Hey guys could use some help. Doing some diagnostics on my car and I stumbled upon this wire. It's the fusible link that comes off the positive battery cable. Also tied into the fuse for the ECM, fuel pump, maf relays, etc that sits right next to the radiator. The orange wire that is pictured is getting very hot while the car is running. What would cause this?

 

A high resistance connection or failing electrical component. Even bad grounds.

 

Most likely, something hacked into the circuit that it feeds, that's drawing too much power. Which seems relatively likely, looking at the rest of that pic... seems as though that car's wiring has suffered a bit at the hands of ... abby someone.

 

Believe it or not none of the harness is hacked or butchered. The red wire was a feed directly to the battery for an amp that's long gone, haven't removed the wire yet. I have some suspicions and will look into them. Thanks for the reply.

 

Thanks TTOP, will investigate.

 

all wires with current going through them will heat up.. Not hot to the touch but they get warmer. If you exceed the rating of the gauge of wire enough then it will literally turn into a red hot element and melt. We use fuses to prevent that. A fusible link is a type of fuse. It's a short piece of smaller gauge wire with crappier insulation. If for some reason a large draw (such as a short circuit) were to happen on that wire then the fusible link because it's a smaller gauge will burn off first. You repair the wire problem and have to replace the fusible link.
I see 2 cracks in the insulation. perhaps the fusible link is rotten and therefore is an even smaller gauge of wire and it's warming up because you now have the same current going through an effectively smaller wire.
Check the condition of the fusible link.

 

bad ground somewhere.