evan9eleven |
02-13-2015 06:52 AM |
Goodbye crusty old fusebox, hello Fred Cook!
So a quick search on "fusebox replacement" "ATO fusebox" or "Fred Cook" will turn up a bunch of threads on replacing the old fuse panel. So why a new thread? I thought I'd document the process a bit and show a few photos, in case this could help others considering the upgrade.
In my SC, the old fuse panel had become brittle, with wiring that had changed color from overheating in places. While doing the wiring for headlight relays, I decided to check tightness of the screw terminals, and the first one I turned broke off along with the corner of the panel. The fuse and holder flew off into my garage or frunk somewhere, never to be seen again. That was the last straw!
Fellow Pelican Fred Cook makes a modern ATO fuse panel that mounts in the stock location, so after reading positive feedback from others I decided to order the panel and make the switch. Its a very, very well made part and Fred shipped to me just days after I ordered. The instructions were good as well, but be forewarned: if you have 10 thumbs and ADHD this may not be a job for you. A few notes:
- Fred says 8 - 12 hours work to change the panel. If you are really good with electrical work and all your wiring will just go back in the same locations and you have a good crimp tool, and you don't have to figure out 30 years of PO wiring hacks, then maybe you can do this job in 8 hours. I've been doing electrical projects since I was 6 years old, so this kind of work is easy for me, and it still took me over 12 hours. Granted, I had some scary PO wiring to trace and re-do.
- Don't forget to disconnect the minus side of the battery. I have a quick disconnect that is really handy.
- Take your time and label everything meticulously.
- I mentioned a good crimp tool. Get one and don't look back.
- Get a multimeter as well if you don't have one. You will need it eventually no matter what.
- I also used heat shrink tubing on all the connections for a durable and tidy end result.
The original panel in my SC. Doesn't look too bad but a couple fuse locations were fried or broken:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1423840477.jpg
I made masking tape labels for every wire beforehand to save time and hassle. T is top and B is bottom:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1423842287.jpg
Tedious labeling:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1423840640.jpg
The crimp tool, you need one of these, as there are many connections and they need to be solid. I bought one from Knipex, made in Germany:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1423840705.jpg
Crimping done:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1423840654.jpg
The (almost) finished job. I took this pic before adding a couple fresh wires to run from the battery plus a little tidying up, but this is basically the end result:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1423840895.jpg
So when all was said and done, I'm really pleased that I tackled this job. There were several "hotwired" connections in the wrong locations-- no fuse protection for any of the AC blowers for example, these were wired straight to 12V on the top side of the panel! Plus the front condenser fan motor was already melted into a blob. Fire waiting to happen. Along with correcting the scary stuff, I also added separate AC blower fuses inline, a fuse for the interior lights, the Jwest headlight relays I mentioned above, and a couple supplies of 12V from the battery (AC and headlights.) And the best part: everything works, and the car started right up. Woohoo!
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