i have a 2001 jimmy 4dr and i was cutting in my wheel wells and i think i melted a ground or something because my 4x4 button's lights are all on and my fuel guage doesnt work and my panel on the ceiling that tells me fuel economy,temperature, direction, etc. isnt working right, and some of the other warning lights are on, any ideas?

 

What were you cutting with? Have you fully inspected any wiring close to the cuts?

 

I checked somewhat but couldn't see any wires and i was using a plasma. prolly melted a ground wire maybe.

 

Where were you cutting? Near the firewall? If so, you will need to inspect inside the passenger compartment for melted wiring. Wiring actually can melt together at relatively low temperatures. Once you find the affected wiring, it should not be all that complicated to fix. Tedious, yes, but not too complicated. You may have to pull the wiring loose along the fender & inner fender to inspect it properly. Also under the fuse box and on the inside of the firewall. Finding the affected wiring is going to be the challenge.

 

ok. so i need to take my dash apart? I do know its on the passenger side. Would it be worth having a trusted shop do it?

 

If the shop is good with finding wiring faults and repairing them. Really, you just need to inspect whatever areas are near where you were cutting. Even a small hole near where you were cutting could allow heat to get someplace you may not even be able to see and if a harness was on the other side of that hole, it could fry a bunch of wires together in short order.

I would not say that you have to tear the dash apart yet. Look in the areas you have access to first and see what you can find.

 

if i see an area where it could have happened, what should i do next?

 

Repair the damage. I would cut out the affected section of wiring and use 3M butt connectors with heat shrink tubing already on them.

 

Before you worry about ripping the dash out remove the coolant overflow bucket & PCM on top of the passenger fender and take a look at those harnesses. You may have problems under the dash too but those are in your work area and easier to gain access to start with.

 

its not that easy because its behind steel. i cant see any wires just a hole where the plasma cutter melted too deep