> Still no gauge lights so I replaced
> the middle fuse. Bingo! Gauge lights appear!
You realize of course that means you didn't have tail lights either ...
> The fuse in question does not
> look blown!
It's very possible to have a bad fuse that looks just fine, it's happened to me
several times. I believe it happens when the fuse is making poor contact with
the holder, but enough to pass almost full current. The current through the
resistance creates heat, which eventually gets hot enough to melt the solder
where the fuse element is fastened to the end cap. I popped several headlight
fuses on my TR3A before I managed to touch the fuseholder while it was still hot
and figured out what was going on. Happened once on the Stag, too. And at VTR,
"The Fusinator" was showing around a Stag fuse block that had been melted from
the heat.
> How in the heck do you replace a Spitfire fuse box!
I've no idea, but before you do that, you might try giving it a thorough
cleaning. I used a red Scotchbrite pad to clean all the oxidation off the fuse
clips and terminals on my Stag, then sprayed them with contact cleaner.
I don't usually work on Spits, but from what I remember of a club member's car,
the fuse block is pretty similar at least functionally to the one used on TR6.
If so, new ones are probably available from the usual suspects. Pull the wires
off, taking notes as to what went where ... I've got a bunch of old pin-feed
printer labels that I cut into 1/4" strips for temporary wire labels ... then
remove the two screws and the block should come right off.
Not sure if it's the right one, but TRF has a fuse box listed for "S35G13" which
I think would include your 76 Spit 1500. P/N LU60150141, $79.00.
Randall
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