Chewed wiring

[AnotherDave]

It looks as though mice have chewed through the wiring of the '84 LX that I bought. There is a wiring harness from the ignition coil to the distributor that is bare and corroded where the wires enter the connector, so it's too short to splice. Are these harnesses available from Ford or aftermarket, or should I check the wreckers?

[sowaxeman]

This may just be time and poor storage atmosphere causing the the outer insulation to become brittle and fall apart....although it could be mice too.

My '85 GT Vert had the same issue on the ignition module where the main wire harness connnected in. I removed the connector and held it in place up in the air where easy to work on. I then took a small piece of GOOD electrical tape (3M) of about .5 inch long and wrapped each wire individually. Do this on each wire as long as it requires to cover all the bare copper...you are basically just wrapping/insulation each wire. Then when I was done I did a full wrap of the entire wire bundle....mine was bad for about 2-3 inches as I recall. Then I put a nice black piece of plastic loom over the repaired area. Not stock or concours correct by any means, but safe and keeps the car running.

There are people out there make re-production wire harnesses for the '85 cars (on ebay), I'm sure they do they '84's as well. As I recall they seem to go for about $175

[JACook]

The ignition box and coil connector pigtails are available new. Just splice them
in back up inside the black tubing. I like to cut the short barrel portion off of a
crimp-on ring lug, then put each stripped wire end in the opposite ends of the
barrel, and solder. Cover with a bit of shrink tube, and it's pure gold.

I just recently went through the wiring on my '85 vert, and replaced all the wire
ends that were losing their insulation. For connectors where pigtails are not
available, I bought rolls of automotive wire in similar colors to the originals, then
removed the pins from the connectors and soldered/shrink-tubed the connector
pins to the new wire, creating my own pigtails. Other than the shrink tube, and
the missing stripes, it looks factory.

If you bend open the strain relief tabs, on the connector pin, you can break off
the old wire right at the crimp. Then strip the end of the new wire about 3/16"
and solder over the top of the crimp. Then use a crimp tool to re-fold the strain
relief tabs. The solder will flow better if you thoroughly clean the crimp area.
I also like to let the pins soak in white vinegar for a few minutes.

New convolute tube also cleans things up nicely. I like to use 1/2" bands of shrink
tube at each end of the convolute tube, to close it off. Works better/lasts longer
than electrical tape.

[AnotherDave]

Thanks guys. I'll have another look at it when I get a minute and decide where to go from there.

[GTJerry]

New convolute tube also cleans things up nicely. I like to use 1/2" bands of shrink
tube at each end of the convolute tube, to close it off. Works better/lasts longer
than electrical tape.

That's a cool idea. I'm going to remember that one.

Jerry

[LTDLX]

its a pain but I have released the prong from the connector and solder new wire onto the prong and the push the prong back into the connector

[AnotherDave]

Got a better look at the wiring today. As it turns out the wear is from age and not the mouse that I hear every darn night in my ceiling. There are a number of wires that are bare and have brittle insulation. The EVAP can hose is broken also since it was so hard and dry. Looks like a good project to keep me out of trouble and in debt.

[85stanggt]

The wiring on these cars wasn't the best...I keep a good tube of silicone on hand for a quick seal and fix.