Automotive Electrical Parts

Every year vehicles are equipped with more and more safety, luxury, and convenience features, and most of them rely on electricity from the battery and charging system. The ignition switch is your gateway to electric power, and once engaged a myriad of switches are at your disposal for entertainment, navigation, windshield wipers, lights, door locks, windows, climate control operation and much more. Many systems are electronically controlled by computer.

Electrical components are generally very reliable, usually more so than the mechanical parts they may have replaced. But with such complexity, malfunctions are inevitable. Diagnosis can be involved and require a scan tool or multimeter, but in some cases only a test light will be needed. Regardless of the system or the defect, we have the parts to restore functionality, from the most basic switch or connector to an instrument cluster or window motor.

Although they are small, the most important parts in the electrical system may be the fuses, circuit breakers, and relays that protect the system from damage. Fuses are sacrificial parts that are designed to melt and interrupt the circuit if there is excessive current flow that could otherwise overheat and cause damage to the circuit, even cause a fire. Circuit breakers perform the same function, but have the ability to reset and restore current flow. Relays allow high amperage circuits to be controlled by low amperage circuits. This protects components like computers from damage that could be caused by high current.

While some electrical components are convenience features, systems like wipers and lights are necessary for safe vehicle operation, and who would want to drive on a frigid day without a working heater! Each of these systems relies on the proper flow of electric power, so the windshield is properly cleared, you can see where you’re going on a dark highway, and the blower fan spreads heat throughout the cabin on a cold winter’s day. Although each of these systems has a different function, they are all basically the same in that each has a load in the form of a motor or bulb, a switch, and 12-volt power supply.

Although motors, bulbs, and switches are the stars of the electrical system, they are nothing without supporting players like wires and connectors that complete the circuits, and these parts can cause major problems. Corrosion in wires and connectors can cause excessive resistance, which reduces voltage to the load and results in a dim bulb or slow/non-working motor. Broken wires can cause an open and complete circuit failure. Worn wire insulation can cause a short to power, which can result in a load getting power when it’s not wanted, such as a bulb staying on, or a short to ground, which can overload the circuit.