'74 cj5 wiring questions

[Fabric8r]

I am a new forum member and have very little experience with Jeeps. I am an old Range Rover fan, and recently rid myself of those electrical nightmares for a couple of jeeps. I am in the process of working on my '74 CJ5 and I need to replace my existing bird-nest of wiring as the wires are crumbling and it has a short that drains my battery within 1 day. I have removed my dash and all gauges, but did not find a fuse panel or relays. Is this common in the '74's? I want to replace the wiring with an EZ or painless harness. Could someone point me in the right direction for the amount of circuits i will need. This jeep will be used for summer driving fun and camping. It is all original with the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l v6. I plan to install a stereo, amp and fog lights in the future. Any feedback on the brand of harness would be greatly appreciated also.

 

[CJ]

74's used glass inline fuses. Aftermarket kits will usually supply a modern fuse block that you will have to locate. The best known replacement harness company is Painless but there are others. Go to the painless site and research different kits.

 

[73CJ]

It is all original with the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l v6.

Wait a minute. 74 V6? They didn't offer a V6 in 73, so I don't think they did in 74. That may change the engine wiring.

Sounds like you need re-wire project. Lots of things to consider.

How many circuits and how many planed in the future? stereo, CB winch control,relay for headlights, HID and so forth.

Wire size for each circuit?

Painless has real good examples, but it's still up to you to actually run the wires.

Since so much is not stock on mine, I preferred to use a 75 fuse block and an auxiliary 4 fuse block running individual wires using terminal from Waytek. They have OEM terminals and plugs. Don't be afraid of trying it. For $400 (Painless) you can buy a heck of a lot of wire and terminals.

 

[CJ]

Wait a minute. 74 V6? ~~~

Sure he ment an I6...

 

[Fabric8r]

Trying to work and type a thread at the same time. I meant AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l - I6. Thanks for pointing that out!