DIY: Checking automotive fuses - Hagerty Media

It can be nerve-wracking when electrical items in your classic suddenly fail. While there are plenty of people who can wax poetic about the joys of carburetor tuning or valve timing adjustment, electrical components are often considered decidedly less romantic and endearing to deal with. Hagerty’s Matt Lewis is here to help, however, guiding you through how to troubleshoot fuse issues.

Although they come in many shapes and sizes, automotive fuses as a rule act as the sacrificial link in an electrical circuit. Should the circuit become overloaded, the fuse will blow and disconnect the flow of electricity. This failure protects the other items in the circuit from becoming damaged. Should a fuse fail, it is important to find the source of the issue—don’t just “upgrade” to a larger fuse.

After talking through the theory of fuses, Matt grabs the multimeter and demonstrates how to test the circuit both in and out of a circuit. If you need a refresher on using a multimeter or a description of what setting he is using, be sure to check out the first video in this DIY series where Matt talks multimeter basics.