Greetings FTE,

My simple flickering issue has snowballed into something far worse now. Truck cranks but won't start due to bad connections (running was about the best thing the truck had going for it), lights are doing their thing, etc. The wiring is SO hacked on the truck, melted wires, bare wires, wires joined via twisting, tons of wires that go nowhere, etc. Also, the heater controls are gone, as is the radio, hazards, and horn switch. Turn signals do funny things to the brake lights, and do not otherwise work. Lots of plugs missing, dash doesn't have any lights whatsoever. When all that is there is working, I have parking lights, dome light, brake lights, high/low beams, wipers, and the truck starts, runs and charges fine. If I can't get the heater, dash lights or radio to work, so be it. I would just like to see my truck run and to have all the other stuff that worked prior to work again.

I have browsed the web and I can't shell out the cash for a Painless system. The price alone is far from painless!

From what I see, I am down to EZ wire or Centech. I am missing quite a few of the connectors for the dash, but there seems to be connectors enough to make the truck run, charge and have lights.

Will the EZ wire work for me? My truck is a 73 highboy, custom trim with a 360 and a manual trans.

As I understand it, the Ez Wire unit is geared more toward GM; will parts like the alternator and turn signals be compatible?

I have never done anything like this before, and have little confidence with wiring stuff, so naturally I am a little intimidated. This is sort of a budget build, and I cannot afford to drop a bunch of money into this truck. It does, however mean a lot to me, and I am desperate to get it back on the road.

Sorry for the long post, I just want to make sure I provide enough information for all of you.

Thank you very much for your time reading this and your input.

 

No worries, I am scared of wiring also...Centech has a fairly good rep on here. Never even heard of EZ wire. Bite the bullet and get something new and go for it.

At least that will take out all the screwed up wiring it sounds like you have and take out any possibilities of burning up your truck with the mess.

Have you joined you state FTE chapter yet? Maybe you can get the new harness and recruit some helpful eyes, experienced opinion's and a over watching hand?

Meaning you do not want them to do it, just over watch you to makes sure it goes right. And be there is you get hung up, FYI that means you at least buy the pizza and soda.

It sounds like your headlight problem came from some melted/bare wires and that possibly took out your ignition. A universal harness might be a PITA, getting a Ford specific harness should come with tags or identified ends and not just a ball of questions.

 

No worries, I am scared of wiring also...Centech has a fairly good rep on here. Never even heard of EZ wire. Bite the bullet and get something new and go for it.

At least that will take out all the screwed up wiring it sounds like you have and take out any possibilities of burning up your truck with the mess.

Have you joined you state FTE chapter yet? Maybe you can get the new harness and recruit some helpful eyes, experienced opinion's and a over watching hand?

Meaning you do not want them to do it, just over watch you to makes sure it goes right. And be there is you get hung up, FYI that means you at least buy the pizza and soda.

It sounds like your headlight problem came from some melted/bare wires and that possibly took out your ignition. A universal harness might be a PITA, getting a Ford specific harness should come with tags or identified ends and not just a ball of questions.

 

Thanks for the response! A friend of mine who is a pretty big car guy (probably had 200 cars), and he likes the EZ wire. I have to keep on the positive side and think of the end result, nice sanitary wiring. The wiring, in its current state appears to have been worked on by people with IQs that are barely crawling out of single digits.

I have joined my state's chapter, and I have a friend on here who I am sure would help, if I were to ask nice enough.

The ignition wires seem to have just pulled out from the housing. I could probably get that working again if I traced the wires, which change colors every foot.

The EZ wire unit has labels on the wire every few inches that designate their destination, and the company says the harness will fit GM or ford. If I have to get the Centech, I will, but I have the vapors of spending half of what I did for the truck on wire alone.

 

And post progress pics here!

 

Will do! Gonna be a bit till I get it all together, but I will get y'all some pics.

 

Hope it's not your DD...A word of caution, if I may?

Don't rush into it, as in ripping out wires like the Tasmanian Devil messed up on crank...Hahahaha. If it's not your DD, find a nice place to park it and take it slow...front gauge dash, the whole dash face one day, heater controls and box another day etc,.......the whole shebang so you have a clear picture of the mess, all the way back to the wiper motor and such.

I'd label all the wires you see with masking tape and sharpie/pen, etc. and leave them be 'till you get most of them labelled.....before you rip it apart. You might have to do some serious back tracing to find where that abortion came from.

And make sure your battery is out of the vehicle, out of harm's way. If you need to test a wire to follow it, you can always hook it back up for a few, label the wire, then disconnect it again.

I know you know all this and I mean no offence.....we've all been there chasing those electrical spooks and gremlins (mostly from a PO),....... and it's a wonder any of us have any hair left.........

Good luck.

 

It more or less is my DD, hate to say. Had to get the bronco out in the meantime.

No offense taken, and I truly appreciate your advice. I am pretty much the "electrical idiot" I describe. I am not however, known to risk having shoddy or unsanitary work and I don't like cutting corners. I am going to take your advice and start labeling all the wires that are more or less where they should be.

 

Using a letter and or # as your wiring connections references make it easier to tag wires (smaller tag) and connections and using different color tag/tape helps also.

Radio power plug, side one yellow tape tagged and sharpie marked A1, side two A2 of elec connection.

Red is ignition, yellow is accessories like heater blower, w/s wipers..., blue headlights so forth and so on.

Make a color, letter and # chart.

 

Pulled the dash, and am going to start tagging everything. Missing radio is the source of a lot of loose wires I reckon.

It'll give me an excuse to get a radio, paint the interior, and replace the heater core, if nothing else.



Divin' in head first!

 

You are going to be really happy with the new harness. It will clean that up real good. Just remember to take your time and land the wires securely and sensibly for any add-on or troubleshooting work that can happen later.

 

Thank you. I am looking forward to a real sanitary truck afterward. It will have all rebuilt steering, a fresh motor, good brakes, good wiring, and eventually, paint.

 

I called centec the other day,was told Jim went in for emergency surgery ,call back in 2 weeks

 

Maybe some help here, and take a lot of pics.

 

Thank you! I have been studying that and it has already helped enormously.