeter had
melted and the whole thing was discoloured.
I decided to disconnect the ammeter from
the wiring loom (but to keep it installed in the dash of course). I cut both
ammeter wires at the back of the gauge and connected them together. I
installed a 70 amp fuse between the battery (+) and the starter motor relay
(+). Better be safe than sorry (about your burned-to-the-ground slabside). I
installed a volt meter in the glove box compartment.
For fire-safety reasons
alone I can suggest this to all '64 and '65 owners. It'll take you an hour/hour and a half. Just remove the metal dash bezel and you can get the
ammeter out from the dash.
If you want to keep the ammeter hooked up: add a fuse, clean the terminals and check for damage to the
ammeter and/or the wiring. Most importantly: update the ammeter as explained in
this service bulletin:
No comments:
Post a Comment