Extremely Odd Electrical Issue...

[WheelinGypsy]

So I went to install a new radio in my Girlfriends 1997 V6 4Runner, and I discovered that the previous owner had cut apart the factory radio wiring to wire in a new stereo instead of buying the plug to plug into the factory wiring.

After spending a few hours trying to decipher what wire from the main truck stereo wiring should attach to the stereo, I was unable to power up the radio from the wiring... I manually connected the radio up to the Cigarette Lighter wiring to see if I could get the radio to turn on, which it did.

I ran out of time and had to put the center console and bezel back on without the new radio working, and the next day all of the Power Locks, The High-Beam switch (Not the momentary), and the reading light by the rear-view window all stopped working...

I have checked all the fuses and I cannot find what the problem is...

I suspect that I may have shorted out a wire while trying to install the radio, but what wire(s) would have caused all these electrical issues??

Thank you for your time...

 

[Johns06yota]

So I went to install a new radio in my Girlfriends 1997 V6 4Runner, and I discovered that the previous owner had cut apart the factory radio wiring to wire in a new stereo instead of buying the plug to plug into the factory wiring.

After spending a few hours trying to decipher what wire from the main truck stereo wiring should attach to the stereo, I was unable to power up the radio from the wiring... I manually connected the radio up to the Cigarette Lighter wiring to see if I could get the radio to turn on, which it did.

I ran out of time and had to put the center console and bezel back on without the new radio working, and the next day all of the Power Locks, The High-Beam switch (Not the momentary), and the reading light by the rear-view window all stopped working...

I have checked all the fuses and I cannot find what the problem is...

I suspect that I may have shorted out a wire while trying to install the radio, but what wire(s) would have caused all these electrical issues??

Thank you for your time...

I would first of all try to disconnect your battery and reconnect it. That may reset some of the power issues. If that doesn't solve it, it seems the majority of your issues are coming from fuse 29 which controls most of those. I'll attach a website with that info. In regards to the radio use a multimeter to check if there is voltage. If not then try to make your own ground connection and check again. That may be your issue. Also I have heard that a weak battery can cause some electrical gremlins

Toyota 4Runner (1996 ? 1997) ? fuse box diagram | Auto Genius

 

[WheelinGypsy]

I would first of all try to disconnect your battery and reconnect it. That may reset some of the power issues. If that doesn't solve it, it seems the majority of your issues are coming from fuse 29 which controls most of those. I'll attach a website with that info. In regards to the radio use a multimeter to check if there is voltage. If not then try to make your own ground connection and check again. That may be your issue. Also I have heard that a weak battery can cause some electrical gremlins

Toyota 4Runner (1996 ? 1997) ? fuse box diagram | Auto Genius

Thank you for your reply. I tested the constant power wires for the radio (the blue/yellow) and instead of the proper 12V im only reading .5V off that wire... Which is why I tried to power the radio off the of Cigarette lighter.

 

[Johns06yota]

Thank you for your reply. I tested the constant power wires for the radio (the blue/yellow) and instead of the proper 12V im only reading .5V off that wire... Which is why I tried to power the radio off the of Cigarette lighter.

No problem. When you tested the voltage were you using the brown radio ground wire or were you grounding it to a bolt or car body part? To me it seems like there is a broken ground somewhere for the radio

 

[WheelinGypsy]

No problem. When you tested the voltage were you using the brown radio ground wire or were you grounding it to a bolt or car body part? To me it seems like there is a broken ground somewhere for the radio

I used the brown as a ground and also the chassis for the ground and read .5V both ways

 

[Johns06yota]

I used the brown as a ground and also the chassis for the ground and read .5V both ways

Thats really weird. If you didnt already I would replace fuse 18 and see if that changes anything. If not you could get around the issue by doing a fuse tap in the cabin fuse box and running that to the radio. It would still function the same and shut off when when key is removed.

 

[TheDurk]

That Blue-yellow wire is fed by Pin 9 on the 3C plug in the Center Junction Box. 3C is the big dark gray one that is the whole second row down. Check continuity from Pin 9 to your constant power lead. Also check incoming power on Pin 8 of 3C (also blue-yellow). Pin out shown in second attachment below on page 24.