wiring harness

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i got to the point where i can start the car to see if the starter and all are working and it wont start. im getting power to the coil but no spark. also as im cranking the car it sounds like loud thumping from the engine internally. so much so that you can see some grease from the plugs just ooze from the pressure. what can that be?
 
ok. so the grease is residual from the engine that accumulated on top of the plug. what was happening was that the plug was not tight because it was the plug I took out to check for spark. so it was oozing because the pressure was coming out since it wasnt tight. anyway. skunked fuel was the cause of this mayhem. got the car started. but ran into another problem. the engine cranks now when the key is in the on position not the start. if that makes sense. so i insert the key turn it once and it begins to crank without me turning the key to the start position.
 
I'm not a wiring guru by any means, but I would get a manual and check the wires going to the starter 1st. Sounds like a keyed hot wire is on the wrong solenoid terminal![S.....Good luck, I'm sure someone knows how to correct this and will get on here, just hang in there....CR
 
thanks cr im sure its just a simple fix but i dont just want to start flipping wires around.
 
Sam_Fear said:
The gauges are cool. The one thing I really don't like is that radio installation. Get rid of that plastic surround and do the same copper treatment like the gauges. Any exterior pics?

You might get a few 'don't care for it' type comments, but everyone here respects the build it like you want mantra.

I'd suggest figuring out where to put the fuse box and start with the engine systems.
Click to expand...

I agree!!! give the radio the copper treatment!!!!
 
Countryss said:
ok. so the grease is residual from the engine that accumulated on top of the plug. what was happening was that the plug was not tight because it was the plug I took out to check for spark. so it was oozing because the pressure was coming out since it wasnt tight. anyway. skunked fuel was the cause of this mayhem. got the car started. but ran into another problem. the engine cranks now when the key is in the on position not the start. if that makes sense. so i insert the key turn it once and it begins to crank without me turning the key to the start position.
Click to expand...

Sounds like you wired the starter wire up to the assessory terminal instead of the start terminal.......
 
Countryss said:
would it be the starter wired incorrectly or the ignition switch wired incorrectly?
Click to expand...

It could be either one....but if I were a betting man, I'd have a look at the starter. IF I remember correctly, you have a steering column with the key in the column.....which would have a plug that your wiring kit should have had a corresponding plug for. IF that is the case, then the only way the the ignition switch could be wired wrong would be if they screwed up when they built the harness (not that something like that would be impossible). Double check your directions and your wires to the starter and let us know how you make out
 
ok. so what happened was i ran a wire from the coil to the solenoid on the starter which was giving it volts at the start position. that problem is solved. thanks all who chimed in.
 
Glad things worked out. Bet you won't be afraid to tackle something like this again in the future...aren't old cars fun :)
 
I panic and start hunting down the major things and it's usually something minor! Best to walk away sometimes and come back later with a clear mind and think things out. Of course you need a brain in the 1st place and that puts me in at the handicapped level!:D....Glad you got it straightened out..CR
 
It usually is a simple mistake when it comes to wiring.....I've wired several bikes and a few rods totally from scratch and they can be quite frustrating but if you take your time you can figure it out!

I had one truck I wired that when you turned on a turn signal all the lights on the back of it would blink.....took me 2 days to find that one...and it was a simple fix....I forgot to run 1 friggin ground and the power back fed to all the lights....lol...
 
haha dyce thats funny. well the other problem i had was that the car was cranking at the start position and was driving me nuts. turns out one too many wires at the ign post on the starter. then the damn neutral safety switch is built into the column which I didnt know so started going crazy with figuring out were to wire that in. ended up just jumping those terminals. well off to start wiring gauges and headlights.

Sidenote: I have since removed the computer from my car which is an 87 monte ss. previously I had a tranny lock up kit wired. Do i still need that wired in?
 
i just rewired a 37 Terraplane for a customer using an Affordable kit. I charged $400 labor plus kit. $2500 is NUTS!!!
 
well i got a lot of wiring done since the last time i posted here. The gauges are all in as well as the tranny lockup kit. the motor is all wired as well. so far its been fairly simple and only a few minor setbacks. i have everything connected to the panel but i want to start organizing the wires so that there not all over the place before i continue. if i just loop them together and zip tie them will it be a problem as far as having so much length of wire? i read somewhere that you dont want so much wire bundled up just enough to service the panel. would this affect voltage?
 
Countryss said:
well i got a lot of wiring done since the last time i posted here. The gauges are all in as well as the tranny lockup kit. the motor is all wired as well. so far its been fairly simple and only a few minor setbacks. i have everything connected to the panel but i want to start organizing the wires so that there not all over the place before i continue. if i just loop them together and zip tie them will it be a problem as far as having so much length of wire? i read somewhere that you don't want so much wire bundled up just enough to service the panel. would this affect voltage?
Click to expand...

You can do that if you want. However I would suggest now that you know where everything goes, start at the box and clean up the wires going away, so that any extra is near the plug end. Trim off the extra, then put final plug ends and shrink wrap on. I normally just twist wires onto their ports to get started - just to be sure, in case I have to move them. I don't put final ends on and shrink wrap until I am absolutely sure I am set. Kinda anal that way.

I believe the reason for not bundling is harmonic resonance and heat that electricity makes. And it's just ugly, and way too many bad things can happen when you have that much wire hanging, or bundled. IMHO.

Great job tackling it yourself! I'm proud of you.

Bruce
 

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