Re-wiring
 

How many of you guys have done a full body rewire. FCs are of course getting old, and the old wiring is just beginning to die. I am thinking of doing a complete body rewire, minus all the climate control crap, Im thinking AIM sports dash. I will be keeping turn sigs, flashers, lights. I Just want to keep enough to keep the car street legal wise. Any suggestions, painless wiring kit numbers, etc?

A friend of mine has rewired 2 cars using painless uinversal kits. i plan on doing the same myself

he said it wasnt hard at all, the kits give plunty of wire, all labled, very easy to do

The painless is the way to go.

any chance you can ask which kits he used specifically, did he keep the stock igntion ( I prefer to get rid of the keyed ignition) and how much im looking at?

my friend hasn't done an rx7, but an old buick, and a t-bucket

i believe he used 12 circuit universals on both

I did mine from scratch. The basics were a 4 pole master kill switch from the battery, with the large ends using zero guage from the battery to the switch and then zero guage to a breakered (mostly 30 amp breakers) switch panel. From the switch panel all the leads go out to the various components. The alternator goes onto the second set of leads on the master kill switch so current is interrupted completely. The switch panel is 16 guage aluminum with a number of holes drilled in it. The panel is attached to the dash using DZus fastners so I can pull the whole panel quickly and easily. The Microtech sits on the side of the dash mount for the panel. To start the car you turn on the master kill switch and press the button that goes to the starter.
Pretty simple as a whole.
I don't have any pictures handy, but it is as basic as it sounds

-Trent

thats sounds about the way i want to wire mine. i want to try and get rid of as many relays as possible, and use a bunch of 30amp breakers.

I did like TrentO, except I used a small race car switch panel for ignition, fuel pumps, cooling fan, and starter motor. I used stock wiring for the lights etc. If you want a reliable race car, then do not use the stock 20 year old ignition switch to run your ignition circuits or your fuel pump.

Exactly, I have a switch panel now for fuel, igniton, and starting. But my stock ignition switch still controls all accesories. I am really trying to get rid of all the stock stuff. If I can find flasher switched, turn sig switch, etc, I would like to replace those and get rid of most of the items off the dash/steering column area

I used the Painless 8-circuit racecar harness and then a Longacre carbon fiber switch panel (has main, start, and 2 accessory buttons). The peace of mind is definitely worth the cost!

Also, anyone have any books that would encompass full out wiring? I can do most basic wiring, and running of wires. But when it comes to planning, running grounds, post, etc. I need alittle more assistance. I was thinking of a "wire your hot rod" books. I however am not sure they would have enough focus on what Im looking for

any pics as well of race car dashes, would be very helpful!

If you're going to be rewiring the entire harness, that is a good time to improve the cam & crank signals. What you want is "twisted shielded pair" because it will prevent your ECU from receiving a false signal from the crank angle sensor. This is especially important if you are installing a more powerful ignition system: the higher ignition energy is more likely to be picked up as interference on the cam & crank wires.

This page doesn't specify if the pairs are twisted, but this is similar to what I'm thinking of:
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalo...edmotefzel.php


Aircraft Spruce is a good supplier for high-quality wire if you're going to do things completely from scratch, but that stuff's not cheap. Tefzel-insulated wire is sometimes tougher to work with, especially if your wire strippers are worn. www.aircraftspruce.com

-s-

just make sure you take your time and plan it all out. also you might want to think about leaving a couple extra circuits. you never know, for example when you might decide to rum the 25 hours of thunderhill, and need to wire in 8 more lights, and the datalogger....

also you wanna wire up the turn signals/flashers and stuff.

ive got a pro7 car in my driveway that passed tech, and when its running and you turn the master power switch off, it stays running....

reviving, but any of you guys get rid of all your relays? Light relays etc? I just want to run switcheds, everything directly in front of me. As i said all stock componets well be removed.

Part of the reason to use relays is you don't need to run high-power wires near the driver. You can save weight by reducing the length of large wires, especially if you mount the relays near the battery or near the devices that they are controlling. It's also much safer if there is a short somewhere, since the low-power wire between the relay and the switch is unlikely to burn anything. Plus you can use small lightweight switches because they don't need to carry so much current.

Check out EZ wiring, Great quality, used it to rewire a 66 ford fairlane, Great quality in the wire, and really low cost, something around $160 if i remember

Where could I get those universal kits?? Im planning to do it myself too..