Smoked my Dart's wiring harness...now what?

[340_833 dart]

This is on my '73 Dart Sport 340.

I hate electrical problems.

Anyway, I accidentally grounded my alternator when my wife was cranking the engine while I was checking for spark.

I hate electrical problems.

The blue field wire on the alternator smoked from the alternator to the junction block on the firewall and took out some other wires with it.

I hate electrical problems.

So, I figure I need to go ahead and replace the engine harness. Who is a good source for a replacement?

Have I mentioned how bad I hate electrical problems?

Thanks.

 

[cudajim]

This is on my '73 Dart Sport 340.

I hate electrical problems.

Anyway, I accidentally grounded my alternator when my wife was cranking the engine while I was checking for spark.

I hate electrical problems.

The blue field wire on the alternator smoked from the alternator to the junction block on the firewall and took out some other wires with it.

I hate electrical problems.

So, I figure I need to go ahead and replace the engine harness. Who is a good source for a replacement?

Have I mentioned how bad I hate electrical problems?

Thanks.

You probably did not fry the whole harness. Try unwrapping it from the alternator back to the firewall. You'll most likely find only one or two wires in bad shape. Simply replace them with new wires using same color and gauge. Do a good job of splicing and soldering them to the existing wires and use plenty of shrink wrap tubing then wrap the whole thing with new electrical tape. It's a whole lot cheaper than buying a new harness. Best of luck to you.

 

[Mad Dart]

I grounded out the positive side of a battery on an old truck I had. Battery cam loose and hopped up on the edge of the tray then the positive side hit the hood. SMOKED ALOT OF WIRES IN THE HARNESS. I called my wife and she brought my tools out along with wire, tape etc. Pulled apart the harness and fixed the truck on the side of the road. It took me about 3 hours but it fired right back up. Do a clean job and you will never know it happened.

 

[340_833 dart]

I took the alternator to O'Reilly this afternoon to have it checked. The rectifier is bad.
First, I cleaned up the wiring, then I took the alternator off my '71 Dart and put it on the '73. The '73 fired right up.
O'Reilly has an OE replacement 78 amp alternator for $55. They also have a 140 amp replacement for $105.
All the heavy draw stuff (2 dual speed electric fans, the headlights and fuel pump) are on separate relays. I bypassed the ammeter.
The 78 amp unit like I have now is not enough for the fans and headlights. But, I'm afraid the 140 will be too much. Will it fry my wires?

 

[cudajim]

I took the alternator to O'Reilly this afternoon to have it checked. The rectifier is bad.
First, I cleaned up the wiring, then I took the alternator off my '71 Dart and put it on the '73. The '73 fired right up.
O'Reilly has an OE replacement 78 amp alternator for $55. They also have a 140 amp replacement for $105.
All the heavy draw stuff (2 dual speed electric fans, the headlights and fuel pump) are on separate relays. I bypassed the ammeter.
The 78 amp unit like I have now is not enough for the fans and headlights. But, I'm afraid the 140 will be too much. Will it fry my wires?

You ask if you will fry your wires. It all depends on how much current you are drawing and where you are drawing from. If your heavy current flow is through your relays and the relays are drawing current close to the battery then you are probably ok. You may want to temporarily put an ammeter in series with your accessories to see how much current they actually pull when they're on. Add them all up and that will be your total current draw. What you're really looking for is any kind of a voltage drop from one end of your source to your load. If you do have a voltage drop on any circuit then your wire resistance is too high. The fix is either to shorten the path via relays or use a bigger wire. Look up basis Ohms law... V=IxR.

 

[340_833 dart]

After fixing all the wiring, I ended up just getting another 78 amp alternator from O'Reilly. That 114 amp unit they have listed for my car would come nowhere close to fitting with serious fab work. It is HUGE.
I figure as long as I don't drive at night, the alternator will keep up with the electric fans.