Need some wiring help. Where do these go?

[broncojunkie]

Well, I thought my battery drain issue was fixed, but I went out today and the battery was dead again. I threw a light tester on it and sure enough, there was a drain on it. Went through the process of pulling fuses and relays, one at a time. No luck. I then tried unhooking the alternator (same thing I tried last time) and this time, it made a small difference. Still had a drain issue, so I pulled the smaller wires off the starter relay and touched them one at a time. There were 2 wires that completed the circuit...these two:

Either they are black or the color is faded to the point where you can't really tell. I may have to dig a little, but I believe they both go into fusible links.

I also believe at least one of them lead to a relay on the back of the driver's side shock tower.

It's hard to access due to the harness being in the way, so I apologize for the poor pic.

Anyway, I can't seem to find anything in the Haynes book for these wires or the relay. Any insight to what I'm looking at here?

 

[broncojunkie]

Well, the main culprit appears to be one of those two wires I'm holding in the pic. It goes through a fuse link and then turns to a black wire with orange tracer. wiring diagram shows it going to battery, fuel pump relay, and ecm relay. I went through the harness and couldn't find any place that looked like it could cause a short. I pulled/unwrapped the wire from the harness a couple feet back from the fender relay, but the wiring looked good. Went inside the car and looked at the fuel pump relay. The wiring looks original and there is no black/orange going to it. Looked at the ecm relay, and there is an orange/black. Unplugged the relay and I'm still showing a short. Inspected everything where it comes in through the firewall and everything looks ok. I'm not really sure where to go from here. For the time being, I guess I'll just leave it unhooked. I need a break from it! I may do my 3g swap today, instead.

 

[ALMOST STOCK]

How did the 3g swap go?

 

[broncojunkie]

Been busy and haven't had a chance to fool with it yet. I was going to do it the other day, but the 3g alternator I had lying around tested bad. I've been trying to fix a leak in the header collector flange so I can get it inspected. Got it apart, but I'll need a new header. Going to pick up a used one locally today, I think. That should hold me over till this winter, when I redo the exhaust.

I also figured out the battery drain issue, I think. It was, in fact, the alternator. Seems there is a bad diode or something inside the alternator itself. So a 3g swap is imminent lol. Just not sure when I'll get the time or money to do it. We are really pinching pennies due to the home purchase, so most of my spending is on hold.

 

[broncojunkie]

I ended up going with the stock alternator...75A, since the spade connector in mine looks perfect and all the fuse links are still there. I'll get around to doing the swap one day, but I was looking to get this car back on the road so I can enjoy it for a few days. I go back out on the river this weekend, so I won't see dry land for a month.

Now I'm running into an issue with the belt tensioner. The previous owner used an aftermarket ac delete bracket, which relocates the belt tensioner to the driver's side. The angle of the tensioner is just ridiculous and it is literally useless for removing/replacing the belt. Not to mention that the smooth pulley on the tensioner is now riding the underside (grooved) side of the belt. I thought it was put on incorrectly, because it's so bad. But I found it online and it looks correct. Anyway, I'm not putting it back on.

I could choose between the Ford Racing eliminator kit, which moves your power steering pump higher...which allows the belt to contact the tensioner in the factory location or the March alternator bracket set-up...which eliminates the tensioner altogether. The Ford Racing bracket was out of stock until November at all the online sites. I like the March set-up better anyway, since it looks good and gets rid of the tensioner. It's also a little cheaper ($62 at CJ Pony vs $80-90 for the Ford Racing kit at a few other places). So I ordered the March kit.

In the meantime, I guess I'm going to throw the ugly, ridiculous bracket back on and use a pickle fork and 9 iron to get the ratty belt back on.

Almost Stock:
I think I recall seeing pics of your beautiful engine bay and you had the March alternator bracket kit. Am I right? I'd like to know what you think of it and any tips in putting it in. Looks like it would be pretty simple, but I'm wondering if it comes with all the hardware you need and if it's a direct bolt-in. I can't seem to find much about it online. Just the generic description talking about how great it is.

 

[ALMOST STOCK]

I ended up going with the stock alternator...75A, since the spade connector in mine looks perfect

Almost Stock:
I think I recall seeing pics of your beautiful engine bay and you had the March alternator bracket kit. Am I right? I'd like to know what you think of it and any tips in putting it in. Looks like it would be pretty simple, but I'm wondering if it comes with all the hardware you need and if it's a direct bolt-in. I can't seem to find much about it online. Just the generic description talking about how great it is.

I still using the original 75 A alternator that can on my car in 1989, I've never had a charging problem or a problem with the light dimming because I use under driver pulleys, so my theory is why change something if it works the way it's suppose to.

I don't have the March alternator bracket , it's still the stock setup.

 

[broncojunkie]

Ok. I could have sworn it was you, but I guess it was someone else on here with that alternator bracket! Anyway, it gave me a good excuse to go back and look at some pics of your engine compartment again lol!

Here's the March set-up:

That's an sn95, but a fox belt/water pump/timing cover set-up, I think. Gives you guys a good idea of how it works. I'm wondering if I'll have to find a different upper radiator hose, now. From the pics and looking at my hose, it just seems like it would be laying pretty close to the belt. I hope I'm wrong.

Edit: Just by looking at it, I bet it would be a good set-up for a 3g swap. It would keep you from having to clearance the stock bracket (I think), while giving it a nice look and getting rid of the tensioner.