

Outside of SFE fuses are AG type, which stands for Automotive Glass with a suffix letter to note the type. They are ¼” in diameter, from 5/8” up to 1 7\16” long. SFE stands for Society of Fuse Engineers, and have different lengths so that the wrong fuse cannot be installed into the wrong placement. SFE – These are the original glass fuses for automotive use. These SFE fuses have different widths so that they only fit the appropriate circuit. Various glass fuses have different diameters and widths, depending on the style. Slow-burn fuses, like the MDL type, are timed fuses. SFE and AG* type fuses are fast-blow fuses, they pop as soon as there is more draw than they are rated for. There are numerous designs for automotive glass fuses. These fuses are rated for 32v DC and cover from 4 amps up to 30. Most American vehicles went away from glass fuses in 1982. This is done through a piece of metal that melts at a certain temperature point. Sacrificial Circuit Breakers (Fuses)Īll of these automotive fuse types are destroy themselves in the process of breaking the circuit. This article will address and identify the most common types of automotive fuses that you may encounter. There are many types of circuit breakers, ranging from sacrificial (fuses) to resettable (circuit breakers), and then there is the classically dreaded fusible link, which is the bane of many a mechanic. Some vehicles have individual fuse boxes in various locations, but most vehicles use a centralized master fuse box, much like the breaker box in your home. If you have ever experienced a wire fire, it is quite scary, especially if you are actively driving.Īuto makers design circuit breakers into every component in your vehicle, and most of them are housed in one or two central locations. Pulling too much amperage through a wire always leads to that wire getting hot, and eventually it catches fire. The most common cause of automotive fires is electrical shorts. When faults happen, the power feeding the component must be disconnected immediately. A fault can be anything from a dead short (where the positive voltage shorts to ground), to a damaged component. Not to worry, we are here to help you make the connections you need without bogging down in the mire of complex electronical jargon.Ī fuse is a mechanical breaker device that protects your vehicle’s electrical components and wiring in the event of a fault. If you are not a regular in the automotive fuses section at your local NAPA store, you are probably scratching your head at the alphabet soup in that last sentence. When you have a bad temper, people say you “have a short fuse”, in the world of automotive electrical components, a short fuse could mean a mini-ATC (technically ATM), GMA, or even an AGA style fuse.
