2003 NEW BEETLE - BATTERY BOX FUSEHOLDER REPAIR

Disclaimer : I am not a professional mechanic and make no claim of warranty, guarantee, or success. Anyone attempting this repair / modification assumes all liability and responsibility for their actions. As always, be careful . . . Wear eye protection and disconnect the NEGATIVE battery cable BEFORE beginning this procedure . . . SAFETY is YOUR responsibility ! ! ! On my 2003 NEW BEETLE, a problem developed where the A/C Compressor would shut off and SIMULTANEOUSLY the Electric Radiator Fans would stop running or fail to come on, at all . . . So, I started investigating . . . After a lot of hunting, I discovered that one of the under-hood "battery box fuseholders" would overheat, BUT the 30 amp fuse WOULD NOT BLOW . . . Eventually, it got hot enough that the BODY of the fuse would MELT, yet the fuse DID NOT BLOW. The high heat caused a small portion of the factory fuse-holder to melt to the point that the fuse would make INTERMITTENT CONTACT, yet the fuse STILL DID NOT BLOW ! So, I called up the VW dealer and got "Sticker Shock" at the cost for this part ( $125.00, plus the GAS to drive there & back) ! Naturally, I decided to fix it myself . . . Here we GO ! !

FIG. 1 . . . View of the Fusible Link / Fuse-Block Setup

FIG. 2 - Closer View - The problem is clearly visible . . . Keep Reading !

As you can see in FIG. 2, the high heat has caused part of the fuse block to melt . . . In the next few pages, I will show you the steps I took to repair the problem on my car . This is NOT a DIFFICULT repair, so don't be intimidated . . . YOU CAN DO THIS !

FIG. 3 Things have been getting VERY HOT ! ! !

The damage to the factory fuse-block is very clear in Fig. 3 . . . NOTE : The other two fuse-holders are still functioning properly . . . If any problem with them arises in the future, the same repair should work equally well !

HOW CAN I FIX THIS MYSELF ?

KEEP READING ! ! !

FIG. 4 - The PARTS you will need from your Auto-Supply Store . . .

Some BASIC TOOLS are needed for you to successfully complete this project: (1) Eye Protection (2) Soldering Iron / Solder ( Butt Connectors will work, but I did not want to cut factory wiring ) (3) Sharp Knife, Hobby Knife, or Box-Cutter to strip wires (4) 10 mm Socket & Ratchet or a 10 mm Wrench (5) Electrical Tape or other Insulating Material GETTING STARTED . . . CAREFULLY strip off 1/2" of insulation from the wire, being careful not to damage the copper wires inside . . . This was done WITHOUT removing the PLUG, as it is awkward to grasp and release the LATCH. I was afraid of breaking something. I used a VERY SHARP Hobby Knife to strip the insulation . . . The PLUG is LABELLED ( 1, 2, 3 ) In my case, it was WIRE # 3, which LINES UP with the matching fuse-holder. The other two wires match up the same way with their fuse-holder(s) NOTE FIG. 2 . . . Do not strip the WRONG wire ! ! ! ************************************************************************************** *******************************************************FIG. 5 - NOTE the STUD & NUT in this photo . . . I previously replaced the NEGATIVE Battery Clamp and had to MODIFY the Battery Box, so that it would CLOSE properly . . . The Nut & Stud are a GROUND( - ) source and the stripped wire is HOT ( + ) . . .

Proper INSULATION is a MUST on my car. If you have NOT modified the Battery Box, you will NOT have this issue ! ! !

FIG 6. - AFTER stripping the wire, GENTLY separate the strands to open a GAP for the new Fuse-Holder wire to be SOLDERED to ( You can use a Butt Connector IF you want to cut the factory wiring )

Hang in there . . . You're doing fine ! FIG. 7 - Determine where you want the REPLACEMENT Fuse-Holder to sit after installation . . .

FIG. 8 - STRIP the insulation as needed . . .

FIG. 9 - Since I am SOLDERING and NOT CRIMPING, I removed the INSULATION from the RING TERMINAL . . .

FIG.10 - Ring Terminal after SOLDERING . . .

FIG. 11 - Another "TRIAL FIT . . . Note the ENDS of the Fuse-Holder wire have been SEPARATED & TWISTED to make a PERMANENT SOLDER joint . . . KEEP READING ! ! !

FIG. 12 - Thread BOTH of the TWISTED wires through the GAP and twist them TIGHTLY around the wire in OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS . . .

ALMOST DONE . . . KEEP GOING ! ! !

FIG 13. - SOLDER the connection, making SURE to get GOOD SOLDER FLOW . . . REMOVE the NUT on the FUSIBLE LINK on the BATTERY SIDE ( OPPOSITE the WIRES ) to ensure that you do not increase the AMP DRAW on the Fusible Link. Tighten everything up . . . NOTE: Although the photo's don't show it, I wrapped the exposed solder connection with electrical tape and then covered it with a section of rubber fuel line, split lengthwise, to allow it to be slipped over the connected wires.

FIG. 14 - Everything FITS and CLOSES NICELY . . .

FIG. 15 - SUCCESS ! ! !

Disclaimer : I am not a professional mechanic and make no claim of warranty, guarantee, or success. Anyone attempting this repair / modification assumes all liability and responsibility for their actions. As always, be careful . . . Wear eye protection and disconnect the NEGATIVE battery cable BEFORE beginning this procedure . . . SAFETY is YOUR responsibility ! ! !

GOOD LUCK ! ! !