This is where you guys tell me it's going to be ok

[rcilurso]

I promise there is a tech question in here but I need to vent.

My friggin car (87) has been off the road since Oct 14. I am finally getting a chance to put the car back together. I'm finding the guy that takes the cars apart, or used to, at my body shop was having a bad day and just cut every wiring harness on my car. I'm having a helluva time trying to get the doors all figured out. Many of the connectors are missing. I'm going down there with a bat. Nobody has come up with some help on that one, I may go down to Porsche and see if they have one apart. My wire colors do not match the Bentley's exactly.

I started the car when it came home from the body shop and it ran fine. After that there was some hesitation in the motor, but after all it had been sitting. It was very low on fuel so I took it across the street to put a half a tank in and before I could get out of the garage it started backfiring through the exhaust and just sounded horrible. Missing and just not strong. Now what in the world could have gone wrong just sitting there? Filled it up with gas and it continued to run like crap.

I guess I know where I'm going to start looking but I'd love suggestions. I'm so friggin fed up I'd love to sell the stinking thing as it sits in pieces and go buy a 993. The only joy was feeling how tight the car was under me as it sputtered home. I do love the old thing but man this is getting old.

Somebody come buy me a beer and tell me it's going to be allright. What am I going to do? ARRRRGGGGGGG!

[pwd72s]

rj? You go to that jazz bar that allows stogies. Order a stiff one, fire up a stogie, listen to the music, and THINK about it. You're a bright guy...the solutions will come. And yes, it WILL be okay...it's only a car, and you weren't diagnosed with a serious medical problem. Wish you were closer to Orygun...I'd be proud to buy you that beer....

[Jandrews]

RJ,

I have a bat you can borrow, but it already has one dent in it!!

I had to laugh out loud at that comment... "I'm going down there with a bat"!

Believe me, I know how you feel.


JA

[Neilk]

Did they mess with the plug wires at all? Hopefully it's as simple as two crossed spark plug wires. In any case, I'll drink a beer for you when I go out tonight.

[Early_S_Man]

RJ,

I have a better idea than the bat ...

A pair of 9" Klein Lineman's Pliers ... to be used on the knucklehead that butchered your wiring ... so he can't reproduce in the future!

[rcilurso]

Plug wires never moved. Us guys from Jersey always carry bats

[emcon5]

Probably not much help, but did you check the usual suspects, DME Relay & head temp sensor?

Tom

[Bill Douglas]

Ooooooommmmm, oooooommmmm, that's the stupid sound people make when they meditate.

If meditation doesn't work I support the idea of the bat.

I would be (well, actually was pissed off when it happened to me) very f'ing pissed off with the guy and make it his cost to get someone else to fix it.

[Superman]

There is almost never a good reason to CUT an automotive wire. That's an abomination, I think. I'm not the kind of guy that argues with people much, but if I were, I'd take the position that the guy owes you a wiring harness...installed....by someone competent.

But first, I like the beer and stogie idea. Some place where you can spit on the floor. HARD rock on the juke box. SEVERAL beers.

And yes, it's going to be okay. It's a car. That will become more clear starting with the fourth beer.

[speeder]

RJ, You definitely need a new wiring harness, at the least. This is serious damage to your car, it's no joke. With any car, but especially modern cars with computers and sensors everywhere, (like yours), good connections, grounds and resistance is crucial. There is NO excuse on earth for butchering a wiring harness, unless you are cutting to get someone out of a crashed and/or burning car. It's vandalism pure and simple, they owe you these repairs.

Did it run fine before entering this shop? What kind of shop was it? Body shop? Cool down, don't do anything crazy that will destroy your present "in the right" position, then pursue compensation. Good luck,

[rcilurso]

The car ran fine when I brought it in... in fact it was the reason I bought this car back in 99 anyways. It has always run like a champ. It also ran when I brought it home from the body shop. So, I have no idea what went wrong. I've only been screwing with door harnesses. I checked the relays and the dme, they are no longer attached to the floor but I was pretty sure they got their ground from the harness not the connection to the body. Even so, I attached it back and no change.

I was an electronics specialist when I was enlisted in the airforce (I'm an officer now and they don't let me touch anything). I have been repairing the harness as I figure out what goes where using solder. It's probably stronger then before but I'm still thinking of calling Parts Haven and seeing if they would part out some doors.

My serious problem right now is two wires in the door I have no idea where they go. So, it kinda makes me wonder if I've got it right at all and I'm hesitant to solderanything else.

The missing and backfiring definetly sounds just like a plug wire is swapped. The car even smells wrong. I dunno, when a car is not firing right you can just smell it. You guys know what I mean? I looked at the wiring harness and plug wires in the back and all is untouched... except the engine bay light which of course the dumbass just chopped off. I dunno, its not magic. Just fuel spark and air. I'm just pissed right now, she is such a pretty car. I feel like somebody punched my daughter in the eye.

[david c.]

I hate to inject the "law student" perspective, but is the butcher the owner of the body shop? What was the car in the shop for in the first place? I'm just thinking that you should threaten to take it to local Porsche dealership and get an estimate to replace the harness, parts and labor. Or maybe do that first and show the shop the estimate. Unlike most of my car problems, this one does not sound like it's your own fault. I'd be looking for some type of recompense. That story is out of hand.

Good luck

[rcilurso]

I have called the shop manager and he said that is not something his guys would do. I told him I knew the paint shop mgr and he was aware of what happened and he changed his tune to more of an understanding one. He agreed to look at the car and said he would fix the doors with new, or used harnesses. I guess that's great but I am going to be waiting again. I hope he comes through.

Now to fix the missing

[pwd72s]

rj? Keep us posted, okay? Crossing my fingers for a happy ending here. Paul

[john70t]

Definitly agree with speeder. Electronics are very sensitive to resistance and should be replaced instead of repaired.
You might be giving up your rights as a consumer if you continue to try to fix their mistakes. The law will say that you tampered with a "repair", and now it's your problem. What was that old camp saying? "you kill it, you fill it".
Now would be a good time to put everything in writing, sit back and let them satisfy the job to your satisfaction in an expedited fasion. You wouldn't accept an electrician cutting through load-bearing walls would you?
Document everything. Get a really expensive estimate and offer to have them pay to have it done somewhere else. An even stare and a sickly sweet smile sometimes does it.

It's their idiot techs, it's their problem now. Next, small claims.

[GSpreeman]

Okay, I'm the proud owner of an '87 as well. How many wires could there be in the door? Left passenger window, right passenger window, power locks, wiring to the mirror. Aside from that, what else is there?

[rcilurso]

Well there is a 5 wire bundle that goes to the mirror control on the drivers door, a 6 or so bundle for the power mirror, a 6 or so for the lock, a two wire for the microswitch on the door handle, a bunch for the window motor, and two wires that I'm clueless about.

And I don't think anything that would cause it to stop running.

[Early_S_Man]

Alarm keyswitch ... if equipped witrh factory alarm???

[Jim Sims]

"There is NO excuse on earth for butchering a wiring harness, unless you are cutting to get someone out of a crashed and/or burning car."

Standard procedure here (done by the emergency reponse personnel) with car accidents where the air bags haven't blown excepting those with only superficial damage is to "pry" open the hood and cut every cable and lead in the vicinity of the battery. This is to disable the air bags so they won't subsequently deploy. Does a significant amount of additional damage; these additional actions took one of my cars into the totaled category. Jim

[Kevin Stewart]

rj bypass the alarm, i bet this will help, the alarm does run through the door, and i bet you have a wire crossed, just by pass it and see what happens, do a search on alarms youll find it, Kevin