[Hi Rise]

I have a 1930 Model A rod. I want to re wire this car. The wiring in the car is safe and completly functional. But, the last owner re wired the car in all the same colored wiring (red). i have an American Auto wire kit, but before I tear out the existing wire I would like some advise,as to weather I should do it in sections or do it all at once. Just wondering if I will be biting of more than I can chew. I have some experience with some wiring but not a complete re wire of a car. Should i farm it out. The is nothing really complicated in the car just the basics, Lights,charging circuit etc.
Thanks for your advise. i just dont want to dig myself into a hole.

[killeratrod]

If you are not ready to rewire it yourself ,get a painless wire harness tell them what you got and they will make it to your specs! and go from their.

[OneMoreTime]

My plan is to mount the fuse box and then route the wires to where they go in the car..You can contact the company for instructions if yours are missing..Once the wires are all laid out then do the terminations..

Sam

[EOD Guy]

When I re-wired mine i made some simple mistakes........

Remove the old harness completely, label all your connections if you're unsure of your skills. That way later if you need to you can remember where that wire went etc...

Take pictures of any switches and plugs that go on them.

Very easy to do.

Remove any wire chase covers etc.......

Go purchase a billon wire ties......lol

Mount the fuse box first! I didn't, figured I leave a little wiggle room later to mount it...... big mistake

Gather all the wires that go to the back and loosely wire tie them togeather, do the same for the engine, dash area, drivers side etc..... starting at the fuse box start tucking, bending, wrapping around corners etc......useing wire ties every 4-5 inches, pulling them snug, as if this were their finial resting place. Then and only then start making the terminations for all your gear.

High quality crimpers are a most for a good looking crimp,

Lowes sells them for about 25 bucks.

[Joe G]

Originally Posted by Hi Rise

I have a 1930 Model A rod. I want to re wire this car. The wiring in the car is safe and completly functional. But, the last owner re wired the car in all the same colored wiring (red). i have an American Auto wire kit, but before I tear out the existing wire I would like some advise,as to weather I should do it in sections or do it all at once. Just wondering if I will be biting of more than I can chew. I have some experience with some wiring but not a complete re wire of a car. Should i farm it out. The is nothing really complicated in the car just the basics, Lights,charging circuit etc.
Thanks for your advise. i just dont want to dig myself into a hole.

Which American Autowire kit did you buy? Hwy 15? If you are planning on using the ignition, headlight, and dimmer switch that comes in the Hwy 15 kit, it is very straight forward. Just wire it per the diagram provided.

Where it gets tricky is if you want to use an original light switch or ignition switch, or if you have a lot of additional electrical accessories, but there are plenty of knowledgeable people here who can help you through the tricky parts.

If there is heat/AC or electric wipers, you're going to want to make sure you understand how they are currently wired. Draw a diagram or take some kind of notes...it will save you a ton of time and frustration when it goes back together.

If the car is as simple like you say, I would go ahead and de-wire the whole car and start with a clean slate rather than trying to rewire in sections.

Good Luck....

[lakeroadster]

Originally Posted by Hi Rise

Should i farm it out. The is nothing really complicated in the car just the basics, Lights,charging circuit etc.
Thanks for your advise. i just dont want to dig myself into a hole.

You can do it. I've wired two cars from scratch, a Model A and a Model T, both hot rods, using Painless harnesses. It's really easy if you follow the instructions and do it one wire at a time. They have great phone tech support also.

[sedanbob]

Lots of good advice already - I would add a suggestion to start with twist ties for gathering your wires - easy to un-do if you move things around, or forget a wire or two, and let you figure out where you might want to put some wires into wire looms. Run every circuit to where it goes, but don't cut anything or terminate anything until you have them all roughly going where they will be including any turns or obstacles to go around (there will be some).
When you do terminate them, I am into overkill - I both crimp and solder, then cover the connection with clear adhesive-filled shrink tube. Makes very nice water-tight connections that you can see into - handy a few years down the road when/if something corrodes. I buy 4 ft. lengths of the stuff from DelCity.com. You can see when it seals because it will take on the color of the wire it's adhered to.
Run lots of grounds. You can do this - just do one circuit at a time. All together it looks mind boggling, but each circuit by itself, is simple.

[Hi Rise]

Thanks guys, for your input and vote of confidence. I took the bull by the horns today and ripped out all the existing wiring. So it will be a clean slate. Should anyone else have some hints, they will be greatly appreciated. Thanks again. Brian.

[EOD Guy]

When you get ready to cut each wire to it's finial length, I have found it a very good idea to, cut it about 1 inch longer than I actually need, hold/slip the crimp terminal on, position it to where it's gonna stay forever and then make the finial "to-length" cut, remembering to allow for the stripping of the wire.

It's not a good idea to allow for a lot of extra wire "in case I need it later for repairs". What you'll end up with is a mess of wires bunched up and look like *****. Tie it in tight as you go and you'll be happier with the end look

[NEW INTERIORS]

If your only going to be crimping the ends on,, Once you crimp one,, Make sure to give it a good pull, This will let you know if you have a good crimp,Then move on to the next one.. Also use rubber grommets where you pass through the body,frame and so on.. Don't do it without them,,Very easy to wire a car,, ALWAYS mount the fuse box first.. Then do as some have said,, Route every wire where they go FIRST.. You will be Ok..

[snakebit68]

Listen, the wiring on those A's are fairly simple. I've done a few with my Dad and it took an afternoon. However, "EOD guy" probably gave you the best advice on how to do it. I'd follow his directions. Photo's to refer back too and old wiring clearly marked will be of great assistance should you run into difficulties. Just don't rush it, or feel overwhelmed. Keep it simple and best of luck. My brother and I are rebuilding a 1919 model T engine with Z head and forged crank. We love that era of cars. We are building the bottem end to eliminate babbit material and replacing it with actual bearings.

[Hi Rise]

Well I got the model A re wired. Everything went well with no problems. Although I was a little aprehensive about powering it up after all was completed. No blown fuses melted wires or hot spots. All worked as it should. The Amereican Auto Wire kit was awesome to work with and would reccomend this wire kit, and the tech support was great.
Brian.

[snakebit68]

Glad to hear everything went smoothly with the re-wiring. Wasn't as bad as you feared it was going to be was it? In my family, my brother is the electrical guru and I take care of the mechanical stuff. Looking forward to seeing some of your pics of that model A.

[EOD Guy]

Congrads on the project

[Irelands child]

I have a AAW in my '31 Ford and will echo your findings. Their many pages of individual circuit diagrams plus the overall diagrams are excellent.