wiring help on a 63 Nova

[zz3guy]

Dad's pro tour 63 Nova died electrically this weekend for no reason. Lost everything, but the battery was still fine. We hot wired the fuel pump, hei, & fan to get to the Goodguys show & back. We picked up an EZ wire complete wiring harness & I'm gonna try to tackle it this week while I'm on vacation. Has anyone on here done a complete re-wire like this? If so could you give me any tips or info? I've read the instructions 4 times & will probably read it again a few more while I'm working on it.


Any info or tips would be greatly appreciated!

[MarkM66]

We've used those kits. Just follow the instructions, and if you have specific problems, ask. Good luck.

[zz3guy]

I do have a specific question. I'm wondering should I completely gut the wiring in the car first from front to back & under the dash & then start with my new harness? That seems to be what my "intuition" tells me but I'd like to hear it from someone who has tackled this project before.

[70TWO NOVA]

I always start from scratch and remove everything, a clean slate makes things appear much less cluttered.

[John S]

Here is how I do it;
First thing you need to do is decide how much you are going to replace vs. repair. Then I get the digital camera out and take pictures of EVERYTHING be fore the first wire is cut. Look at potential routing locations and difficulties. If you need to route any wires through frame rails leave some in to attach to the new wires and pull them through.Take more pictures after the wires are all out and determine the most efficient routing locations.
I determine the mounting location for the fuse panel and then route from the component back to the panel. Zip ties are your friend, have an ample supply to help hold wires in place until you are ready to finalize tie points. Have thr right tools, and Hi quality, especially strippers and crimpers. if you use heat shrink get a heat gun, don't shrink tubing with a lighter or open flame. Electrical tape does not hold up in extreme environmental conditions (heat & moisture). Think about where you may want disconnects? I keep a healthy supply of molex and sealt tite connectore in multiple pin configurations handy. If you decide to solder any wires remember that the solder joint is not flexible like the wire is and could be a problem in vibration prone areas.

I'm sure there is more I am leaving out and these are not meant to be hard and fast rules but more of things to consider. Take it one step at a time and double check all your connections and you should be fine.

[zz3guy]

I appreciate the help. I gutted all the wiring today after taking quite a few pictures of everything. Right now it is completely bare with no electrical wires anywhere at all. I did lay the new harness in & run the wires to the trunk & to the engine but that's it. I am going to start on the actual wiring tomorrow.

I did see something that I was wondering about though. The old voltage regulator on the core support where a bunch of wires connected to. We are running a one-wire alternator now so can I get rid of that all together? I didn't know what all was supposed to be connected to it but I did think it would be a lot nicer looking if that was gone from the wiring system.

[Tim Baillie]

We photo document everything in the car, we then cut out all the wire at the connectors and go to town........the nice thing about a GM is they really didn't change much over a lot of years

If you have lots of aftermarket items in the car, you should wire them in on the bench, it will make things alot easier. I usually use fuses for different things if those options are not in the car and relabel things.

It's also good to get a good book on vehicle electrical wiring if your skill level is questionable, it can help to understand how to do things and why certain things are done.

If you can use new connectors, do that, at least replace the pins in the connectors, that way you leave nothing to have issues again.

I would also recommend soldering and heatshrinking everything you do, that way it's going to last alot longer and less chance of wires falling out of connectors when running cables.........

[John S]

I do not fully agree to the other post. Unless you are an expert at soldering do not solder your crimp connections. Solder can wick up the wire under the insulation and becomes a weak point that is subject to stress cracking and failure. Use a High quality and the (right) crimp tool for what you have and you will not have any problems. We've been crimping terminals in aircraft and cars for years without problems. What is important is proper strain relief, be sure to tie your wires up so the the clamp supports the weight, not the connector.

It's been a while since I have looked at the old style regulator but if memory serves me correctly then yes, you can remove it all. Your one wire alternator will have an internal regulator and you can wire it either to the bat terminal on your starter or straight to the battery.
I'm not familiar with the harness you got, did it come with all new connectors? What about fusible links? Please consider getting rid of the fusible links if you do have them, they are not worth the risk and danger IMO, convert to a power fuse.

[zz3guy]

I gave up tonight. I worked on it some this afternoon & the past two days but that's enough. I'm horrible at wiring problems so I talked my dad into helping me load it on the trailer. We have a good friend who is retired & builds hot rods. His hot rods (7 or 8) are all dead nuts reliable & he builds them from the ground up. He just wired a 40 Ford street rod for another friend & did a good job, quickly, & was very reasonable on price. So it's on the trailer & will be wired next week.

I was totally able to put all the wiring in & get it like it should be, but I am no good at diagnosing or fixing electrical problems & was afraid that we'd have to hack the new harness up to make it run & make everything function properly. I'll just stick to welding. I'm pretty decent at that!

Thanks for the help guys. I'll keep you posted as soon as we get it back.

Clint

[Tim Baillie]

Originally Posted by John S

We've been crimping terminals in aircraft and cars for years without problems.

Your also talking connectors and crimpers that are not cheap at all and are not commonly available, in Canada they both have to be FAA approved and that is not cheap............