Starting to assemble this car from ground zero, the car was completely disassembled by someone else. I'm wondering how the rear taillight harness was originaly routed? Up through the A pillar and along the roofline, or along the floorboard? The harness supplied is a cloth covered original style harness. Also, I'm wondering if this model has a center domelight?
Along the floor on the drivers side and under the drivers door sill plate. You should see the drivers side sill has a larger hump than the passenger side door sill plate. That is for the wires going towards the rear of the car. You would have a switch just behind the drivers seat and on the rear arm rest for the interior lights. All the wiring going to the rear and those interior lights travel from under the dash on the left, to under the drivers side door sill plate to under the rear arm rest to the trunk. With the interior arm rests removed on the left side, you will see the openings in the metal structure at the floor where these wires ran. There are two interior lights as said in the rear, one on each side and just above the rear seat back. They would operate from the door switches that would ground one side of the bulb. You need a constant voltage feed to the interior lights and a switched negative. The courtesy switch on the left rear arm rest will also switch the negative from there and in turn illuminate the interior lights from that location too. So anyone in the back seat can turn on the interior lights from there.
On my 4-door '51 (granted it's a Pontiac but it's the same central body section) the wiring harness goes up and over the driver's side doors, with tabs that have been folded over the wire to hold it in place. Phil
Your car is a sedan. The Hard Top is not. The wires for the Hard Top go under the door.I think that's what the original poster is asking.
Sedan wire went over the door. Hardtop as stated above. Same thru 57 Hardtop goes up the C pillar and across the top of the rear roof.
I have always preferred running wires through the roof regardless of how it was done originally. The hardtop runs along the floor since the car was basically a convertible that they added a roof to.
Yep, pretty much. If I remember correctly, when I rewired the original wiring with new, the interior light on the passenger side was also fed from below and from the drivers side. It was not until I opened up the rear interior arm rests that I found why my interior lights wouldn't work. The wiring going to the back and along the floor had literally disintegrated from sitting in water that had leaked down into that area from the rear quarter window.
Not including the dome light it’s only 5 wires if you had backup light or lights. Today using the 4 color trailer loom is an ezway or a 5-6 wire conductor cable. 18 gauge is correct for the load.