If I was to speculate, I'd say that it was indeed something in the batch of small wires that run up into the column. The orignal turn signal rod with the cruise functions were not in the car when I bought it. It had been replaced with a standard turn signal rod. Very well could be the wiring inside touching something? I do have one question regarding the single pink wire that came out of the cruise harness and was routed in with another pink wire in the fuse panel connector that plugs into IGN port in the front of the panel. I cut this wire so I could get the harness out and wasn't sure if maybe that had anything to do with it being a problem before I powered any accessories? Anyway, the question is what I should do with that wire that was cut and now hangs off of the fuse panel plug. I didn't want to mess with getting the one wire out and messing up the connector with the other wire in it. Should I just cut this as close to the plug as possible? I can post a pic if needed.

 

Gee, too bad you didn't mention that about ohhhhhhh, 9 pages back! lol
Put a small wire nut or closed end crimp connector on the dangling pink wire, wrap it with electrical tape, and call it good.

 

LOL! I most likely would have mentioned that if the discussion ever went from the engine bay to the inside of the car . I was completely positive that the problem lied "before the accessories/fuse panel" and assumed that although cruise is not an acc. (and it was completely disconnected) that it was still powered by a fuse. You've got me curious now though, would you seriously have said anything about cruise wiring being a potential culprit with the symptoms that were present and with it being disconnected? Not that I need any more solidification of my ignorance, just had to ask. I just hope it's fixed and I don't have to take it in and pay by the hour for them to test things that have been tested to death!

 

If you had said what you just said "The original turn signal rod with the cruise functions were not in the car when I bought it. It had been replaced with a standard turn signal rod." A light bulb may have gone off to made one wonder "what happened to the original wires inside the column". Eh, that's all sludge under the bridge now. Fingers crossed that you found and killed the real gremlin.

 

Got it, point taken sir. With that said, do you think it would be wise to inspect the wiring in the column? Or better yet, remove them like I have with some of the other unused wiring? It's somewhat moot at this point but now would be the time to do it. I'll pick up another new belt tmrw to replace this one with somewhat shiny/smoothed sides from getting so hot and drive with the accessories on to test everything out.

Then I'll start asking questions about the A/C removal along with that unneeded wiring.....

 

Do you have a wiring schematic of your year car? I wouldn't bother going digging into the column, as long as you know the unused wires that are/were live are disconnected.

 

I do have the diagrams that I pulled off of this site for my year of car. I've noticed several discrepancies between the diagrams and the actual wiring in my car. If I stumbled onto the problem being in the column/cruise, I'm now a bit suspect of the horn wiring also? No operational horn, aftermarket steering wheel and therefore more loose wires in the column. I might pull the wheel off at some point and peek around in there.

 

I wouldn't worry about the horn as it's a circuit that gets grounded by the horn button when it functions normally. Most shorts in the horn will simply cause the horn to honk. If there's still a wire going to the actual horn from the horn relay, then it would probably be honking now if it's shorted.

 

I'm so close.... But possibly so far... When I start the car the voltage starts off low like it has been. Within 30 sec. or so the voltage go up to where it's supposed to be and the alt. gets hot. If I turn the car off and restart it the voltage will go up a little faster and the alt. start to cool back down. If I turn the blower or headlights on the voltage drops back to high 12's. After I turn off acc. I can hear the regulator work and the voltage comes back. The last time I messed with it today (after I turned blower on and off a couple times) I got the voltage to stay put with the blower on. Almost seems like it's trying to work right but needs a little time before it decides to? To me, that doesn't seem like something another short would cause.

 

Don't feel bad. It still doesn't make sense to me why (if you did have a downstream short) that would make the voltage output in the alternator drop below it's normal 14+V.