the350z Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 My headlights just crapped out on me, as well as the turn signals, and the wiring is old anyway so I figured I'd run a new harness. Its a sbc 350 swapped '74 260z. Obviously the original ac/heater have been pulled and there's no radio to speak of so I'd like to remove all if the unnecessary things that aren't in use. Really going for a bare bones kind of wiring harness, just the necessities. Headlights, dash lights, signals, dash cluster, brake lights, running lights, alternator is all I'm really worried about having power to. This would be my first time doing this but I'd like to try and tackle it! I was going to go with the EZ Wiring harness as it seems to fit my needs and budget. Just looking for any suggestions and trying to figure out what other than the harness itself I'm going to need to get this job done! Any input is appreciated! -Sean Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pillar Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 Have you seen the Weather Pack (GM Delphi) connectors? I recommend them for things like the headlights and other exterior connections. They are sealed very well against rain/dirt. I have replaced all of my exterior lighting connectors as well as a number of engine harness connectors with them. I do suggest that if you purchase them, that you grab one of the crimp tools. It makes installation so much faster and gives you perfect crimps. There are a lot of folks that sell them on eBay, but I prefer to order through performanceplusconnection.com. Have the best selection that I have found, and you can order the connectors individually which is great if you have a bunch of different plugs to replace (2-pin, 3-pin, 4-pin, etc.). Pillar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 My headlights just crapped out on me, as well as the turn signals, and the wiring is old anyway so I figured I'd run a new harness. This would be my first time doing this but I'd like to try and tackle it! The headlights and signals are easy to figure out and fix. You'll probably wish that you had never had this thought. Browse through the wring diagrams here and see if it still looks like fun - http://atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/electrical.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 I did the EZ wiring kit on my car. One thing that was suggested to me that I'm glad I listened to was to get one with more circuits than you think you need- that way you have some extra circuits to wire things in with that you forgot about, and also for later use if you decide to put a stereo in or something like that. Definitely get yourself a nice crimping tool for non-insulated terminals, a good assortment of non-insulate blade terminals and an assortment of non-insulated ring terminals, an assortment of grommets, a good amount of heat shrink tubing, some corrugated plastic wiring tubing (I bought this at the hardware store), lots of electrical tape, lots of the non-adhesive cloth tape for wrapping up your wiring, and a bunch of variously sized zip ties. All of these things really come in handy and it's better to have it to begin with than to get it piece by piece as you're doing it. You're also going to want to have a good soldering iron and solder on hand, as well as a multimeter that has a continuity (or OHM) setting. The most difficult part of this wiring is the combination switches, and mine were all worn out so I just got a universal turn signal lever/switch and that made life a lot easier. Since you already have a V8 in the car your wiring will be a bit easier, as they are basically designed for v8's. Give yourself quite a bit of time to do this, it takes forever and is very tedious and your back, brain, and arms will be sore from all the different positions you're going to be trying to feed wiring the right way and what not. That being said though the EZ wire kit is actually pretty nice, the wiring is good quality, the box itself is nice, and there is plenty of length on almost all the wires to work in our little cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AkRev Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 Just a heads up, if your headlights and turn signals both went out, I would test your combo switch. I had updated the lighting on my car years ago to find out it just ran more power through the switch and caused it to fail. Replaced the switch and added a relay to solve the issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 Just a heads up, if your headlights and turn signals both went out, I would test your combo switch. I had updated the lighting on my car years ago to find out it just ran more power through the switch and caused it to fail. Replaced the switch and added a relay to solve the issue. This is a really good point that I hadn't thought of. It may be more simple to just replace some of the electrical components, I wouldn't want to put in a universal harness on a Z that wasn't already stripped down and far from stock like mine was. Adding relays for the headlights and a few other components such as the fuel pump can really work wonders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Merrill Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 I used the ez-wire 21 circuit kit. My wiring was hacked. The previous owner used house wingnuts/marettes to attache the wires. The new replays and wiring sure helped with the dim headlights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Gadsby Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 ^ seems uncaring PO's the world over use those staples of hackery to destroy the hopes and dreams of new Z owners with aspirations of a "quick build". I will also be using the EZ kit, thanks for all the tips gents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Gadsby Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 I did the EZ wiring kit on my car. One thing that was suggested to me that I'm glad I listened to was to get one with more circuits than you think you need- that way you have some extra circuits to wire things in with that you forgot about, and also for later use if you decide to put a stereo in or something like that. Definitely get yourself a nice crimping tool for non-insulated terminals, a good assortment of non-insulate blade terminals and an assortment of non-insulated ring terminals, an assortment of grommets, a good amount of heat shrink tubing, some corrugated plastic wiring tubing (I bought this at the hardware store), lots of electrical tape, lots of the non-adhesive cloth tape for wrapping up your wiring, and a bunch of variously sized zip ties. All of these things really come in handy and it's better to have it to begin with than to get it piece by piece as you're doing it. You're also going to want to have a good soldering iron and solder on hand, as well as a multimeter that has a continuity (or OHM) setting. The most difficult part of this wiring is the combination switches, and mine were all worn out so I just got a universal turn signal lever/switch and that made life a lot easier. Since you already have a V8 in the car your wiring will be a bit easier, as they are basically designed for v8's. Give yourself quite a bit of time to do this, it takes forever and is very tedious and your back, brain, and arms will be sore from all the different positions you're going to be trying to feed wiring the right way and what not. That being said though the EZ wire kit is actually pretty nice, the wiring is good quality, the box itself is nice, and there is plenty of length on almost all the wires to work in our little cars. Any more information on the combination switch? Pics, part numbers, etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 Any more information on the combination switch? Pics, part numbers, etc Well I didn't get a new combination switch, just a universal turn signal switch; no headlight dimmer, no wiper function, just simply turn signal. I couldn't even tell you who made the one I got and I had to make a custom handle as the one I got was for a semi and the handle would almost hit the door. I also had to cut the clamshell to make it fit, it wouldn't fit over it. Search "universal turn signal switch" on ebay or summit or something, I think I got mine off ebay. Use a multimeter to figure out how to wire it, or use the instructions if you're lucky enough to get some. For headlight dimmer I got a high/low floor switch from summit or jegs and put it on my dead pedal. Wiper control will just be a dial on my dash. Some people have used the stock combo switches with the EZ wire harness but I didn't want to mess with it, and I like my set up better. But then again my car is kinda a street rod that no one but me really appreciates. Here's some pictures, not that it'll tell you much lol. Turn Signal Switch: You can see the headlight dimmer off to the left below. Push with your left foot to switch between high and low, like old American cars. Have a separate toggle switch on my dash to turn the headlights on and off through a relay which is in the engine bay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z mouse Posted April 5, 2016 Share Posted April 5, 2016 I have just finished re-wiring my 1970 with v8 engine.some other members gave some great pointers so i'll add mine.it is indeed a long process but well worth it.installing a new harness is the biggest improvement you can do to an old car.i bought the rebel 14 circuit (excellent kit) and thought it might be over kill but should have used an 18 or 21 kit even though I think I have a no-frills car.you may want to add something like a extra fuel pump,vacuum pump,electric water pump,etc.I decided to not use any of my stock switches to simplify the install and also give the car a hot rod look.i used a Peterson 7 wire signal switch.it does not self cancel but is a well built and dependable unit.way ahead of the factory switch.i always hated where the combination switch and ignition were located so I put a key switch,start button and kill toggle where the map light and center vent were on the dash.toggles switches where the 4ways were for my lights and dimmer switch.i put the fuse panel on the passenger side and a fused buss bar under the hood to run the 9 relays in the system.there was sufficient wire included,but had to buy the black wires.i bought grote black wire which I found was close to the rebel quality.i too recommend a ratcheting crimper pliars with non-insulated jaws,quality shrink tube and weather pack connectors with crimping tool for those connections out in the elements.i pulled the dash also to make it go easier.it looks overwhelming when you start but take your time and google a lot.the company "easy2wire" has a good installation manual online (rebel has none).how to build a hotrod.com is another good site as well as jalopy journal has a 15 page how to forum.good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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