visa_broke

I've messed around with cars in the past rewiring them, swapping out looms and adding in looms for different functions.

I'm now getting to the point that I want to get more in depth with it adding in options to a car that never came with them and generally making a very well specced up car.

My question is, is there any good books or web pages to have a read up on how to read/understand wiring diagrams rather than just getting lucky adding in small looms to the main car looms like i've been doing.

Main thing is I just don't want to mess up anything and cause a fire

rooos

i got some pdf sample, before you buy anything...

they way too big to be sent by e-mail.
i know there's a way to, but i need to find out a way to send you them...
for such things, i'm not bill gates, sorry

today i haven't enough time, but in the next days i will.

if you want, pm message me an e-mail address i could use, within this week you'll have something...

visa_broke

pm sent

rooos

e-mail sent. i hope everything work correctly..

natehall

iTrader: (2)

First thing I would look at, is calculating the load required on the wire and guageing it appropriately and ensuring relevant load carrying wire is protected with fuses. Remembering the system may be a 12V system but most of it operates at 14.5 volts when the engine is on.

Miscalculated wiring guages from experience is the biggest cause of smoking wire and potential fires.

bgreywolf

Besides calculating the amp load and sizing the wire and fuses appropriately, HP and Haynes both sell decent books for general electrical and they should be available cheaply, used. I like books on marine electronics, because they are even more stringent than automotive (harsher environment).
A major difference between yachts and autos, though, is that the chassis of the auto is used as the ground wire, but the boat requires a second wire as the path back to the battery/alternator. That's minor.

As far as adding circuits, I like to get the factory wiring diagram for whatever I'm adding in, or something similar, to see how and why the factory wired it.

I also get full wire looms from scrap cars. That gives me different wire colors to play with (nothing worse than getting under the instrument panel and every wire is red, with a wire nut and tape all over the ends in a big snarly mess).

If you really want to get good at wiring, start by rewiring a 1979 MGB. :P

markk

iTrader: (2)

As said learn the fundamentals, massive lack of autoelectricians in the sector.

Cosnada

iTrader: (2)

This is the same for me. I know I have the ability to be able to make a very good wiring loom say for my cossie to replace the stock item.
What I would love to do is be able to rewire a vehicle - not with a new oem loom but to make it all myself.
What I get stuck on is main feeds to auxiliary circuits such as starting, charging, lights etc etc. The questions I have are very fundamental such as do all wires have to go through a fuse 1st? Is that before a switch or relay? Wire ratings for loads? How many fuses/relays do i need? What can you mix on a circuit? Can you feed multiple circuits from one trigger? What does a charging system and a starter system look like and how do they integrate into the vehicle?
If I knew what an auto electrician knew I would be making my own looms for my track car deffo but lack of knowledge puts me off.

trigger-

I have done quite a bit of car electrics myself, the way I look at it is if you are not sure then fuse it apart from the obvious like starters, starter system is very simple, heavy duty main cable from battery and a trigger wire from ignition switch which activates starter solenoid when ignition switch is in position 3 (start)

bgreywolf

One of the nice things Ford have done are their EVTM (Electrical/Vacuum Troubleshooting Manual) series. They put each circuit on a single page (or at least, over several pages, but without all the other vehicle wiring to confuse that one circuit).

Any time I make a circuit, whether it's changing a radio or rewiring something on the ship I work on, I draw the circuit out. That lets me see what I'm doing, it lets me see if the existing fuses will protect the circuit, or if I need to add some protection. It lets me see how much wire I'll need, what connectors, and so forth. Most importantly, it lets me see if I'm about to do something dumb like wiring power direct to ground or the like (and when you have 2-3 switches and relays in a single circuit, it can be easier to do something like that than you might think). It's also handy when you (or your buddy) has to figure out what you did 6 months later.

When designing a new circuit, I like to look at the old circuit, and ask why I'm changing it: new features? A flaw in the original? Perfectly good, but changing the old wires for ones that aren't soaked in oil and dirt? If there isn't an existing circuit (say, adding an alarm, or changing from carbs to injection, or maybe in my case an emergency stop button for a piece of deck equipment) then I look at similar circuits on other machines.
It's a good check to make sure you're not forgetting something, or realize that you could add a feature with very little extra work. But I keep coming back to the EVTMs, because the circuits are so easy to follow and learn from--once you've got the basics (again, I like the Haynes and HP, or various yacht manuals for that).
I've probably got 50 EVTMs on my bookshelf, next to all the ship and yacht wiring stuff.

Colin_P

Just don't go licking any bare ends !

rooos

some very good tip, bgreywolf... thanks for those!


however i still got those pdf samples...

i'd say both beginner and advanced technicians might find 'em interesting.

if anybody wants to see 'em, before buy anything, just pm me an e-mail address i can use...

bgreywolf

I don't know what's in the pdfs, but I'd guess they talk about the basics like Ohm's law (voltage=amperage*resistance), how to size wire and fuses, and how to connect the pieces together. If so, I'd hope you get a lot of interest!