I really could do with a pointer on this.

I'd not driven her for a week but I had to go to a meeting on Friday night, so I started her up, put the stereo on then turned the lights on, flicker flicker went the speedo light then poof it'd gone. So I checked the exterior and yup the sidelights circuit has gone.

Today I've checked all the bulbs (one had gone), removed all non-Citroën wiring from that circuit that I can find, checked the bulb connections, removed the trailer wiring, changed the fuse box (been meaning to do so for a while so twas the perfect opportunity).

Bunged a new fuse in, started the engine, put the lights on and pop goes the fuse. It's gone through a couple of fuses now and short of rewiring the circuit I'm not sure what to do. Do Dyanes short circuit in a particular place? Is there somewhere where water pools that causes problems or can anyone offer any suggestions? I'm not at work at the minute (long story) so have time to potter but obviously can't drive at night (yeah I know shouldn't drive at all but I might get away with it in this sunshine).

Any suggestions? Pretty please.

check the loom across the goal post bonnet slam IIRC the loom is held by spring steel clips similar to the ones on 2cvs airfilter that eat thru the loom.

look for chaffed wires rather than water

Is it the same circut as the wipers had problems with stalling motor blowing fuse on one of my first dyanes

after that its just choose all the circuts on that fuse and go thru them looking for obvious dammage.

Sean

On my 2CV the same problem - which also knocks out the rear lights, which I didn't realise until I'd driven home from work at 3am without them - was caused by burnt out wiring on one of the sidelights, which was shorting out against the headlamp shell. However, it sounds like you've checked that, so I'm at a bit of a loss.

I had similar in my 2cv, on the M25, in the dark, at rush hour, in the rain. No back lights (didn't realise) - I got pulled over by the Police. Changed fuse, and was on my way again, but it blew again a few miles later. I got to where I was going, and the next day I found one of the sidelight wires rubbing and shorting around the headlamp bar area. I guess you've just got to check all the wires on the side/tail and speedo light circuit - peeling back loom tape if necessary. Good luck!

Pete,
on Dyanes of similar vintage to yours, the circuit for front and rear sidelights also supplies the dashboard light and nothing else.

As Sean has advised, water will not cause a short circuit on a 12 volt supply, unless you add about a kilo of salt per litre of water.

One approach to finding out which of the sidelights is causing the problem would be to disconnect all of them, then reconnect each one in turn with the light switch in the 'sidelights on' setting...

@ Sean,
I've never known those loom clips to cause any problems on Dyanes, only on 2CVs, where Citroen made the mistake of attaching them to a bracket which is subject to engine vibration.

ken.

Thanks everyone, yup I'll have a look at the individual side lights as suggested. Not helped by the useless wiring diagrams I've got. The diagrams show what you can see but not which wire goes where. It just branches them all together and you have to guess whether 'Jaune' becomes 'Bleu' or 'Rouge' when it pops out further down the harness, useless!

Interestingly the wiring diagram I do have (which doesn't actually show which wire goes where) shows a heater as an option running off a fourth fuse. A german chappy I know (works at merc in vehicle development) said he remembers carb heaters on the GS, but that isn't what the diagram seems to show, more of a larger device.

Pete,
I don't think that you'll need a wiring diagram to trace the side and tail light connections.
Tail lights are easy, as you can see the wires going into the back of the light assemblies from inside the boot well.
At the front, it's the wires with the red sleeves, afair...

ken

I was heading up to Leeds yesterday so I thought I'd unplug the front sidelights as I was fairly sure it wasn't one of the rears and as I go to unplug the nearside front I see where the air-filter support has rubbed through the connector and was shorting. So I isolated that and bunged a fresh 10A blade fuse in and no blowing! yey!

Thanks for your help, I'll re-wire that properly over the next week or so but thanks everyone for their pointers.

The heater you are seeing on the wiring chart is the Gurtner petrol fired type, fitted as an option as part of the -10 cold weather kit. Scandanivian, German, French and Swiss cars had this option.

Never seen one fitted and running although its easy to spot a 2CV with one as they have an additional hole in the nearside front wing inboad of the indicator to feed air to the heater.

Thought it might have been something like that! I know you can buy after market ones for about £500 (marketed for VW campervans), not considering it but was interested in what was offered.