Wiring help needed!

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thx tim, I was just trying to make sense of it in my head, k the fuse box gives the switch power, and the brake lights power, but how does the switch control the brake lights... u know what i mean? But i'll look over it again.
For some reason I still haven't been able to get my reverse lights to work yet, I'm still waiting for my multimeter to see if the hot lead is recieving current.

As for the splicing, So say for the main disconnect, you'd cut off part of the new wire from the new harness, route it to say the head light, splice it to the main disconnect engine side, and then splice the wire from fuse box to teh main disconnect cabin side.

I really appreciate all the insight you guys have given me, thanks again.
 
As for the splicing, So say for the main disconnect, you'd cut off part of the new wire from the new harness, route it to say the head light, splice it to the main disconnect engine side, and then splice the wire from fuse box to teh main disconnect cabin side.

By main disconnect, I assume you are talking about the 8 pin rubber plugs at the firewall by the brake mastercylinder. When I re-wired my stang, I chucked all that stuff. It was either melted, corroded, cracked, burned, taped up or all of the above.

I think the pupose of them is ease of assembly at the factory and since they were a source of problems I just did away with it. I plugged one of the holes, made one of the rectangular holes round and put a big grommet in it. Most of my under hood wiring goes though that grommet directly integrated into the underdash harness/fusebox.

IMO If you keep the original 40 year old disconnects in place, you are loosing the benefit of a new harness.

I bought headlight connectors at Checker and spliced them to my new wiring. Other places, such as the windshield wiper motor and switch, I cut the old wiring harnes a couple inches from the connector, and spliced into it using solder and heatshrink.

The copper on the old harness was so oxidized, it wouldn't solder worth a crap, so I took a Xacto blade and kinda scaped at it until I got it shiny.

If I was doing it again, I would get the headlamp connectors (and anything else I could use) from somewhere like this:

http://www.wire-works.com/wiringaids.php

This would allow you to crimp the terminals directly to the end of the wire and give it a clean, custom harness assembly.

Ron Francis is one of many sources of automotive electrical accessories.
 
k the fuse box gives the switch power, and the brake lights power, but how does the switch control the brake lights... u know what i mean? But i'll look over it again.

What switch?

From the factory wiring, the brake lights get (battery power) from the headlight switch, then sends it to the brake light switch then to the signal light switch.

The signal switch determines whether current goes to both brake lights or when signaling, (Ignition power - when the key is on) current goes through the signal flasher unit to the left or right lamp which is the very same current path as the brake:

TurnSigSw.jpg
 
k well i finally got my multimeter back and so i put it the hot wire for the reverse lights, and wat? theres no current... so i get my screw driver, unscrew all the screws, sill plate, and kick panel, and according to the diagram it should connect to the neutral safety switch I look at where the neutral safety switch is supposed to be.. and no switch :mad: So i start sticking my hand at where the fuse box is and ... i cant find where it connects... so then i say to myself... its time... I start to drive home (this all took place at my grandpa's house) and as usual I connect my ipod to the amp and push play... no sound, i look at the head unit, it doesn't turn on... i look at the tach... its dead, not moving, engine is going but tach is gone... come home, push the alarm, it doesn't beep. Then I said to myself, now its really time... So I've already started taking stuff out, took out the tach, the stereo, kick panels, sill plates, and tomorrow i'll start taking out and labeling the wires for the gauges and then we can really get under way.
 
I look at where the neutral safety switch is supposed to be.. and no switch S

Where's that? On my '65 with a C4 it's on the transmission over the selector shaft.

Have someone check the lights as you move the shifter slowly from park to neutral. The switch may need adjusting.

To troubleshoot, there should be a harness with a red and blue connector coming up from the switch in the trans tunnel by the throttle linkage. I forget which color is for what function. One is for the neutral saftety switch and the other plug is for the backup lights.

Unplug one...if the starter still cranks, then it's the right plug. Use a jumper to bypass the switch, if the back up lights work, then you have a bad switch.
 
well i came to that conclusion because of two reasons, one according to the detail picture of the car it is supposed to be under the fuse box and there is a space there but nothing there, 2nd i followed the wire according to the schematics all over, and when i traced the place where the hot wire from the tail is suppose to connect to the female connector, i followed the female connector to where the start switch is supposed to be and it ended up going into a grommet that has the two black and red wires electrical taped, its just cut off
3rd, i dunno if this applies but my mechanic said that i could start it in any gear, even drive if i wished to, he said the previous owner bypassed the switch but i learned that its not there, at least not to my knowledge.
 
well i came to that conclusion because of two reasons, one according to the detail picture of the car it is supposed to be under the fuse box and there is a space there but nothing there, 2nd i followed the wire according to the schematics all over, and when i traced the place where the hot wire from the tail is suppose to connect to the female connector, i followed the female connector to where the start switch is supposed to be and it ended up going into a grommet that has the two black and red wires electrical taped, its just cut off
3rd, i dunno if this applies but my mechanic said that i could start it in any gear, even drive if i wished to, he said the previous owner bypassed the switch but i learned that its not there, at least not to my knowledge.

those plugs at the end (red and blue) are not there, they are wires with electrical tape around em, going into the firewall. I cant seem to find the half, the longer part either,

It sounds to me like you have an automatic, in which case you would need this:

00091lg.jpg


As stated earlier, one plug is for the crank signal going to the solenoid - it only completes the circuit when the shifter is in park or neutral. The other plug is for the backup lights which of course only completes the circuit in reverse.

Our Mustangs are over 40 years old, most of them somewhere in their life were subject to less than ideal repairs. If you can find one today that doesn't have cut wires and tape on it, it probably belongs in a museum.
 
oh sorry, i forgot to mention that, yah its an automatic :( . What is that part called again?

I know, it just angers me at the poor job the previous owner did. on all the wiring instead of soldering and heat shrinking things, he just twisted them together and most of them were left bare, some were lucky to have electrical tape on them. basically above the pedals is this huge mess of wires... all for a cheap after market stereo.

Thanks for the insight on the connectors, I agree, I should either buy new connectors or solder and heat shrink the stuff together.

Edit: HAHA i found out, that is the neutral safety switch ;) thanks again guys, i'll order it,
is there any difference between the first two?
http://www.mustangsplus.com/Merchan...Store_Code=MPFMP&Category_Code=neutral_switch
and where would i mount it? under the bezel where the shifter is? pics would be awesome
 
oh sorry, i forgot to mention that, yah its an automatic :( . What is that part called again?

I know, it just angers me at the poor job the previous owner did. on all the wiring instead of soldering and heat shrinking things, he just twisted them together and most of them were left bare, some were lucky to have electrical tape on them. basically above the pedals is this huge mess of wires... all for a cheap after market stereo.

Thanks for the insight on the connectors, I agree, I should either buy new connectors or solder and heat shrink the stuff together.

Edit: HAHA i found out, that is the neutral safety switch ;) thanks again guys, i'll order it,
is there any difference between the first two?
http://www.mustangsplus.com/Merchan...Store_Code=MPFMP&Category_Code=neutral_switch
and where would i mount it? under the bezel where the shifter is? pics would be awesome

It mounts along side the transmission
 
ic, well here's an update, I began digging into the car, and took out both stereos and instrument panel, glove box, and i started taking out the alarm system.
I tried to document how the alarm was connected but it turned out to be complete bs... It connected to about 4 different relays, the fuse box via a small flimsy wire, and every 4 inches the wire color would change, it would start out blue then green then black and then some other color... so i just started ripping it out, i was so annoyed, i know that that is gonna bite me in the but later... but yah so now i have to figure out how to rewire the alarm too.
 
K, almost all the wiring from under the dash is coming through the instrument panel hole, I unhooked most of it, I am having the toughest time undoing the main disconnects, can anyone help me with that? any tips, I was able to get one out but it was extremely tough with the tabs being on the bottom, the second one closest to the fender is practically impossible to undo the metal tabs that are on the fender side, I cant get an angle that will push in the tabs.

P.s.
Those connectors are so out of shape and old... definitely need to be replaced. half of them are so dried up its impossible to pull them apart.
 
ooo! i totally forgot about the steering column's wiring, how would you go about that? just splice em at the end where they come out under the dash?
Still need some advice removing the main disconnects, I've tried a variety of methods and none of them seem to be working

Edit: and after today... my hands and arms are in a world of pain! Its like teh feeling you get in ur legs after you come bak from a day at disney land.
 
ooo! i totally forgot about the steering column's wiring, how would you go about that? just splice em at the end where they come out under the dash?
Still need some advice removing the main disconnects, I've tried a variety of methods and none of them seem to be working

Edit: and after today... my hands and arms are in a world of pain! Its like teh feeling you get in ur legs after you come bak from a day at disney land.

I removed the terminals from the column connector, carefully pried each one off the old wiring and re-crimped them on the new wiring. I also soldered them to make sure it was a good connection. :nice:

The main disconnects can probably be sqeezed with some visegrips or channellock pliers enough to shove them through the hole. I don't remember having an issue getting mine out.:shrug:

I know what ya mean about pain, I've been retired from the Army for almost 10 years now and I'm not used to doing hard work, so when a big project comes along I'm feelin it the next day.:(
 
Ic, Yah I finally got the main disconnects out... I still have my hood on, but it was with the help of a flashlight and a long screw driver that I was able to push the tabs in.

As for the steering column... in an effort to save time and for the ease of it, I'm just gonna solder and heat shrink the old wires one by one with the new wires coming from the fuse box.

Any advice on how to remove the fuse box? I cant seem to get my head under there to see it, are there screws holding it on?

And maybe I didn't find it on that site that you mentioned but is there any place that sells things like a replacement main disconnect?

As for my hands... they're cut in places I don't remember getting cut in, but after a Tylenol and some food I slept like a baby, too bad i had summer school in the morning ;( they're better now
 
I won! I finally got the the fuse box and wiring out! i saw teh connectors for the steering column and im simply gonna reuse those, I have another question... the back lights... how the heck do you take those through? the quarter panel... how do u access the inside? baisically i'm asking how do re route new wires to the back? how can u go from the sill plate area to the back of quarter panel? do i have to take the rear seat out? Cause right now the problem is the window crank, i took off the crank itself but the thing that holds the crank and attatches to the scissors is what is in the way...
 
I won! I finally got the the fuse box and wiring out! i saw teh connectors for the steering column and im simply gonna reuse those, I have another question... the back lights... how the heck do you take those through? the quarter panel... how do u access the inside? baisically i'm asking how do re route new wires to the back? how can u go from the sill plate area to the back of quarter panel? do i have to take the rear seat out? Cause right now the problem is the window crank, i took off the crank itself but the thing that holds the crank and attatches to the scissors is what is in the way...

Run the wires in the front kick panels, under the sill plates, under the rear interior 1/4 panels (they are removed with I think three screws and yes you'll need to remove the rear seat to access them) then along the wheel wells in the trunk held in place by clips to the rear lights, again held in place along the underside lip of the tail light panel.