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Wagon of Death

Aussie Barracuda Fisherman
Joined
Aug 30, 2009
Messages
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Location
Brisbane,Aust
Started to tidy up the wiring in my Barracuda68 ....got to the bulkhead plugs and saw some daggy electrical tape hanging off the back of the plug...on further investigation I found this little gem ( see pic) . This raises questions....I tried to get the spade from the block to fix the RHS wire, looks like the fusible link "soldered" to a piece of bare thin wire into the back of the plug, the other end goes to that plug in the pic...THICK red wire ...but it wont budge and Im scared to damage it as Im across the pond from parts, Australia...I assume this wire goes through the bulkhead and to the ammeter + side? And is ultimately the power wire for most things inside the car? If this IS the case, I might run a separate wire through a grommet to save me some heartache

Also theres a one wire alternator on this 360, I would assume I wont be needing the voltage reg...can I just remove that or do the wires either side need to be joined for some reason? The wiring in this car is a headache...its been chopped and "soldered" in a couple of places...Im running MSD stand alone so dont need the majority of other ignition wires in this car either, and am just trying to make sense of the areas Im unfamiliar...and thoughts gents?

Barra wiring.jpg
 
YearOne periodically runs sales and puts their repop harnesses on sale. Engine compartment harness isnt too bad. I bought one for a 69 barracuda for about $160 plug n play. Should be a discount code for Easter if I had to guess.
 
Let me ask the question that will be important...what year Barracuda is it, as they're only an "A" body through '69'. I'm pretty sure that a 360 didn't come out till '72'.

My experience is with early Barracuda's but the bulk head connectors are largely the same in concept.

In my opinion, bad electrical work will always come back to haunt you, with enough time. There are very intelligent people here that will give you good info...I'll offer my thoughts:
There should have been a "fuseable link" that may have saved this from happening...in short, there must have been a 'short' to cause this and this kind of damage.
If the damaged wire is from a short circuit, than the bulk head must have melted the and permanently trapped the connector stake....I've seen that before
I'd get a wiring harness and replace it, or get a bulkhead connector with enough lead to get a good repair away from the connector...I possibly have one, depending on the year.
The new alternators connect up a little different than my original did, as there is now an extra electrical 'stake' on the alternator that needs to go 'ground'...at least on mine.

Good luck and I hope this helps...from Massachusetts
 
Stock repop harnesses that are plug n play, with over 50 year old wiring that's dried out and brittle from 50 years worth of heat, your better off replacing it. With YearOne It seems you can either get the discount code using the word "standard" for anything over $200 and pay for shipping, or pay full price and get the free shipping. Not sure which is to your advantage or not. Theres a harness listed for 68 barracuda slant 6 and 383 big block that's even cheaper. I would imagine only the wiring for the ignition coil and oil pressure sender will be longer than for a small block which shouldn't be a problem. The rest of it should be the same as a small block car. its regularly priced at $197 so add a few more goodies to get it above $200 then hit the discount, or take the free shipping m. I was also able to get the wiring sub harness for 2 speed windshield wiper as well. Though I cannot currently find it in their catalog. You can also try hunting on ebay for M&H wiring harnesses. They were supposedly the factory supplier that made them for chrysler back then.

Hope this helps.
Matt

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Last edited:
Do the mad electric fix
Catalog
NO! Sorry to be so emphatic since I always appreciate your posts.
Taking some load off the bulkhead is a real improvement.
But that's not a great way to do it.
Two links in parallel means twice as long before they blow.
Increasing the route length to the main splice increases voltage drop.

Better to copy either of the factory methods used with higher output alternators.
1965 Bulkhead connectors (and a couple other years) have a better connector for the main feeds. But since WagonofDeath has '68. Lets stick with that.
The heavy black wire with a cast rubber seal at the connect is the alternator output.
The other bare wires clearly are soldered. Someone repaired or modified the wiring.
The heavy red wire is probably Battery output/charge wire. (MSD 6 also has a heavy red wire for its power)
I sometimes call the battery and alternator output wires 'feeds' because they supply power.
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Well the Matts agree completely on this one!
A new engine harness would be a good way to approach this.
I got away with using my 67 Barracuda's original /6 harness with the small block v-8 for a number of years.
Then I bought an engine harness from Year One.
Keep your original if you do so.

Is your Barracuda a RHD or LHD model?
 
Schematicly. Original power circuit for 68 B looks like this.
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Fusible link is retained in the bulkhead connector by the barb on the terminal. The connector to the 12 ga red wire should look like this.
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Squeeze barb of the male terminals to remove from connector (plastic housing)
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Well the Matts agree completely on this one!
A new engine harness would be a good way to approach this.
I got away with using my 67 Barracuda's original /6 harness with the small block v-8 for a number of years.
Then I bought an engine harness from Year One.
Keep your original if you do so.

Is your Barracuda a RHD or LHD model?

LHD still, and yes 68 Barracuda....new harness would probably make sense but it appears I wouldnt be using most of it anyway, dont need any of the alternator wiring, nor the water temp switch, the oil pressure switch , the distributor/coil wiring, thats all covered with the MSD, gauges all Autometer...Im tipping the voltage reg is unused too now...Ill have to look at the wiring diagram to see if the wiring for that needs to be a complete "circuit" ... the One Wire fom the alternator was straight to the battery, soon to be to the starter motor pole, so I wont be using the alternator wire through the bulkhead, also the fusible link joins to that spade connector also in the photo that I think goes back to the starter relay, Ill test that in the morning...if this is the case, wouldnt that be the power feed to the back of the dash?

And Michael...the 360 is a retro fit, mine was originally a slant 6 car, with a V8 factory harness added it seems
 
LHD still, and yes 68 Barracuda....new harness would probably make sense but it appears I wouldnt be using most of it anyway, dont need any of the alternator wiring, nor the water temp switch, the oil pressure switch , the distributor/coil wiring, thats all covered with the MSD, gauges all Autometer...Im tipping the voltage reg is unused too now...Ill have to look at the wiring diagram to see if the wiring for that needs to be a complete "circuit" ... the One Wire fom the alternator was straight to the battery, soon to be to the starter motor pole, so I wont be using the alternator wire through the bulkhead, also the fusible link joins to that spade connector also in the photo that I think goes back to the starter relay, Ill test that in the morning...if this is the case, wouldnt that be the power feed to the back of the dash?

And Michael...the 360 is a retro fit, mine was originally a slant 6 car, with a V8 factory harness added it seems
Well I'm not sure what you got there now.
In the factory scheme, the one fusible link protects everything but the starter relay and starter from a battery short to ground.
The alternator provides power to everything without a fusible link restricting flow, except battery charging.
upload_2020-4-12_11-12-43.png


I don't know what the advantage is of taking the alternator wire to the starter.
The disadvantage is subjecting it to more heat.
Any connection between to the battery ought to be protected with a fusible link or equivalent.
One factory method used a terminal block on the firewall. Maybe that will give you some ideas for an approach for your situation.
upload_2020-4-12_11-37-21.png

Oddly, for some reason they used the bulkhead connector for the power feed and disconnected the ammeter to main splice wire. In another, later, approach they disconnected at the bulkhead and used the ammeter post. Its a parallel feed so doesn't hurt if both are connected. One 16 ga fusible link still protects all the 12 and 14 ga wires as well as the alternator output wire.
 
..Im running MSD stand alone so dont need the majority of other ignition wires in this car either, and am just trying to make sense of the areas Im unfamiliar...and thoughts gents?

View attachment 1715506001

What does that mean? It is wired in separately with a toggle switch or ?? There are not a "majority" of ignition wires originally just for info. There are exactly 2 ignition wires coming through the bulkhead, 3 if you count "start"

This photo posted earlier is the key to getting the male ends out of the connector. They may be melted into the plastic

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When running a "one wire" (which I personally don't care for) you need to run a BIG charge wire because the sensing is on that same wire. So with say, about a 50-60A run about a no6 charge wire direct from alternator to the battery, and make sure it has a fuse or fuse link.
 
Thanks for the replies guys...time to hit the shed again and see if I can kick some goals...good information there and Im not too excited about the one wire alternator either but it was on there when I got the car and it works...Im hoping to get a birdcage alternator upgraded amperage wise and fit that at a later date...Ill have another go at the spade in the bulkhead fitting too...I assume this spade is squeezed with some fine needle nose pliars...Im hoping to get that out and at least tidy up previous indiscretions
67Dart273...my entire MSD/ignition and electric fuel pump system is all wired separately...Ive run a fairly hefty power cable to a connector inside the car. The MSD unit is switched manually which also doubles as a "kill switch" of sorts, two wires to the distributor and wires to the coil, kind of side steps all of the OE wiring required for that. Good tip re the wiring for the alternator, I think the one thats currently on there is way too small and also is not protected,Ill get onto that pronto...I have put about 2000 miles on this since Ive owned it and luckily have had no problems electrically...ran out of gas twice now as the gauge doesnt work but thats a whole other hour of reading and testing...Ill get there eventually
 
Barracuda rallye dash has an instrument voltage regulator built inside the gas gage. An easy test to see if the circuit is working all the way to the tank is to unplug the wire to the sending unit at the tank and direct ground it with ignition switched on. If the gage goes to full, then everything from battery out to the sending unit is good. Dont let the gage stay pegged like that for long since the gages run on 5.5-6.0 volts that's the reason for the regulator. Its street the voltage down.

Also see if theres a grounding jumper clamp clipped to the metal fuel line on either side of the rubber hose connection at the sending unit. This is the ground path return that jumps the rubber hose. Without it the sending unit will not read either. See pic below of the grounding jumper. This straddles over the rubber hose connection at the sender and uses the metal fuel line clamped to the chassis as part of the ground return. If your car doesnt have this or some sort of ground wire off the sender, then check that first before shorting the sender wire to ground and looking for gage deflection.

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I too run a MSD 6A box and a one wire alt in my B body. I also don't use much of the factory harness.
I think that is what he is trying to say.
With just the one BIG alt wire to the battery and the MSD there is really nothing else to warrant purchasing a new engine harness, just fab that line from the starter relay to the firewall with a fusible link.

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I too run a MSD 6A box and a one wire alt in my B body. I also don't use much of the factory harness.
I think that is what he is trying to say.
With just the one BIG alt wire to the battery and the MSD there is really nothing else to warrant purchasing a new engine harness, just fab that line from the starter relay to the firewall with a fusible link.

View attachment 1715507231

Bingo, you got it in one

I cant get the spade out of the bulkhead plug to repair the bare wire ( which I also believe is way too small ) so I think Im just going to bypass the mess and run it straight inside elsewhere, through my own fitted grommet...I want to buy a new fusible link though, how do I find out which one I need?
 
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