1973 Dodge D-200 Time to hang a new harness

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MIchele&Gladys

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Jun 11, 2018
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Location
Everson, Wa
Hi, Any recommendations on where to get a new wiring harness... poor old Gladys is starting to melt down and the circuit panels are fried. She has an early 90's 318 engine... not sure the year, (duh, should have written it down) but my research online would say a 5.2L 8 cyl. The guys at the local shop are researching too, but our last conversation had them pricing out yet another cobble, and I don't want to keep throwing $ into fixing fixes as old wire just melts somewhere else. Obviously, I am not a mechanic... but I still love my truck and would appreciate knowlegeable help... Also, if you have done this job before, how many hours can I expect it to take with a knowledgeable wire-guy?
 
Just my opinion; YMMV, of course, but I have several older Mopars and I like to repair their wiring harnesses, not buy new ones, because I feel my repairs make them better than new. New harnesses are greatly overpriced, IMHO. I carefully solder in new, heat-resistant wire of a larger gauge than the original wire. I replace all the wires, not just some of them. I even went to the expense of buying the correct wire colors & stripes so anybody working on the car in the future can easily refer to the FSM schematic. My repaired harnesses look pretty much original, except for the larger gauge wires. I know you probably won't want to buy the correct color wires, of course, because wire is very expensive these days. I probably have about $1K invested in special wire for my Mopars, but I have used it to rebuild 4 Mopar harnesses, so it's all good.
One more thing: on old Mopars, problems with the fuse box are much more common than actual problems with the wiring harness, but often the two are confused, so the harness gets blamed incorrectly. Check your fuse box for voltage drop.
 
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and check the bulkhead connectors through the firewall
but it back together with dialectric grease
often one of the spade terminal clamps is broken or bad solder job (if soldered and not jist crimped- I do not trust just crimps
do the amp gauge bypass and headlamp relay mods
eliminate high current through headlamp switch and ignition switch with relays
check all the grounds and clean
find the reason (high resistance) (alternator or other short of currant leak)
 
The biggest problem I have ever had with D-W trucks is the bulkhead connector, it seems like sooner or later the main hot wire from the alternator fries.
 
sireland67 said:
The biggest problem I have ever had with D-W trucks is the bulkhead connector, it seems like sooner or later the main hot wire from the alternator fries.
Click to expand...
I was gonna ask the OP what wire(s) are causing you grief? 1 or 2, or many of them?

Since you are near to the coast there in WA, are the wires corroded green inside of the insulation when you strip the wires back or look at connections? If so, then moisture has penetrated deep and you are better off with a new harness, IMHO. If that is not the case, and most of the crimp areas and the copper wire look clean, then making repairs to the few 'problem children' wires is better.
 
Don’t underestimate EBay. I found my complete engine harness for my 91 in case I wanted to put it back stock. Why would I do that!!!
 
Bill Crowell said:
Just my opinion; YMMV, of course, but I have several older Mopars and I like to repair their wiring harnesses, not buy new ones, because I feel my repairs make them better than new. New harnesses are greatly overpriced, IMHO. I carefully solder in new, heat-resistant wire of a larger gauge than the original wire. I replace all the wires, not just some of them. I even went to the expense of buying the correct wire colors & stripes so anybody working on the car in the future can easily refer to the FSM schematic. My repaired harnesses look pretty much original, except for the larger gauge wires. I know you probably won't want to buy the correct color wires, of course, because wire is very expensive these days. I probably have about $1K invested in special wire for my Mopars, but I have used it to rebuild 4 Mopar harnesses, so it's all good.
One more thing: on old Mopars, problems with the fuse box are much more common than actual problems with the wiring harness, but often the two are confused, so the harness gets blamed incorrectly. Check your fuse box for voltage drop.
Click to expand...
 
Thank you! Yes, the latest problem is a meltdown of the wiring connected to one of the fuse panels.. and the current plan is to use a hot-rod workaround panel and no replace the entire harness. I am a bit at the mercy of the technician doing the job, but he has a good reputation. I like the idea of larger wire!
 
dusted said:
Don’t underestimate EBay. I found my complete engine harness for my 91 in case I wanted to put it back stock. Why would I do that!!!
Click to expand...
wow... good for you... unfortunately, in earlier years, the connectors varied so much that pre-made harness's are usually trouble for the '73, the kept swapping out connectors so nothing matches, ignition different from lights, from alternator, etc.... and the connectors are not available either.
 
nm9stheham said:
I was gonna ask the OP what wire(s) are causing you grief? 1 or 2, or many of them?

Since you are near to the coast there in WA, are the wires corroded green inside of the insulation when you strip the wires back or look at connections? If so, then moisture has penetrated deep and you are better off with a new harness, IMHO. If that is not the case, and most of the crimp areas and the copper wire look clean, then making repairs to the few 'problem children' wires is better.
Click to expand...
Well, we caught the alternator wire before it fried, then ran it through the firewall so it would circumvent the vulnerable fuse panel.... after a recent bout of no blower, no wipers... they got them working and 10 minutes later, many other wires melted on the back of one of the front panels, (not in the glove box).... hence the expensive re-wire due to start on Monday
 
Thank you everyone for your help. I am going to have to relay on the local guy for now, and hope he knows what he's doing! It will be a bit spendy, but I am committed to the old girl... been throwing $ at her for the last 18 years and most of her innards & outers are good now. I am told she will be up and running again by next Wednesday!
 
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