69 Dart Wiring

[Franko]

I am going to hook up a tach, underseat radio and electric choke on my 69 Dart. Does anybody know the best way to make the connections? I was thinking of spicing in to the AM radio- ignition and light wires for the for the tach, choke and radio and splice in to the cigarette lighter for radio- battery. Will it be safe to spice in so many wires to the radio leads or should I look for other connections to make it safer? I take it that it won't harm the radio leaving it hooked up. I was going to use any bolt under the dash for all the grounds connected together. Any thoughts on wiring all this?

Thanks for your advice.

 

[BillGrissom]

To power the cabin devices, look at "fuse taps" which you can get at most auto parts stores. They slip over the round fuse ends to steal power. You might also tap into power with a special double spade lug made for that. The wiper switch in many cars has a 12 V "pass-thru" spade junction on it that has nothing to do with the wiper itself.

I wouldn't tap into the factory wires, and especially don't use the IDC guillotine connectors for that like hack mechanics use.

The electric choke sounds like an under-hood component. About the only switched power there is the IGN wire, which you should access on the upstream side of the ballast resistor(s) to get full 12 V.

 

[Franko]

Thanks Bill. All good advice. I never heard of fuse taps. I'll hit Auto Zone. Would it be best to use a new female spade on the input side of the ballast resistor and crimp in the original wire and wire going to the choke?Also speaking of the ballast resistor, the input and the output both show 12.2 volts. The battery- 11.9 volts. Does this sound right or is something wrong? I thought there was supposed to be less voltage coming on the output.

 

[BillGrissom]

... Would it be best to use a new female spade on the input side of the ballast resistor and crimp in the original wire and wire going to the choke?Also speaking of the ballast resistor, the input and the output both show 12.2 volts. The battery- 11.9 volts. Does this sound right or is something wrong? I thought there was supposed to be less voltage coming on the output.

You can keep your existing female spades if you use a "piggy-back" spade tap. You can find them in bubble packs at auto parts. Try to clean them with a small file (I have a Harbor Freight set) and spray "contact cleaner".

Was your engine running when you measured the drop across the ballast? If not, you did a bad thing. Don't ever leave the key in "run" with the engine stopped or it can damage things is points or the original Mopar electronic box. Most likely you have points and they were open when you measured (engine off), so no current draw. The battery could measure a lower voltage is the engine is running with the alternator outputting current. Ideal is 13.4 V running and 12.6 V off, as I recall. 11.9 V is "almost dead", but suspect your multimeter first. Autozone and others will test your battery in the car for free.

 

[Franko]

I have a dual point ignition and I did measure it with the key on and the engine not running. I'll make sure I don't do that again. When I get it running again, I'll measure the voltage then. Thanks.

 

[Franko]

I unscrewed the fuse box and took that plastic piece off the top to see what was available in the box. Is everything fused in there? Also the plastic top disintegrated. Has anybody made this piece, and if so from what material?