I know I shoudnt have but I already did so its too late

[Terry Young]

If you are thinking about fixing up the old car by buying a newer one and taking all the parts out and swapping them, don't. I took my 76 911 with an engine that was blowing oil apart. bought an 83 with a super engine (compared to mine) great exhaust, new struts, shocks, etc etc. and decided to just use everything off of it. I took the 83 apart the minute I got it which was my first mistake. I did take pictures but they are not as good as I thought they were. I am missing the brackets for module front and back that I should have cut off the other car. I also decided to change the wiring harness. This is an impossible feat, all those wires wont go through the little hole down through he center tube. So I had an idea. Mistake number 2. I cut the harness where it goes into the body and just enters the tube. Now I had to solder a ton of wires back together after I pulled the 2 halves together. I still haven't figured out where all the wires go too yet. 88% yes, 100% may take a while. The last mistake (so Far) is to not take my old 76 all the way apart then finding I need the ends of the torsion bar housings because mine are rusted away. So I would like to get this finished in say 5 months, any suggestions out there.
Terry

[billroth]

Buy another car?

[mtnfir]

dude, tellin you that you're effed would be pointless...all I can say is good luck.

[rnln]

OMG... I wanted to take my fancy after market alarm off but I affraid this will hapen, so it's still in my car. Do you still want to hear my opinion?

[equality72521]

Oh my

[JohnJL]

Start over and do it right.

1. Strip down the 76 all the way to metal and have it dipped/stripped, repaired and painted properly.

2. Start over on the electrical with an aftermarket wiring harness or spools of high-quality wire. Make a wiring diagram as you go. If you care about servicability and durability, replace the fuse/relay panel with a modern blade unit. If your going for originality then clean up one of yours very well and replace every relay/fuse.

[Moses]

Originally Posted by Terry Young

... any suggestions out there?

Ebay?

[kidrock]

Looks like a 747 vomited

[Flat6pac]

I dont understand the motive, reason, you had something that ran and now you have 2 that dont and probably wont in the near future
Bruce

[dad911]

Don't get discouraged. 1 step at a time.

You know how it came a part. Lots of people do engine upgrades in early cars. Try to get the early car back together, with the engine upgrade. Lots of info here, ask specific questions each step of the way.

Wiring diagrams are here:http://www.pelicanparts.com/911/911_Parts/911_electrical_diagrams.htm

[Terry Young]

Okey guys. So this is my project. The one shown has 2 wiring harnesses in it. Not as bad with one. Most of the wires are now in place but I really need to find a few more on the tach and the Defroster and driving light switches. This is my retirement car. I bought it in europe, drove it all over the place and love the way it drove and handled on the road. It has saved my rear more than once so it is going to be fixed one way or the other. It just hard being 63 and I find myself getting frustrated at not being able to do the stuff like I did when I was in my 20s. Also I dont have a fancy garage but I do have a lot of tools. I wanted to have it done in 6 months originally but that probably won't happen. I do enjoy working on cars. good thing. If someone has any picture or know what color code go on which connectors on the switches and the tachometer, I would be eternally grateful to have them. Love the replies. Anyone want pictures, I have a million.

[kidrock]

Terry,

you have a fantastic attitude...the type of attitude it takes to successfully take on such a project. I wish you the best of luck in your venture, it sounds like you really love the car.

I'm no expert, for sure. But if I were to take on such a project, I would start completely fresh. By that I mean, tear out EVERYTHING and get yourself a brand new harness. Start from there. Nothing feels better than the confidence you have that your entire electrical system is brand-spanking new...especially in these babies.

[equality72521]

Terry, you have yourself a mess there but this is the group that can help you solve it. Post pics of one piece at a time and we can help isolate what each section is. There is no better resource than the Pelican boards.

[Terry Young]

I thought about wiring it myself but there is a lot to wire. the 83 harness is in good shape. Only it has more wires that the 76 had. I am using the electricss for the doors, the air conditioning even though I had to fabricate some metal parts that were previously made of plastic. I have the air unit in place in the front storage area. still have to tie the lines down. The newer car also had the fan operated oil cooler which i put on. Had to do a little straightening on it. though. I thought about going to a Late model BMW fuze panel but it is also a lot of work and I want to cut time to do it down. I have relatives in Oklahoma that I havent seen in 50 years and when the car is done. I'm gone. The wife has said its fine with her, she thinks I should. I was in the service when I bought the car in Dusseldorf. It was blowing oil so bad that it really smoked. I was going to rebuild the engine but places wanted 7000 to 9000 just to rebuild my old engine. I was going to hop it up a little but Ca passed a new law saying all 76 and newer vehicles require smog forever. I waited over 14 years for 2006 to get the car old enough not to need it then they got me. So I bought the other car for less than the price of the rebuild. Had nice air, new exhaust, new struts, new tires and like new rims, I have some seats if anyone wants to buy them. I like mine better. So I got a ton of parts. Now, I found that the torsion tube on one side is rusted through. May have and easy fix though. The caps are the same size so I am going to get another set, cut the top and bottom off and weld it in. I hope to be able to show updates on progress as I go. Should know a lot more about the car by the time I get it finished.

[911pcars]

kidrock (Stone) is giving you some wise, long-term advice. Purchase a new harness. Second best; a used harness but in one piece as opposed to the two-piece harness you now have. I'd bite the bullet.

In addition, order a wiring diagram for your car, a big version you can tape to your workshop wall.

Do not attempt to wire from scratch unless you can duplicate the factory color codes and/or document your custom, from-scratch electrical system like this:



Sherwood

[snbush67]

Welcome to the forum here is a thread;

Cracked torsion bar tube.

You can use the search function to find a lot about projects that others have done. Just click the search button, advanced and type in a few key words about Torsion tube repair and you will hit a gold mine.

Aloha,

Shane

[Terry Young]

Stone, where can I get the large wiring chart also do they have any that shows how the wires are actually routed? I hooked a battery to the car and checked out a lot of the wiring. wipers worked, blinkers seemed to be working I think the wiring is not an issue other that the routing and exactly which spot to attach to on the gauges and switches. I took tons of pictures but still found I didn';t get them good enough to show every wire. The diragrams I was looking at only showed wires going to the switches and such but not exactly where they hook up on the swich. The diagram you show look like it might show the actual hookup tot he gauges and switches. If it does, it would probably solve my problems.

[rnln]

That looks simple.

Originally Posted by 911pcars

kidrock (Stone) is giving you some wise, long-term advice. Purchase a new harness. Second best; a used harness but in one piece as opposed to the two-piece harness you now have. I'd bite the bullet.

In addition, order a wiring diagram for your car, a big version you can tape to your workshop wall.

Do not attempt to wire from scratch unless you can duplicate the factory color codes and/or document your custom, from-scratch electrical system like this:



Sherwood

[Brother]

Where do you live? It might be easier if you found another pelican in the area with a similar car so that you could compare the two side by side.

[Terry Young]

I am located at East Highland Ca. East side of San Bernardino.