Wiring loom-help

[BusaNostra]

My engine conversion hit a snag. The engine installation is ok but the wiring

is fluky. If you have a Westfield, kindly check the ground wire connections for me please.

 

Everytime I turn switches I get different results. Someone suggested that my problem is an Earth fault more than a switch fault, a dody earth connection will cause some circuits to operate by back feeding through others, causing odd side effects. Its true that the ground wire also getting power (back feeding) although I'm not blowing fuses.

Due to the design of the Westfield loom the majority of dash and sensors are fed by a single fuse, a backfeed across all of these would not blow the fuse as the total supply is the same

 

 

The loom (earth) negative wires, which I think needs to be attached to the chassis. However, I can't find a ground wires from the loom that supposed to attach to the chassis. I can't reach & can't see the tunnel, the transmission is on the way. I only saw one black wire attach to the chassis behind the gas tank area.

Perhaps this is not enough. Westfield said, negative wires from the dash loom is attached in three places. Behind the engine (tunnel-crossmember), in the cockpit and at the rear (gas tank area).

 

I found a bunch of black wires Westfield bundled but not attach to the chassis. I'm thinking putting a connector at the end and attach these wires to the ground. I think this is my problem. No earth wires from the loom attach to the ground.

Any idea?

 

Thanks people

 

 

 

[JohnCh]

I'll try to look at my car, but going from memory, the loom attaches to the chassis in two places:

• The tail lights portion of the loom along with the fuel pump ground to the rear of the chassis near the fuel tank,

• The loom, battery, ECU, and engine ground to a stud welded to the top chassis tube where the transmission tunnel opens into the engine bay.

 

I had a really funky issue with my flasher circuit after the rebuild that turned out to be a bad rear ground wire. Turn on the hazards and the fuel pump would cycle on/off and the rear running lights would flash rather than the rear turn signals. Unplug a rear turn signal bulb, and the pump & tail lights would stop flashing and the remaining rear turn signal would work normally. Turn on the headlights or hit the brakes and a bunch of other weird stuff would happen. :banghead:

 

After much head scratching and trouble shooting, I finally ran a direct ground from the battery to the rear lights and the problem vanished. The permanent fix was as simple as replacing the ground wire from the tail light assembly. I hate electrical problems!

 

-John

 

[BusaNostra]

John, Thanks....

Yes! that's exactly what's happening. I got more funky results probably

because of no ground from the loom connected to the chassis.

 

"• The loom, battery, ECU, and engine ground to a stud welded to the top chassis tube where the transmission tunnel opens into the engine bay."

 

I remember this hook-up. I changed the engine to Honda S2000, I modified the crossmember and deleted the stud you mentioned. Now I can't find the black wires (bunch of ground wires) that supposed to connect to the stud. The Honda S2000 has a bulky transmission and occupied the tunnel. tHERE IS NO ROOM even using a mirror. I might have tuck the ground wires up using a tie wrap.

 

Do me a favor, at the bottom of the brake fluid reservoir, there is a chassis brace and wire bundle. On that bundle, there are approx. 6 black wires sticking out bundled together but not connected to the ground.

Since I can't reach or find the original ground wires from the stud, I'm thinking of using that 6 black wires to be the replacement. I'm sure its the same wires.

I appreciate your help.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[JohnCh]

My loom has been modified quite a bit, but I'll see how many black wires come from the main loom to the grounding stud. As I recall the factory loom is conventional and all black wires are grounds, so grounding those 6 wires to see if that fixes things should be pretty safe.

 

-John

[BusaNostra]

My loom has been modified quite a bit, but I'll see how many black wires come from the main loom to the grounding stud. As I recall the factory loom is conventional and all black wires are grounds, so grounding those 6 wires to see if that fixes things should be pretty safe.

 

-John

 

 

Thanks John---the wires I mentioned are located below the brace i described. Kindly check is for me if those are safe to be

fitted to the ground. Thanks

[JohnCh]

I forgot to check last night, but I am certain that I don't have the wires you describe in that area. When I rebuilt my car, I modified the loom to eliminate unused wires and rerouted everything to work with the Duratec installation (car was originally fit with a crossflow). The only wires now in that area either go to the brake fluid sensor or the battery which is mounted in a non-standard position at the bottom of the chassis directly below the brake & clutch master cylinders.

 

Have you checked those wires with a multimeter to see if they are grounded at the other end, have continuity between them, or carry voltage when everything is switched on?

 

-John

[BusaNostra]

Finally found the problem. Yes, its the stupid ground. I directed all my black wires to the negative battery post and all my ills are gone!

What a shame! I deleted my additional wiring just to solve the problem. I am

using a Dash2 by Race Technology. I have to continue before the cold weather hits New England.

Wiring problem makes a young man old and an old man very, very old.

 

Thanks