Hangwire

During my KB install I had to install a ring terminal onto the stud that goes into the power distribution box. While attempting to loosen the nut on that stud I heard and felt a nasty crack sound. Before the nut gave way, the damn plastic housing gave way and the bottom casing of the box began to peel away from the rest of the box. I immediately stopped and simply put the ring terminal on over the existing nut and screwed another nut right on top to make the connection.

The picture shows where the box began to split from itself, the clip you see obviously cracked for this corner to start pulling away. I immediately checked the electronics by turning they key to "on." Everything seemed to work fine(headlights, turn signals, interior lighting, fuel pump, intercooler pump). The next morning I went into the garage and my front blinkers were blinking, I panicked and hit the unlock button on the key fob and it stopped. However when I hit lock twice the car locked but will not longer honk. The steering wheel also does not honk anymore. The car is also now randomly locking itself. The car is at a professional shop now i'm just looking for a headsup on possible damage that I caused, it can't be good.

This is not my car, its a google picture. But the circle indicates where the box gave way.

JC316

I did the exact same damn thing on my 98. That nut attaches to a metal plate underneath the fuses, you bent that up and it's making intermittent contact. Good luck finding one of those things. I wound up taking the bottom off the over, then using channel locks to bend it back in place. Everything works on mine now.

cliffyk

I've never seen the inside of the battery junction box, however I would suspect that like most newer things it is not repairable and will need to be replaced--junk yard time...

JC316

Essentially, it's just a plastic box with a thin metal plate that runs through it. The plate has tines that stick up into the fuse terminals and at one end, it has the place where the battery wire attaches. The only thing that you have to do is bend that plate back into shape and insure that the tines are sticking up into the terminal.

cliffyk

Cool,

Then reshaping that, and perhaps a bit of epoxy, should make it good as new...

Hangwire

I'll pass the word along to the shop once they contact me with their findings. It is exactly as JC316 has described.