I'm in the process of doing a V8 engine swap (no stupid flames please, I think this has been covered enough) and have a few questions regarding the electrical system in the FD. Seeing as the LT1 engine I am using is complete with PCM (ECU), is there anything to stop me from using the LT1 harnesses direct from the engine bay, to the PCM?

The electrical system (interior lighting, radio, dash, etc) should remained unharmed and operate correctly by my estimations (they are simple fused connections connected to the battery?). The only other issue is the calibration of the gauges, but seeing as I will be getting a whole new set of Autometer indash stuff (tach, speedo, etc) I will just plug these directly into the new VSS with the new transmission. Are these correct assumptions?

If they are, I'm totally lost as to why it took Bill Hagan (no offence of course, maybe I am completely wrong) '80 hours to rewire and remap the FD electrical systems' from the LT1 to the FD. Any advice appreciated (where are you jimlab!).

Thanks in advance

 

One consideration of Bill's effort was his effort to retain the stock gauges. I took another route by having my gauges recalibrated to handle the LT1 speed and tach outputs, and cleaned up and improved the speedometer while I was at it. Bill's was the first effort in this area, and as the first one to do anything, it will take the next guy half as long because he's standing on the labor of the first in line.

Bill used calibration boxes from Dakota Digital to convert the signals for the tachometer and speedometer to drive the stock gauges. The oil pressure sender, water temp sender, and coolant level senders all had to be wired in also. Even with a dash comprised of aftermarket gauges, you'll still end up spending more than a few hours figuring out all your wiring.

Next, Bill chose to keep the power steering and air conditioning, thereby increasing the complexity of the install. I imagine that he chose to wire the A/C button in the dash to turn the system on and off, and that's even more work.

So back to your question... can you run the LT1 as a stand-alone system and not integrate into the RX-7's wiring and simply drive aftermarket gauges with the LT1 sensors and senders? Yep. But I guarantee that no matter which direction you take, you'll spend at least a couple days sorting out the wiring and getting it all working properly.