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How do you find an electrical short in a car?

My car needs a jump start every single morning. My friend thinks I have an electrical short, but I have no idea how to find it. How do you find an electrical short in a car?

avatar
Alex Healey · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
Modern cars contain about 1,500 wires (a mile in length if you connect them end to end), so finding an electrical short is a tedious process.
Still better than having to
jump start
your car each morning though!
Your friend’s diagnosis sounds like a good one, so without further ado, here’s the quickest way to narrow your search and find an electrical short in a car.
  1. Buy a 12-volt automotive test light.
  2. Ensure everything is turned off in your vehicle.
  3. Disconnect the negative OR positive battery terminal (it doesn’t matter which).
  4. Clip the end of the test light to the terminal to enter the circuit.
  5. Place the other end of the test light on the terminal. If you have a short, the test light will turn on.
  6. Open your car’s fuse panel and pull the fuses one by one, keeping an eye on the test light.
  7. If the light goes out, you have found the circuit which contains the short.
  8. If the fuse you just pulled is not already clearly labelled, look for a number.
  9. Flip the fuse block panel cover to see the circuit name of the corresponding number (hazard lights, radio, cigarette lighter etc.).
  10. When focusing on the section identified by the test light, look (and smell) for burnt or melted wires to identify the short.
This method should narrow your search from hundreds of potential wires to just a few. If the test light never goes out, an electrical short is probably not solely to blame for your car woes.
Maintaining a car can be time-consuming and stressful. Take the pain out of shopping for
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