I'm just about to install the same harness on my '67. I'm going to hide it. Once installed you really will not need access anymore, and even then just the wire plugs & terminals.

 

Any problems installing the AAW kit? I'm looking at Summit Racing as the vendor, Their prices are good and the free shipping is a plus.

 

I just used a Highway 22 kit for a '40 Ford Deluxe I'm building. The wiring itself is great- color coded, good lengths, and marked every foot or so with it's use. Any future wiring issues will be simple to trace being labeled like that. The universal ignition switch was a bit cheesy, but the dimmer and headlight switches were nice quality. The kit had plenty of wiring terminals for different applications, and pretty much all the plugs I needed. Easier than I thought it was going to be.. Different application being a hot rod, but I hid the wires on mine for a clean look..

 

I would hide them... that's on my list of things to do... easier to do when installing I imagine.

 

Does the AAW #510055 include the instrument cluster wiring harness?

 

It does, these are a lot of work, I am in the midst of putting one of these in my 66 along with a Holley HP EFI. Wire, wire, wire everywhere.........................

Hide the harness, the extra effort is worth it once done and the engine is clean and neat.

 

Hide it. It's not that much more work and looks much nicer IMO.

 

Anyone have photos of the "hidden" wiring? I will be doing my AAW harness likely in November.

Thanks

 

That's been my issue as well. If I decide to hide it (behind the fenders) I'm wondering if anything beyond additional grommets, loom and clamps are needed. Should it be run through anything more durable? What would be the best set of grommets to use for this?

Also, the front end of the car is fully assembled. Can I access the areas by simply removing the fender liner or am I going to have to pull the fender?

Thanks for all the advice so far. I've heard some think that an engine bay minus wiring looks 'weird' and I can't say I've seen enough wired/unwired 67/68 engine bays with the EFI setup (so far) to decide for myself.

 

AAW going in my 67 and 70. both will be hidden. I've done some hiding on my 69 too and do NOT miss the hectic look. Love the smoother inner panels.

 

IMO, if you are going to hide it under the fender, the wires need to be encased in some seamless conduit to keep moisture and dirt away from the wiring. Be sure to seal both ends of the conduit.

I just don't like to see the wire loom snake around the shock tower like they did originally.

 

I bought a drivetrain from a guy out of a '66 coupe, and helped him pull it out. He'd hidden all the wiring under the fenders and used wiring clips on the fender bolts and just added a nut to hold them there. In theory, all your 'splices' should be at the ends and not in the middle sections that are hidden, so waterproofing is a good idea, but isn't as vital as protecting from chaffing or impacts. He had used the plastic conduit and it looked good- hard to see as it was black color and blended in

 

Whatever trips your trigger... Just remember that if you hide it, make sure you have a way to access it should you need to diagnose or repair something down the road.

 

That's why I ran all the wires in my house exposed. It's. Real bitch mowing around the lines that go across the lawn to the shop too. But hey at least I got access to them. Seriously though it's not hard to pull the wires from 3-1/2 feet of 1/2" conduit running from inside the car to the outside fender well if I need to access to them. That being said the only way they could get damaged is a fire or a severe impact. They are much better protected from damage and heat the what I ran them, Also real easy to fish an extra wire through it if needed. I also no longer have the firewall connectors that can be another source of trouble and a loss of voltage through the brass connections.

 

I am also thinking about the AAW kit and am also thinking about hiding the wiring, so I'd love to see how your project goes (I am probably 6 months away from wiring). I have seen some people run the wires through a length of heater hose under the fender, which seems like it would work well.

 

I used 1/2 flexible conduit and fittings. Cheap easy.

 

I hide my factory harness in the fender.
Might be hard to tell with all the pipeing for my turbo.

 

That looks awesome. It is a little hard to tell that it's hidden... but if it wasn't... boy oh boy would you know it.

 

I also used a AAW kit on my 67 vert with EFI. Biggest problem was that its an AC car and I had to find a different spot to put the fuse box. Ended up mounting where the driver side kick panel is.

I also hid the wiring in the engine bay behind the fenders using the same rubber covered wire clamps posted above. I used nylon weave wire wrap and it looks fantastic.

Actually hooked a battery up and turned the car on for the first time and nothing went up in smoke! The fuel pump kicked on, the msd turned on and everything went surprisingly well.

 

How long did it take you to do the wiring? First time doing it?

 

I'm still using my factory harness but went through it inch by inch & wire by wire. It comes out of the fire wall still but then turns & goes through the apron under the hood hinge then it runs across the outer shock tower then down to the top of the bumper bracket then across the lower radiator support. Didn't need to lengthen any of the wires, also didn't need to pull the fender.

All my aftermarket wiring I ran under the passenger side fender (including the battery cable after I relocated it to the trunk). After I deleted my antenna the wiring runs through the same hole the antenna wire went through.

I thought about relocating the solenoid under the fender but wanted to keep it where I could easily access it so I moved it to the bottom of the radiator support just above the frame rail, hard to see but still easily accessible.

Much cleaner look & would do it again.

 

WTB Pictures guys!

I have lots of ideas, but I prefer to steal the "how" component from people that have done it

Thanks

 

OP I'm over in Cibolo , I can show you how I did mine if you like.
PM me if you like.

 

hide it. Much cleaner look

 

Don't hide it.. Mine is EFI, and I'm always tinkering with it (adding fan controller, etc). I'd much rather look at wire loom, then not be able to access them.

 

Obviously it's your choice but I just tucked the factory harness and where it gets close to the headers I wrapped it with insulating wrap. I find that it is less noticeable but I can still access it and add wires if needed (and I have over the years). I believe in severicability in anything I do to the car so this has carried to every system of the car. It works for me.

 

If you hid your wiring, where did you mount the starter solenoid? On my Cobra I mounted it down low near the motor mount. At the time, I lived in the Cal desert and wasn't too concerned about water being splashed up. But now I live near a swamp in Louisiana, and get lots of rain.

 

I lowered my solenoid as well. I ran the wires under the battery tray.

 

Richard,

Here are some pics from six years ago when I decided to clean up my engine bay.

Here is the thread about hiding the wiring.

http://forums.vintage-mustang.com/m...om/mod-custom-forum/555646-finally-hidden-wire-project-done-pics-lots-pics.html

This was all done using the factory harness, so your application should be much easier. As a first effort I was pretty happy with it but I will be making some changes soon, moving the solenoid to the trunk, better conduit ect, I know I'm biased but losing the wiring really cleans up the engine bay.

 

Richard,

Here are some pics from six years ago when I decided to clean up my engine bay.

That looks incredible, especially seeing the "before" pics!

What are those nice flush fasteners you used all over?

 

That looks great! That's how I'm planning on doing mine.

 

I rerouted the factory harness. At the rear by the firewall there is a factory grommet. I ran the harness through there over the shield for the coil spring to the headlight grommet. I moved the solenoid to the back side of the apron. None of the wires had to been lengthened and in about 20 years I have never had to get back into the wiring for repairs.