Community
Message Forum
Photo Gallery
Event Calendar
Book Reviews
Bronco Wallpaper
Bronco FAQ
Link Back to CB!
Photo Gallery
Event Calendar
Book Reviews
Bronco Wallpaper
Bronco FAQ
Link Back to CB!
Buy / Sell
Bronco Tech
3 Arm Wiper Setup
Fix Motor Mount
Roll Cage Braces
Throttle Body 65mm
Wheel Alignment
Heat Riser Replacement
Vent Window Repair
Center Console Mount
Straighten Bumper
Ford 6R80 6 spd
More Tech...
Fix Motor Mount
Roll Cage Braces
Throttle Body 65mm
Wheel Alignment
Heat Riser Replacement
Vent Window Repair
Center Console Mount
Straighten Bumper
Ford 6R80 6 spd
More Tech...
-
Welcome to ClassicBroncos! - You are currently viewing the forums as a GUEST. To take advantage of all the site features, please take a moment to register. It's fast, simple and absolutely free. So please join our community today!If you have problems registering or can't log into your account, please contact Admin.
Wiring Harness
- Thread starter Ether
- Start date
broncoeddie1970
Jr. Member
Its in the future for me at some point for my 70. Wish you luck and if you go one, make sure you post stuff for the rest of us...
OPCJeff
Jr. Member
I would be cautious about doing that. Im sure the harness would be close enough to work especially if you can make adjustments if needed but the real issue is how long will it last. I dont think our harnesses wear out due to hard use as much as just age. The shielding gets old and brittle and even if that ones in good shape I'd be worried it would turn quick.
I put a Ron Francis in mine and so far its been great. I vote for aftermarket
I put a Ron Francis in mine and so far its been great. I vote for aftermarket
1971lubr
Sr. Member
Maybe it's just me, but if you're going to take the time to replace, why replace 47 year old wiring with 42 year old wiring?
Yep - what he said - not only that ; why keep a 5 circuit fuse box ?
I would be cautious about doing that. Im sure the harness would be close enough to work especially if you can make adjustments if needed but the real issue is how long will it last. I dont think our harnesses wear out due to hard use as much as just age. The shielding gets old and brittle and even if that ones in good shape I'd be worried it would turn quick.
I put a Ron Francis in mine and so far its been great. I vote for aftermarket
Let's be honest, things wear out, including wiring. Fuse technology has changed from the old glass buss fuses. The wiring is more complex with relay's and such, but the demands have changed too.
I would not rehab an old harness unless that was my only option or if I was doing a true and correct restoration.
If you are not going to make improvements to your Bronco, say with better lighting, better stereo, phone chargers, winch, and the like... Then you could leave it stock.
But who doesn't make changes and improvements?
I have done a number of Centech harnesses and I would recommend them. If you are comfortable with Wiring there are bigger/better kits you can use that provide more options. Aftermarket > vote.
Also - just say no to crimp connectors... Use proper soldering techniques and lined shrink tubing, with wire loom, proper gauge wire for your loads, fuses and relays.
Brent13
Sr. Member
Best fix I ever did was replace the harness. I had electrical problems, one after another. Went with the Painless, and no more electrical issues. Oh, my truck has issues, but not electrical!!!! I would not replace old wire with old wire, seems like a waste of a lot of work.
1971lubr
Sr. Member
Not trying to be a dick, but rewiring is a loooong process that comes with headaches. If you are going to spend 20 hours or so of your time doing it, do it with new wire and and an upgraded system. Sure, there are 45 year old trucks out there running original wiring with no issues, but they are rare. Broncos are really finicky electrical beasts. If you are having problems and need to replace, old wiring harnesses are just asking for more headaches in the long run. Get new aftermarket.
I did mine once. I don't ever want to do it again. I'd be hating life if I had spent that much time on a used harness only to rip it out and do it again with new.
Skiddy
Bronco Guru
- Joined
- Oct 8, 2003
- Messages
- 11,557
all of the aftermarket harness's are pretty good, each has their pluses' and price tag. just use your old harness as a go by
I think centech is the best for the price and painless the best
JaxLax
Bronco Guru
I'm not sure off the top of my head, but different years had different locations for the duraspark module (some passenger fender, some driver fender) and that meant the wires were loomed different. And some years had a group of engine wires through a hole in the center.
Make sure that your setup matches or you're going to be adding/cutting/moving/etc parts and pieces to fit the harness. And depending on the looming it could be a beast.
redwards69
Sr. Member
Centech. Straight forward, well labeled.
- Joined
- Nov 3, 2003
- Messages
- 47,550
I'm with the others in their recommending new (and that's what I sell too of course) but to your original question, there is almost nothing in common between a '70 and '75 Bronco harness. They made the major change between your year and the '71 model year, so almost nothing is routed even remotely the same.
The color codes match about 99%, but the location of components and the routing is about 85% different.
The ONLY way to refurb a '66-'70 wiring harness then, is with another one of the same vintage or new. A used '75 in good shape would actually be a nice upgrade in some areas from your '70, but just like the aftermarket ones, that means making a lot of changes.
Good luck no matter which way you go. You could contact American Autowire to see if their OE replacement division has an original EB harness yet, but I don't remember seeing one listed. I have not called them on it however, as most prefer to upgrade over original except for someone doing a very religious restoration.
Along the lines of restoration, even though the Painless is, like the others, in no way similar to your '70 harness, it's the only one that uses the original Ford wiring colors. All the others use the now-generic GM color codes. Not a big deal from a wire tracing standpoint, as they are all clearly marked as was said.
I will say that the less expensive Centech has the easiest to read wording from the ones I've seen. With Painless having the least easy to read, but with the proper matching color codes meaning that all wiring diagrams you might have are easy to work with.
Have fun!
Paul
The color codes match about 99%, but the location of components and the routing is about 85% different.
The ONLY way to refurb a '66-'70 wiring harness then, is with another one of the same vintage or new. A used '75 in good shape would actually be a nice upgrade in some areas from your '70, but just like the aftermarket ones, that means making a lot of changes.
Good luck no matter which way you go. You could contact American Autowire to see if their OE replacement division has an original EB harness yet, but I don't remember seeing one listed. I have not called them on it however, as most prefer to upgrade over original except for someone doing a very religious restoration.
Along the lines of restoration, even though the Painless is, like the others, in no way similar to your '70 harness, it's the only one that uses the original Ford wiring colors. All the others use the now-generic GM color codes. Not a big deal from a wire tracing standpoint, as they are all clearly marked as was said.
I will say that the less expensive Centech has the easiest to read wording from the ones I've seen. With Painless having the least easy to read, but with the proper matching color codes meaning that all wiring diagrams you might have are easy to work with.
Have fun!
Paul
JaxLax
Bronco Guru
I did a Ron Francis kit years ago since I had moved stuff all over and wanted a kit that was UNLOOMED.
Checked their site and it's $475 which is cheaper than Centech and a third of the Painless.
- Joined
- Nov 3, 2003
- Messages
- 47,550
Lots of things that can be carefully patched to get you by in a pinch. And usually (on EB's anyway) plenty of PO "customizations" that can be removed and patched to give your harness a little more life.
Of course, if the wires themselves are dry and brittle then that longer life won't be that long most likely.
This definitely gives you more time to research which harness will be the best for you. Or if you want to tackle a different stock swap after all. Some will still have wiring in good shape even after all these years. But more often than not, it's beyond the point of no return where you'd want to spend the time and effort to put an old one back in.
Let us know what you do when you get to that point.
Paul
Of course, if the wires themselves are dry and brittle then that longer life won't be that long most likely.
This definitely gives you more time to research which harness will be the best for you. Or if you want to tackle a different stock swap after all. Some will still have wiring in good shape even after all these years. But more often than not, it's beyond the point of no return where you'd want to spend the time and effort to put an old one back in.
Let us know what you do when you get to that point.
Paul
OPCJeff
Jr. Member
check out the link on my signature and you can see what I went through to put the Ron Francis wiring harness in mine. I had a centech in it before which worked fine but didnt leave any options for upgrades like lighting etc. so I had to splice into the main harness which ultimately left a rats nest just like the stock harness. The other thing I didnt enjoy and worked around was that they use some cheezy ignition switch that they say "is better" than stock. I dont know maybe they changed that since I had mine but there was no way I was gonna go from an early ford key to a goofy tractor key. And I know maybe that shouldnt matter but for me I like my old keys that represent the car im driving. We all have our issues right ?
But anyways check out my thread and see what you'll be getting into. Its not hard work but certainly takes some time if you want it nice in the end. Well worth going aftermarket and well worth getting a harness that has some extra ports to add extra things like lights or winch or whatever. And im sure there are other harnesses that offer that besides Ron Francis. They are just the ones I chose because I've had good luck with them. Dont forget to let us know what you end up with Good luck!
But anyways check out my thread and see what you'll be getting into. Its not hard work but certainly takes some time if you want it nice in the end. Well worth going aftermarket and well worth getting a harness that has some extra ports to add extra things like lights or winch or whatever. And im sure there are other harnesses that offer that besides Ron Francis. They are just the ones I chose because I've had good luck with them. Dont forget to let us know what you end up with Good luck!
Borinqua Bronco
Jr. Member
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2016
- Messages
- 64
The guys at TBP told me that they have been using Centech for years and have zero complaints. Painless is a great product but IMO unless you are running a seriously one-off rig with all kinds of different aftermarket needs (Winch, Lg Stereo, air comp, and more and more) Painless may not be worth the $$.
