Ohjai Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 (edited) Thanks for alccepting me in your group. A friend of mine, had his 2015 Legacy parked at a hospital lot for 3 weeks. When he was released he found that rodents had eaten some of his wiring. The damage I found was on th left side in front of, and to the left of the battery. I was able to splice most of the wires, but the headlights are not working, and the left turn signal has a quick flash rate. There is a small module on the left fnder that has 4 wires coming out of it. These wires have been chewed through and I was unable to determine where they go. The Subaru dealer said the module was part of the wiring harness and not available for purchase. Is there a wiring diagram available for this circuit? Is this module available from another source? Any assistance is greatly appreciated. Jim Edited February 21 by Ohjai Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ammcinnis Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 You can download a legal copy of the Factory Service Manual, which contains detailed and complete wiring schematics, and a whole lot more directly from the Subaru Technical Information System (STIS) web site: https://techinfo.subaru.com. The last time I checked, cost was still only $35 for 72 hours full download access. "If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there." ~ The Cheshire Cat (Alice in Wonderland) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted February 21 Author Share Posted February 21 Thanks ammcinnis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted February 21 Author Share Posted February 21 This is the THING I am trying to identify. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRu17 Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 My dad's Honda Pilot had wiring or fuel lines eaten by mice. Apparently it's so common that Honda sells rat or mouse deterring tape to wrap around the wiring or lines (I think it's spicy or something) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted February 23 Author Share Posted February 23 Thanks JRu17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted February 23 Author Share Posted February 23 Could this device be a connector that is used as a single grounding point? In other words a groud connector for 5 wires? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverton Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 That's exactly what it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverton Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 I believe that is a ground junction for the ECM itself but I am not finding a good diagram to show you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ammcinnis Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 6 hours ago, Ohjai said: Could this device be a connector that is used as a single grounding point? In other words a groud connector for 5 wires? I think that's correct. You could open it up to be sure. Also, the FSM has diagrams showing the physical layout of the car's wiring harnesses, including the approximate location of grounding blocks. 3 hours ago, silverton said: I believe that is a ground junction for the ECM itself ... Nope. He said it's on the driver's side, near the battery. 1 "If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there." ~ The Cheshire Cat (Alice in Wonderland) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waldguy Posted February 28 Share Posted February 28 Shouldn't be hard to open. I'd wonder about what appears to be a red wire showing. That's not likely to be grounded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted February 28 Author Share Posted February 28 Could this device be a connector that is used as a single grounding point? In other words a groud connector for 5 wires? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted February 28 Author Share Posted February 28 Thank you all for replying. I put an Ohm meter on the device and all connections went to the terminal. So! I spliced wires on the harness end and put ring terminals on the other end, then I cleaned the ground connection and attached all the ring terminals there. Everything now works except for the two amber side turn signal lamps. I have been in ectroniocs since 1958, and been a collector of vintage cars since 2010. I have never seen a device like this before. And the Subaru parts dealer said we had to purchase the complete harness to get a replacement. Ireally thank you all for your insight and assistance. Jim 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waldguy Posted February 28 Share Posted February 28 Thanks for the follow up. I was curious! Yes, that box makes it look like it does something -- why the insulation around the connection when it's just to ground! Glad to hear you're making good progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted February 28 Author Share Posted February 28 I don't usually work on the newer cars, but my friend needed help[. Someone quoted him $3,500 to replace the harness. All I had to do was repair about 15 wires and figure out what that ground ting was.. Took about 5 hours total over 2 days. I like the older cars, much easier access to everything. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverton Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Took of a picture of it on a customer car, it goes into the loom on the frame rail. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohjai Posted March 1 Author Share Posted March 1 Thank you Silverton. What I did was put ring terminals on the wires and then grounded them where the device is connected. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XT-sub Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 (edited) On 2/29/2024 at 3:12 AM, waldguy said: -- why the insulation around the connection when it's just to ground! I’m certain it isn’t for electrical insulation. My guess is that plastic box retains the compound or gel around the wires & earth (ground) bus-bar connections. It would also offer some minor mechanical protection. The compound would be to keep moisture out which could cause corrosion to the wires & also to prevent galvanic action between any dis-similar metals. On our Australian spec Liberty (Legacy) & Outbacks the horn connections have a similar compound at the horn connections. If I was to repair the connections at that earth bus-bar I would make sure all connections were liberally coated with something like Tef-Gel or even heavy duty Lanoline Grease after making all the connections. I use a product called Tef-Gel on my boats to waterproof & prevent galvanic action. It is a very good product commonly used on boats between aluminium & stainless steel fittings. Link to Tef-Gel’s website: https://www.tefgel.com.au/ Edited March 3 by XT-sub Clarification. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waldguy Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 Very good point X-TSub. Some wires may even be copper vs aluminum. Most of us will also know from experience what head scratching and frustration faulty grounds will cause. I tend to use lithium grease on connection I service from time to time, but connections like the one listed here would not likely make that list. Tef Gel looks better, particularly in salty environments, but then the price is dear too (over $75 CAD for 2 oz shipped on Amazon!). I wonder if it's a mouse deterrent.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XT-sub Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 8 hours ago, waldguy said: Tef Gel looks better, particularly in salty environments, but then the price is dear too (over $75 CAD for 2 oz shipped on Amazon!). I wonder if it's a mouse deterrent.... I don’t think mice would like it. Tef-Gel is rather pricey but a small amount goes a long way. I still have a 60g tub I bought many years ago & I use it on my boat plus everything I fit to our house exterior with 316 SS bolts, screws & pop rivets where galvanic action could be an issue (we live on the coast & get a sea breeze which carries salt air). The worst part about it is; being a very sticky gel, it requires Shellite or similar to clean it up. I had a look at a similar ground bus-bar on our current 2019 Outback 3.6R that Ohjai had problems with, & without opening it up, my guess is the wires may have brass female spade connectors pushed onto male spade connectors which are part of the bus-bar. The bus-bar appears to be plated steel, so that connection would need protection against galvanic action. Using crimp or solder ring connectors under the ground bolt like Ohjai did seems to me to be a better way to make that ground connection, providing the bolt & connectors are coated with something suitable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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