I use it under carpet. I omit the other sound deadening layers except the dampening layer (think Dynamat, etc.), and use thinner carpet padding over it, to match height. The trick is to not route it where things/feet/etc. will get put on it.
I forgot to add, where the wiring goes past the scatter shield, it runs through a piece of 1/4 " wall 4130 tubing.
If your brake switch is inside and the connector on the tail light is inside the trunk, it would seem more logical to run the wires inside as well. Since it blwn apart, it should be easy to run a flat harness on the floor. I' run one that has a few extra wires in case you want to add something in the future.
Henry Ford did the same with 15 million Model T's and 4 million Model A's, I never got into V8's. Is most carpet flammable?
It's only 4 or 5 wires of about 16 awg, which should easily fit into any old A pillar with room leftover. I simply doubled a single wire over on one end and taped it up. Then pushed it down from the top of the A pillar, and when it came out I tied all the wires to the loop and taped them up. Then pulled them up the pillar.
Inside the body with only the necessary wires being run outside the body; forward to headlamps, engine etc and rear to tail lamps etc, through floor to neutral start switch etc. In my 35 I have a false floor and have wiring hidden in this cavity. In my 46 it'll be in the cant rails behind drip molds (Roof cavity) and then down the 'A' pillars and trunk; I don't want it under the carpet and definitely not attached to the frame underneath. I always make sure the wiring is properly insulated and terminated as well as being secured. Ensure that you have good earths with fuse box and battery accessible! I've always used a hidden 'Kill' switch.
Ditto, I agree, but I don’t think I can run the wires up though the a pillar, it was a bit of a b*tch just to run speakers. Floor space is a premium in the foot well as well
I used a flat 7 conductor wire which they use to wire trailers. The outer sheath acts as a double insulation.
I ran the wires (to the rear of the car) in my Ford alongside the transmission tunnel and encased them in shrink tubing. Pretty much in the stock routing scheme. Older GM cars used to have those flat plastic raceways that kept the bundle heights down. Any wires exposed under the hood I used a Summit wire wrap to keep them tidy. It was 1/2 the $$ of a Painless Wiring product.
I ran speaker wires up the passenger side A pillar, and electrical up driver's side. Speaker wires take up more space than the electrical to rear taillights.
Gonna have to run some electrical wires up through the pillars for windshield wipers if you have any. That would cut down even further on available space in the pillar. Then if you mount a rear view mirror, possible screws protruding into the pillar. Just seems like a simple routing on the floor, maybe along the side would be less problematic and easier to access if a problem developed later on.
I had to run wires up my A pillar for the dome light. The OG light was a 1-wire, the new one used 2. There was no existing wire to pull with. I tried some military (M81044) wire I got from work, it got snagged on everything. I went to regular general purpose wire and it was a cinch. Fish tape would have come in handy.
Never seen a rear view mirror mounted with fasteners into the A pillar. But there are two A pillars, so you don't need to run wiper wires up the same pillar as the rear light wiring. And wiring up the A pillars will likely never need to be accessed because they're not being stepped on or damaged like under the carpet can be.
You are right. They usually clip them to the door rather than the A pillar. Thanks for catching my mistake.
In reference to the wire loom you linked to: It was described as "quiet split". The split part I understand. But do you know what the "quiet" refers to?
My RPU is pretty small. I mounted the panel inside the firewall close to my gauges, switches, and engine. I can sit on the running board, leaning in under the steering column to easily access the breakers etc. Pics are during fab. (before looms and clamps). The firewall carpet is mounted using Velcro in case I need to get to the wires.
Well….I fished a pull string up though the a pillar. Don’t think I’m going that route. The pull was rough feeling and had a lot of pull resistance. I doubt I could get 4 16ga wire pulled. I probably would worry about chaffing
Unless you have the wire that came with a wiring kit I have found that getting a roll of better quality "trailer wire" works great for simplicity in wiring the tail/stop/turn lights.
I have a Auto Wire kit. I think I’ll run the wire down the cowl under the floor (about 3’) then pop up under the opera window then hug the body to the trunk. Everything should be hidden behind upholstery panels. Slip the wire in cloth loom. At least that’s today’s plan.
Run it where you can fix it easily, if your running it outside use a cover and strap it to the frame. The covering like Gimpy showed is hydraulic hose cover, available in different sizes. On my '28 It's going to be along the frame rail by the brake line (to front and rear) and into the interior through the floor on the pass side next to the cowl. I'm going to use these, brake line on the bottom and wiring in the top and then paint them black.
Thanks. The only other thing that I could have imagined was maybe some kind of shielding for electrical interference or noise.
If you can bend brake line, why not bend conduit to run the wires through and attach it to the frame rails?
There are six ways from Sunday to skin a cat , my reasoning is it keeps it high and dry being inside , the factories used to do it in flat loom in millions of cars and outside elements and road debris cannot get to it . If everything is sealed up possible future corrosion at connections is held down at least to a minimum. You have enough out in the open like brake hoses, brake lines, fuel lines, vacuum hoses, under hood wires ,battery connections and pesky nails, screws and bolts in tires . Why add to it. Now go enjoy your car
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