Electrical Harness Replacement.

[DMCVegas]

After spending all but 2 years of it's life in the dry heat of the desert (as well as being subjected to an idiot who didn't know how to install an alarm system), 6585's wiring is looking grim. Lots of stiff wires here and there, hardened insulation, discolored connections from excessive heat (including a warped inertia switch plug), strained connectors that needed replacement, and a handful of other random gremlins from damage are just some of the problems I've had over the years to go with what I'm facing now. Amazingly enough, I've never had an issue with the fusebox overheating. But I feel that using the existing old wiring is probably pushing my luck too far.

The big question I have though is about the age of the replacement harnesses. To be blunt, are DMCH's wiring still good? I'm not concerned about the prices involved as much as I am the fact that it's still OEM wiring that is approaching 40 years of age. I'd really prefer something with fresh wires, but I don't think I have any other choice.

[DMC-81]

Hi Robert,

I haven't had to buy a whole harness from DMCH, but I did buy 2 front marker lights (100784) that included the pigtail wires and a high pressure switch harness for the A/C system (110526) and I found them both to be in good shape. The insulation was not dried out, the brass connectors were not corroded, and the white rubber "Rists" connector to the high pressure switch was still pliable. These almost looked like new parts. I was impressed.

[DMC5180]

After spending all but 2 years of it's life in the dry heat of the desert (as well as being subjected to an idiot who didn't know how to install an alarm system), 6585's wiring is looking grim. Lots of stiff wires here and there, hardened insulation, discolored connections from excessive heat (including a warped inertia switch plug), strained connectors that needed replacement, and a handful of other random gremlins from damage are just some of the problems I've had over the years to go with what I'm facing now. Amazingly enough, I've never had an issue with the fusebox overheating. But I feel that using the existing old wiring is probably pushing my luck too far.

The big question I have though is about the age of the replacement harnesses. To be blunt, are DMCH's wiring still good? I'm not concerned about the prices involved as much as I am the fact that it's still OEM wiring that is approaching 40 years of age. I'd really prefer something with fresh wires, but I don't think I have any other choice.

The Harnesses they have have lived there entire lives in large Pallet sized storage bins out of direct sunlight but still exposed to humidity to some extent.

I bought a replacement late style Engine compartment harness about 5 years ago. It was packed in what appeared to be an OE parts bag but don't hold me to that. The wires themselves were much more flexible than what I removed But Not as flexible as what a freshly made harness might be today. Overall I was very happy with what I received. I would not have any concerns about purchasing any additional harnesses If I needed to.

One thing to NOTE. Early on when DMCH first offered replacement Fusebox kits, They took a large number Main harnesses and removed the boxes from them. I don't know If they eventually restored them with remanufactured fuseboxes, but it would have been smart for them to replace the Terminals on those harness with the Improved terminals and reinstalled them with a new Fusebox for the Refurbished car builds they do. If I was looking to replace my main harness, I would inquire to se if i could get one with the new Fuse Box and terminals on it or at least included to swap yourself. My Replacement Fusebox was one of the early take-off kits and NEW fuses, it has been trouble free with NO signs of heat since I installed it 10 + years ago.

[DMCVegas]

A BIG thank you for the responses! I'd still prefer to have a harness made from brand-new wiring, but I'll take what I can get since anything would be better at this point. Thank you both for sharing actual experiences with the wiring instead of just speculation. That is exactly what I was looking for.

Oh, and I appreciate the heads-up on the Fuse Box! The image on the site does depict one connected to the harness, but I'll double-check with DMCH when the time comes to ensure that a Fuse Box is connected. If it's OEM, I'll go ahead and use it. My original box never gave me a problem, although I did clean all my fuses, sockets, ground points, etc. If I have to buy one of the new ones and attach it myself, I'll probably introduce some Amphenol-Deutsch connectors to swap the box in the future instead of hard wiring it. But we'll see what comes after I order it.

Thanks again everyone!

[powerline84]

I used a nos 83 style on my restoration from houston. Came in orogional bag and labels . I was pretty happy with it. Only annoying thing is that you need the various plastic clips from your old harness....kinda pissed me off. But to have an actuall now harness in such good shape. Pretty cool

[Bitsyncmaster]

A BIG thank you for the responses! I'd still prefer to have a harness made from brand-new wiring, but I'll take what I can get since anything would be better at this point. Thank you both for sharing actual experiences with the wiring instead of just speculation. That is exactly what I was looking for.

Oh, and I appreciate the heads-up on the Fuse Box! The image on the site does depict one connected to the harness, but I'll double-check with DMCH when the time comes to ensure that a Fuse Box is connected. If it's OEM, I'll go ahead and use it. My original box never gave me a problem, although I did clean all my fuses, sockets, ground points, etc. If I have to buy one of the new ones and attach it myself, I'll probably introduce some Amphenol-Deutsch connectors to swap the box in the future instead of hard wiring it. But we'll see what comes after I order it.

Thanks again everyone!

You would need to come up with a way to put stripes on the wire to make your own harness. I did a little looking into that and did not come up with anything. If you could stripe the wires, all you need are the basic 10 solid colors to stock.

[DMCVegas]

I used a nos 83 style on my restoration from houston. Came in orogional bag and labels . I was pretty happy with it. Only annoying thing is that you need the various plastic clips from your old harness....kinda pissed me off. But to have an actuall now harness in such good shape. Pretty cool

More great information, thank you. Questions though: 1. Which clips are you referring to? 2. Any idea on what the differences are with that harness? Does it delete any circuits like the Defrost one for the back glass and/or side mirrors?

You would need to come up with a way to put stripes on the wire to make your own harness. I did a little looking into that and did not come up with anything. If you could stripe the wires, all you need are the basic 10 solid colors to stock.

That shouldn't be a problem in the least. If you wanted to keep things 100% organized & tidy, you can easily source striped automotive wire from a variety of places online. That you could use to create the pigtail on the Fuse Block side. Then create a guide to show which colored wires on the pigtail go into the connector, and a matching on for the opposite gender connection on the harness.

Plugging the Fuse Block in is totally simple. You'd have a couple if options here: First is color coordinating like DMC/Lotus did in the engine compartment with different colored connectors. Use something like Molex ML-XT's with 12 circuits each. You'd need 3 connectors, and could choose a different color for each pair to avoid confusion. Each connector corresponds to one of the 3 vertical rows on the Fuse Box.

Option 2 would be utilizing two 18 circuit Amphenol-Deutsch connectors. Divide those horizontally across the Fuse Box for the top and bottom sections. Then alternate genders on the connectors. I.e. female for the top section, male on the bottom. With this method it would be physically impossible to incorrectly plug the fusebox back in.

It would make the Fuse Box 100% modular for a fast, easy replacement. Not to mention it's the ultimate anti-theft measure. Save for bringing a tow truck, you can't steal a car if it doesn't have a working electrical system.

[Ron]

You would need to come up with a way to put stripes on the wire to make your own harness. I did a little looking into that and did not come up with anything. If you could stripe the wires, all you need are the basic 10 solid colors to stock.

FWIW, this used to be a good place for striped wires HERE. I haven't used them in a long while...

[DMC5180]

A main harness is only the central harness. The doors , engine bay, taillight group, headlight group and a couple smaller harnesses are plug in extensions to the main harness. AFIK, the heated mirror circuit was never deleted. Also the light for illuminating the automatic shifter may be in the harness, but on the 5 speed cars the light socket was clipped off with green and black wires taped off and stowed in the left side of the center console near the shifter.

[DMCVegas]

Right. The reason I bring that up is because during the 2005 Open House event in Houston it was stated that DMCH has a load of rear glass sections without defrosters. As much as I have debated pasting a big DMC logo in luminescent paint on my rear glass, keeping that defroster in place and functioning is a priority given that I use mine when driving in the rain. I'd also love to see about installing heater circuits on a set of convex mirrors as well. So that's why I ask if there are any revisions on the '83 wiring harness vs. my '81.