1991 Snow Tracker Build

[FleshEater]

When your SXS buddies () text you on the first snow fall…

 

[YotaAtieToo]

When your SXS buddies () text you on the first snow fall…

Buddy with a rmax just texted me a Pic with his tracks on. We were talking about heaters and he got the Inferno, same one I had in the talon and was a solid meh. He said he also has the tusk seat heaters, that are pretty necessary due to the heater not doing much.

I was just thinking about how he's probably going to have issues with the charging system trying to run 4 seat heaters. While my old pos from the 80s will keep you toasty warm on the lowest setting

 

[FleshEater]

Buddy with a rmax just texted me a Pic with his tracks on. We were talking about heaters and he got the Inferno, same one I had in the talon and was a solid meh. He said he also has the tusk seat heaters, that are pretty necessary due to the heater not doing much.

I was just thinking about how he's probably going to have issues with the charging system trying to run 4 seat heaters. While my old pos from the 80s will keep you toasty warm on the lowest setting

This morning at 5:45 am it was 41 degrees and raining. By 10am it was -2 with a -25 degree wind chill.

It’s nice having a warm shit box to wheel in. You’re right about the old Zuks keeping you toasty and warm. Sometimes it gets too hot if you’re not mindful.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

This morning at 5:45 am it was 41 degrees and raining. By 10am it was -2 with a -25 degree wind chill.

It’s nice having a warm shit box to wheel in. You’re right about the old Zuks keeping you toasty and warm. Sometimes it gets too hot if you’re not mindful.

Ya, small space and a real heater, those sxs heaters are just too small.

It was really toasty when I just had the half cab on. The only weakness was on the highway at 60 mph (ok, 52 mph ) there was a few air leaks. It would keep it from being cold, but not toasty.

 

[FleshEater]

Well, I found weather the Tracker heater CANNOT keep up with. I have never experienced such dangerous weather in Pennsylvania. No idea how people in Wyoming/North Dakota/Nebraska can handle what they get.

I grabbed the wife smokes this afternoon, and decided to hit some dirt roads home. Started hitting 2’ deep wind drifts in my Silverado, and then came to a woman buried in a Kia car. I couldn’t help her, so I went and got the Geo and another guy I know with an old Toyota pickup.

We went back and could not make it to her. The drifts were 3’ deep on the opposite side of where I was before. It was me in the Tracker, the Toyota pickup, and two guys that showed up in a 3/4 ton Ram.

We gave up when the plow truck showed up. That woman would not leave her car and definitely deserves a Darwin award.

There were 60 mph gusts, -40 wind chill, and the temp was -8 degrees. Coldest thing I’ve ever felt. The Tracker was struggling to keep the windshield clean.

Anyways, it was an eventful experience. No pics, because it was too cold and dark.

 

[1Sinner]

Damn man. That sounds shitty. Hopefully that gal doesn't freeze to death.

 

[FleshEater]

Damn man. That sounds shitty. Hopefully that gal doesn't freeze to death.

She wouldn’t leave her car (as if anyone could have stolen it). Never seen anyone so unaware of the danger they’re in.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

She wouldn’t leave her car (as if anyone could have stolen it). Never seen anyone so unaware of the danger they’re in.

Probably more worried about getting into a beat up 30 year old truck with a scetchy dude

 

[FleshEater]

Probably more worried about getting into a beat up 30 year old truck with a scetchy dude

First time I offered her a ride was in my Silverado.

This is in the middle of farm country where nothing ever happens.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

First time I offered her a ride was in my Silverado.

This is in the middle of farm country where nothing ever happens.

If she's from the city, she thinks that's where everything happens.

 

[FleshEater]

If she's from the city, she thinks that's where everything happens.

She lived locally. Her thought was to call her neighbor to come dig her out with his tractor. It wasn’t even humanly possible to be outside on a tractor in that wind.

She was just an idiot. Irony, was also a nurse.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

She lived locally. Her thought was to call her neighbor to come dig her out with his tractor. It wasn’t even humanly possible to be outside on a tractor in that wind.

She was just an idiot. Irony, was also a nurse.

It's funny how people will covet a stupid eco car like that. Really any vehicle.

I'm guessing the snow was light enough that the plow had no issues?

We had some crazy negative temps, but no real wind, I can't imagine crazy wind with that.

 

[FleshEater]

It's funny how people will covet a stupid eco car like that. Really any vehicle.

I'm guessing the snow was light enough that the plow had no issues?

We had some crazy negative temps, but no real wind, I can't imagine crazy wind with that.

It was a giant dump truck (22 ton size) with a plow, so no it pushed it no problem.

I’ve never experienced cold like this. The wind was so bad that I couldn’t see the Toyota parked in the field with a light bar on.

 

[arse_sidewards]

It's funny how people will covet a stupid eco car like that. Really any vehicle.

Normal people can't afford to replace cars at the drop of a hat. If you weren't sitting on a mountain of cash from cashing out of CA you'd understand.

 

[Byro]

We didn’t get it that bad but I pretty much paced the house and watched the fire for 24 hours yesterday. Real feel with the wind was -30 pretty much all day yesterday. We’re out in BFE as well and almost anytime we get wind we lose power from a tree on the lines. Can’t believe we didn’t lose power, I was ready to bring the animals into the basement if we did, all of us huddled around the wood burner.

 

[FleshEater]

Normal people can't afford to replace cars at the drop of a hat. If you weren't sitting on a mountain of cash from cashing out of CA you'd understand.

It was a 2022 Kia car. Insurance would have replaced it. It’s also mind boggling to me that people will try to survive our winters in tiny, 2WD cars. Like, our winters aren’t as brutal as Erie, but we still get bouts of snow 6”-15” deep at times.

We didn’t get it that bad but I pretty much paced the house and watched the fire for 24 hours yesterday. Real feel with the wind was -30 pretty much all day yesterday. We’re out in BFE as well and almost anytime we get wind we lose power from a tree on the lines. Can’t believe we didn’t lose power, I was ready to bring the animals into the basement if we did, all of us huddled around the wood burner.

I’ll bet the wind was ripping out your way. It was freaking cold for the Turkey Shoot out there. I could only imagine yesterday.

 

[Byro]

Luckily I’m far enough southeast that I don’t get all the lake effect but it was still pretty brutal.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

Normal people can't afford to replace cars at the drop of a hat. If you weren't sitting on a mountain of cash from cashing out of CA you'd understand.

I grew up very poor, we didn't covet our vehicles. We appreciated them, but in that situation we would have definitely left the car.

Also, not that it matters here, but we were renting and had all our possessions burned by a wild fire with very little insurance. We borrowed money for our down payment here, payed the inflated home prices and make the modest local wages like the locals. Except they typically bought thier land for 2 donkeys and an old tractor and haven't had a payment in decades.

Either way, doesn't matter, it's a chunk of metal, if the weather is that bad, leave it. Not like you have any control over what happens to it in that situation anyway.

 

[FleshEater]

Recently I have been dealing with my turn signal/back up lamp fuse blowing. I just had the trans and t-case out so I started at the back up switch. No luck.

Then I pulled the turn signal switch and swapped it. No luck.

I found online someone pulled all their bulbs, cleaned everything, and it worked. Mine are all spotless.

Then I pulled the rear tail light and looked inside. This old girl looks like it almost burnt to the ground.

I’m in the process of removing the back bumper, and I’m pretty sure I can pull the harness out to access it. Hopefully that ground wire isn’t toast the whole way. If it is I’ll have a decision to make…like not keeping this street legal and solving the problem the easy way.

 

[Byro]

Damn. Mine did something similar back there, I think it was the license plate light that got wild on mine.

 

[1Sinner]

That was lucky. Glad you found it. Fix it once, fix it right, or fix it twice was what I was always told.

Someone probably put in a too high amperage fuse in one of the slots. That should have never happened.

 

[FleshEater]

Guys, I really need help. I’ve been at this all day and I’m not the best at trouble shooting electrical issues.

So, I re-wired everything in the back, wrapped it in abrasion resistant tape, all good.

However, as soon as I turn on the turn signal switch it blows the fuse instantly.

Hazards work, the turn signal bulbs work when the lights are on, but the switch blows the fuse. I already switched switches with a known working one…WTF? This fuse melted in the fuse block, so I made my own fusible link for the time being.

I had to walk away, because I started getting frustrated.

Photos:

 

[FleshEater]

A short is the cause, correct?

A failed switch or light would not burn a vehicle up, right?

 

[1Sinner]

Definitely a dead short somewhere if everything else seems to work I would check the column wiring. Since it seems directly related to the turn signal switch.

 

[FleshEater]

Definitely a dead short somewhere if everything else seems to work I would check the column wiring. Since it seems directly related to the turn signal switch.

I had an epiphany last night, right before bed. I forgot when I welded up tabs on the frame rail for the skid plate that the undercoating caught on fire, a lot. I’m thinking it burnt through a wire on the driver side rail. Going to check that first.

 

[FleshEater]

Scratch that previous idea. No wires on the frame rail.

Going to dig into the crushed rocker and pull those wires out.

 

[FleshEater]

Well, since I’m electrically incompetent I started blindly looking tonight. Technically, this needed done anyways, but not exactly right now.

I pulled all the wiring from the rocker panel. All good. Even though I kinked it on a rock.

My buddy, who is an electrician came over and explained how to find a short. Man…this short is buried in a pile of wires under the dash and up near the ECM. Ugh…

Is it really worth keeping street legal…

Anyways, pics.

Kinked rocker:

Pic from above.

The nightmare. Oh, and I hate the rust belt and undercoating.

 

[2big bronco]

So how did he find the short?

 

[Byro]

I have nothing to add, however how the hell did you get the harness out of the rocker?

 

[FleshEater]

So how did he find the short?

I’ll try to explain this, because I barely understand it.

He set my meter to Ohm (with the sound). Stuck the hot lead in the hot side of the fuse, followed the hot, unplugged from the first connection. Ohm meter read 1, no beep. Followed to the next connection and unplugged it at the next point. 1 ohm, no beep. We followed that to the turn signal switch, unplugged the switch from the previous tested section and it beeped.

Basically it isolates where it is by checking for resistance, I guess? Hell I don’t know. He has never been wrong and is the best electrician I know on all things electric.

I have nothing to add, however how the hell did you get the harness out of the rocker?

It’s really easy. Unplug the taillights. Removed the interior panel and unplug that stuff. Then pull it out by the floor boards. Very, simple. I plan on wrapping it in abrasion resistant tape and keeping it inside.