red wire dodgy, ignition?

[Therunner]

hi, i think i've found our short, it's a thick red wire that comes out of the back of the number 8 fuse,.
i can't trace it, it goes into a sheafing with several other wires & that then dissapears down the front & under the body, i caught sight of it going under the fue tank i think but after that,..
there are a few bunches of wires in & under the engine bay but i can't seem to find the end of this red one,..
but what i have found is,. with it disconnected there are no ignition lights or relay clicks, or anything at the turn of the key,..

can anyone give me a clue as to where this wire goes so i can replace/repair it or something,.

i'd REALY appreciate any advice, this is getting really frustrating now, i know some of you will know the answer so please help me?

many many thanks

[clartsonly]

I dont know but...

what does the haynes say about number 8 fuse?

does it go to the solenoid on the starter? do you still get your short circuit if you unplug the connector on the clocks? and leave the fuse in?

[Therunner]

i'm not sure if it goes to the solenoid, i tested back there & got a reading wether that wire was connected to the fuse or not?,. except that when
it 'was' connected i got a little spark when i probed it with the meter,.
there's a red wire with a black stripe on the solenoid that goes to the ignition, then theres a couple of wires that go to the alternator?,. checked
the alterntor wire & that has power wether or not this mysterious red wire is connected or not too, so that's not the issue,.

the haynes says s*d all about anything useful, i'll go & try &find the connector on the clocks give that a go,.

[clartsonly]

make sure you dont break the clocks when you either pull off the connector or push back on, the plastic is brittle where the screw holes are which is why some of them are held together with tape.

[Therunner]

ha, it's already pretty broken back there, don't think i'll be getting that connection back on 'if' i even get it off!,.
the wire i'm looking for doesn't see to go that way,.
i think it goes back,. somewhere,.
it's fatter than most of the other red wires about, kind of like the alternator ones, it's got a 2 written on it & it goes into a sleeve with loads
of other wires & disapears behind the dash, there's another group of wires with 1's written on them that come from the fuses & go into a different sleeve, they go out of site too but i think they go along kind of behind the grill to the drivers side,.

[bugarit]

anyway, thanks for all the over whelming help & advice on getting
our new van started
you're all very much appreciated, hopefuly we'll be able to get it started by ourselves now over the weekend

Thankyou 'Blu trukkie' especialy, you're a real diamond!