Wiring. Let’s start my diatribe about wiring….
Much of wiring in the Camaro has been replaced over the years. The front lighting harness was upgraded and relays used when the Hella headlamps were put it, but the wire used was not the really good stuff. Did it function well? Absolutely. Did the rear wiring harness still work well. Yup. Dash. That too. But OLoA has a nasty way of slapping you upside the head, making you think about how awful it would be to have the car break because of something that was very apparent. My day job is basically making machinery reliable, so my reliability-centric brain did not like the old electron tubing, so off I went on what could have been a simple upgrade, but noooooooo…….
At SEMA 2011 I had a long talk with Michael Manning, President of American Autowire. My delay in replacing the wiring in the Camaro boiled down to that I wanted to run all the engine bay to cabin wiring through the factory bulkhead connector. However, with all of the additional functionality the car has, there was no way to get it all through the 1st-gen Classic Update bulkhead connector. Lights, DSE wiper, ECM serial buss, tachometer, speedometer, backup light feed and return, oil and fuel pressure, intercooler, DSE headlight controls, MIL feed, horn, etc. overfilled the available cavities in the as-supplied bulkhead. Well, Michael had a solution to my needs:
That’s the as supplied Classic Update connector on the right, and the new one on the left. The new part has 12 additional cavities including two higher power. Using this bulkhead means re-pinning both sides of the bulkhead connector, meaning all of the front and engine wiring harnesses also needed to be reworked. There are no circuit diagrams for this, nor suggested layout for the connector. However, it all fits into the stock, unmodified firewall bulkhead hole.
In the end the engine and lighting wiring harnesses were done such that each can be removed from the bulkhead and not interfere with the other. This sounded pretty easy to do, but it was a bit more than challenging to make sure it was all correctly laid out. It took way longer than anticipated, but in the end everything disconnects easily, can be simply serviced with a test light and ohm meter, and all power functions except for a few in the trunk can be run through the main fuse box. Remember the reduction in power due to the lighting change? Now there is zero concern about overtaxing the fuse panel while running higher power items like the intercooler pump. Everything in one place makes diagnostics easier.
In the trunk a whole new batch of upgrades and changes were made. From a safety standpoint I very much wanted to move the battery away from the aft-corner of the car. If the car ever got hit, or went butt-first into the wall/tires during OLoA, there was a serious chance that the battery could be damaged and/or short out, possibly creating a fire. So, I’m plagiarizing James’ work and moving the battery to just under the right-rear package tray. But, of course, it ended up being a bit more than a simple battery re-location.
During the wiring changes I inspected every electrical connection on the car, even those not being changed. I’m glad I did. The car has had a Lincoln Mark VIII fan installed since, I believe, around 2004. During that time the fan had been controlled by either temperature switches or ECM outputs that triggered a 70A relay. The relay had failed back in 2010, and a simple replacement made things all better. But, after inspecting the fan plug is became apparent that there were more troubles brewing:
The terminals in the plug were never intended to take the heavy amperage hit during initial fan-on. They are black and corroded, so a new plug was in order. Fortunately the terminals in the fan were only slightly damaged, and no internal damage occurred, so the fan can be re-used. Not so much with the relay system. Since the Ford OE fan system was PWM controlled it was time to go that route. A DC Controls PWM fan speed controller is being used with a few modifications (of course I can’t leave it alone.) The temperature sensor, normally inserted in to the radiator fan fins near the outlet hose, was epoxied into a gutted brass fan switch housing. This in turn was screwed into a bung that was already on the return tank. I liked this option best from a reliability standpoint since who knows what kind of junk might come up and try to push things around.
The fan and VaporWorx controllers were mounted next to each other on a panel that will mount above the battery. This keeps the wire runs short but additional circuit protection is needed since the power does not run through the fuse panel. A new power panel with circuit breakers was made that allows for very fast disassembly and battery replacement. Battery connections are quickly accessible through the fold-down rear seat divider.
In order to cut down on the chances of shorting something out the battery hold-down crossbar was covered in dual wall adhesive lined heat shrink tubing.
Another thing learned from OLC was the need for additional power taps. There is plenty of time to charge phones, IPads, flashlights, etc. while driving, but there’s not nearly enough cigarette lighters in a 1st-gen to accommodate them all, and I hate having a bunch of splitter spaghetti wires hang all over the dash for eight hours at a time. So, new auxiliary power wiring was run from the dash, under the console, and a GT280 plug pigtail run out the ashtray on the aft console. When it’s not needed it just coils up and the door shuts. This plugs into a dual plug cigarette lighter that has two USB charging plugs as well. There is another similar plug that is available near the battery with a three-foot pigtail that can be used for other needs such as cameras, high-power lighting, etc.
The center console ended up being one of the most challenging wiring jobs. With all of the additional functionality that is needed now, and some that is coming in the future (my VaporWorx brain has been at work since March of last year on something), there are 22 circuits that are now run from the dash area to the console, and most are routed through a 20-cavity Delphi GT150 connector mounted just forward of the console. This allows for quick removal of the console wiring if needed, plus diagnostics are a lot easier too.
There are a ton of other details as well. Lots of B+, ACCY+, and ground drops to make adding new power devices easier. All speaker wiring is integrated into the main harnesses. Everything is either tape wrapped or loomed. LED interior lighting was added. And on, and on, and on…. In all it took almost 10 weeks of work to get it the way I wanted it. Fortunately, since each circuit was checked for continuity and function earlier, there were zero problems on startup.
Finally for this evening, I’ll leave you with a little teaser shot of another test that was done in October. Coming soon, KORE3.
Brian Hobaugh SCCA National Tour June 2014
First Hemi 'Cuda Convertible Ever Built
Short clips: Goodguys Pleasanton autocross and pit videos
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