Re-Wiring 1975 Plymouth Duster
There's a West Marine where a wide variety of gages and insulation color wire can be purchased by the foot.
Figure out what it needed.
One approach, that may be appropriate is to remove the harness and lay it out on a plywood.
1975 wiring has some unique circuit arrangements.
An original option that is critical to know is whether the car was originally equiped with a defrost grid for the rear window. Those cars came with a heavy duty alternator and battery wiring arrangement. One clue will be the rear window itself and/or the switch to turn it on. The other clue will be a grommet in the firewall with some large wires.
A1 is Battery feed.
R6 is alternator feed.
With the key off, everything connected to the battery positive is still hot. Take your finger and trace the wire route from the battery positive. The ammeter is just another section of the line. Nothing magical happens there, its two studs and a big metal plate that electricity can flow through in either direction. The color change is so the hookup is correctly done. That way the needle will point the correct way when the battery is discharging or charging.
The feed to the headlight switch B1 terminal is direct from the welded junction. It's always hot when the battery is connected.
The feed to the headlight switch B2 terminal is through the the fuse box. It too is always hot, but is fused.
J1 is the power feed to the key switch. If the large wire (red with white stripe) to the column connector is hot, then there ought to be power to the headlights, brake lights and dome lights.
Some '75 model year cars still got the '74 seatbelt interlock.
Hopefully your does not have that, but if it does, then you'll have to deal with it.
Send me a PM. You're not that far away and I can give you a hand getting started.
There's a West Marine where a wide variety of gages and insulation color wire can be purchased by the foot.
Do NOT cut.
Figure out what it needed.
One approach, that may be appropriate is to remove the harness and lay it out on a plywood.
1975 wiring has some unique circuit arrangements.
An original option that is critical to know is whether the car was originally equiped with a defrost grid for the rear window. Those cars came with a heavy duty alternator and battery wiring arrangement. One clue will be the rear window itself and/or the switch to turn it on. The other clue will be a grommet in the firewall with some large wires.
Here's the scheme for the main power feeds.
A1 is Battery feed.
R6 is alternator feed.
With the key off, everything connected to the battery positive is still hot. Take your finger and trace the wire route from the battery positive. The ammeter is just another section of the line. Nothing magical happens there, its two studs and a big metal plate that electricity can flow through in either direction. The color change is so the hookup is correctly done. That way the needle will point the correct way when the battery is discharging or charging.
The feed to the headlight switch B1 terminal is direct from the welded junction. It's always hot when the battery is connected.
The feed to the headlight switch B2 terminal is through the the fuse box. It too is always hot, but is fused.
J1 is the power feed to the key switch. If the large wire (red with white stripe) to the column connector is hot, then there ought to be power to the headlights, brake lights and dome lights.
Some '75 model year cars still got the '74 seatbelt interlock.
Hopefully your does not have that, but if it does, then you'll have to deal with it.
