'70 Dart Wiring Mess

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Buckeye440

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Hey guys, new member here. Just bought a '70 Dart that's got a 440 jammed in her. Needless to say it's been raced but is still plenty drivable on the street.... IF it weren't for these dang electrical gremlins! :banghead: Basically nothing that isn't related to the engine running works, not even the aftermarket gauges except for the voltmeter. In addition, I can put a fully charged battery in it, let it sit for a few days and it'll be deader than a doorknob. Any ideas that could make my life easier in trying to find the drain, and/or tips to make everything work again?? Thanks in advance!
 
Personally, I would rewire it with either OEM for the Pnp ease, or go to a Painless or other company and do it better then OEM. But that's partially cause I don't know much at all about the wiring on these cars.
 
To find a drain, BUT FIRST!!! Arm yourself "in general" electrically. I don't know what you have but here is what you NEED to have

1...Parts store 12V test lamp


2...Some sort of multimeter

3...A FACTORY shop manual. No excuses. You can download them, free over at MyMopar. Several of those came from guys on THIS site

4...In addition, a "heavy wattage" test lamp. This is very handy for certain jobs. use something like an old stop / tail lamp socket, with an 1157 bulb. You an wire this a number of ways to make it more or less wattage

5...A parts store in line spark tester. If the thing quits you out "there" these are very useful, and cheap

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Disconnect the battery ground cable, and wire your 12V test lamp in series. This is best in subdued lighting. Does it light? Go round and make sure everything is off. Trunk/ hood / dome / glovebox lamp, radio, aftermarket accessories.

Next start removing fuses, one at a time. Look for a dimming of the lamp, or "goes out."

When the lamp is very very dim, or goes out, get your multimeter and substitute it for the lamp BE CARE FUL. A multimeter is sometimes not, or not very well protected against over-current when measuring current / amperage. ALWAYS start with the highest amperage scale and work down, and don't use it at all until you get the test lamp down to a "dim" level

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Don't forget, this can also be a battery going bad. "New" does not mean "good."
 
If it is draining the battery that fast, you might have a short ready to catch it on fire. It isn't hard to rewire the engine bay "engine harness". You can leave the "lamp harness" and "wiper harness" for later.
 
So realistically should I just check everything attached to the engine to check for the drain? I should also add that a few of the gauges are wired PARTIALLY... I have no idea what the person who did, or didn't for that matter, was thinking... :violent1:
 
Well no, that's not what I said. Start with the easy stuff. Remove fuses. Disconnect the alternator.
 
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