Im getting to the point of almost done stripping, But, ......All my wireing works fr being 40 yrs old. My question is should I Re-Wire my car. If it works then it should be fine right?Those painless wireing kits arn't cheap and Painless still seems painful but with less pain.Anyway If any would comment or has done this is it worth it?, How much time does this project take?
On the -Painintheass- scale 1-10? Thanks in advance!

 

I have recently replaced the underdash wiring and engine compartment wiring with stock reproduction replacements. (not the Painless system) The process was not as bad as I expected, and taking my time, it went rather well. The Painless wire systems definetly provide a better wiring system over stock, especially if you add several of today's upgrades and the additional fuses. I just didn't like the cost.

My theory on 40 year old wiring: The cost or replacing the wire harnesses was worth the piece of mind, reliability, fire "avoidance", potential towing expense, and the unknown number of hands involved in splices, repairs, etc., that could impact my ride.

 

I was going to recommend replacing the wiring if you were doing a total strip down. I know the insulation on some of my wiring looks a bit suspect...

But then I realized I have no idea what the total cost of replacement wires would be. How much are we talking about for a complete job? Some of the pieces are pretty pricey.

I guess at the very least, you should make a close inspection to be sure the connectors are still doing their job and that you have no exposed conductors.

 

if i were to replace the wiring i def would upgrade and use alot of realys and larger gauge wire and i was thinkin of going to the junk yard and getting a fuse box out of a newer car and getting rid of my old one and wiring that one cause it will
A) have more circuits
B) handle more power
C) mount it in a better place
D) its cheaper than Painless

 

i got my kit from EZ2Wire. Its the next best thing to painless. I prolly would have gone with painless cuz then its all compatible, I just need to connect it all, but painless didnt yet make a kit for 69, and still doesnt if im correct. Eitherway, i like my kit, comes with just about everything you need, just have to do some splicing and mount the fuse panel. All the wires are labeled real nice and pretty. Only costs like 160 or so. Here are the only problems I've had so far:

Need to find the connecters for all dash controls: Gauges, Steering Column, Lights, Ignition, Wiper, Etc (Good news, you have your old wiring harness which you can just cut these things off of and splice to the new harness.)
Also, the starter solenoid isnt necessarily a gift to wire, but they give you a nice walktrough on what goes where.
The harness is basically wired for a GM, so the ignition has to be changed and the Light dimmer will have to swapped.

This has been real nice so far to me, I mounted the panel right where the old one would go with a few modifications. For my wiring connecters, I just borrowed the ones from my parts car. I just dont trust my 40yr old harness which already had missing parts...

 

Unless you really feel like spending money, I wouldn't jump to ordering a kit. You need to assess your wiring and go from there. If it's all pretty shot, go painless. If not just go through the harness with a schematic and fix any broken, cracked, or grounded wires. If you know basic electrical it isn't soo bad. Just make sure you use right gauge wiring. Also, always solder and shrink wrap over splices; otherwise, you could end up with higher resistance/ corrosion in line resulting in high amperage. For example in mine I thought I was just gunna have to rewire the entire car until I got into it. The engine harness was not bad at all. I fixed a few wires and was done. Under the dash, though, is a different story. I will be ordering a factory replacement kit for under the dash. Painless is nice but you can do it all yourself, just take your time. If you have questions ask, and good luck.

 

btw, u don't need a late model fuse box for more circuits or power. Just use inline fuses for the extra circuits and power has nothing to do with it. The only advantage, in my eyes, of a late model box is the newer fuses.

 

thats what i meant so you don't have all these inline fuses around

 

yea that's nice, just depends on how many extra circuit u r runin. 4 me, my only extra circuit is electric fan so I can deal with 1 inline

 

I replaced the harness that runs from under the dash to the tail. I first priced Painless, then the replacement harness from Texas Mustang. The harness I got from Texas Mustang was exactly like the original harness at about half the cost of Painless, and everything just snapped together. That would be another alternative you might want to consider.