Wiring Harness - Replacement

[James R]

Hi

I am considering changing my wiring loom and so I was just wandering if anyone has had any experience with the Auto Sparks Dolomite Sprint Wring Harness that they would be able to share please. By that i mean is the quality good with regards to the wiring quality and the connectors? Is it easy to fit into a car that is complete? Are there things that people that have experienced that would be very useful to know when undertaking such a job? Not something that i have undertaken before hence any experiences or views would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance..

[Bumpa]

I don't know anything about the Autosparks Dolomite harness, but my other interest is the MGB and on that board several owners have found Autosparks very good to deal with. Apparently they can modify a harness if you need something different. I believe they supply Moss with wiring harnesses.

[shaunroche]

I bought and fitted an Autosparks harness to my '75 Sprint.

They're perfect and just as good as OEM if not better.

I'll be buying another soon for my L reg Sprint resto soon.

Just make sure you order the right year!

[Gerard]

Another thumbs up for auto spark harness. Really impressed with mine and dealings with them.

[soe8m]

Nothing wrong with the autosparks harnesses. I have fitted various in various cars.

Jeroen

[MIG Wielder]

Hi James, Can they add extras like…

* 2 x relays for the headlights ?
* Do you have front fog-lights ?
* Extra wiring for a Kenlowe electric fan, a relay and a temperature sensor.
* Do you have bright rear fog-lights. Can they add a switch and the extra wiring ? I think the wiring has to go through the lighting switch.
* While you are at it, would it be worth adding a relay for the HRW ?

… or are you going for complete originality ?

Cheers for now,

Tony.

[James R]

Thanks very much gents. seems like its a resounding thumbs up for the harness itself which is good news.

So is it easy to fit into a car that is pretty much complete rather than a stripped car? Looking, it doesn't seem too difficult from a routing the harness point of view, fiddly but not difficult, but are there any hidden concerns to be aware of?

As for the extras Tony i haven't thought about those, so thanks for the food for thought. They definitely have an option for extra wiring for an electric fan but as for the others you mention, i will need to decide if i need/want those.

Cheers again

[Carledo]

The ONLY bit that is hard to access is the plug into the wiper motor. it's concealed underneath the motor which is in turn buried deep in the bulkhead. You normally have to remove the motor to get to it, which is not the most fun in the world, especially replacing it with small washers falling out everywhere. I have seen (rarely) a small sub harness that plugs into the motor, about 6" long which then takes the plug onto the loom into an accessible place. But it's not common, don't hold your breath!

Everything else is pretty much plug and play. Though if you aren't familiar with the layout probably best to to mark/label the old loom as you disconnect it and match the labels to colour codes on the new one.

Excluding the wiper motor, I can change a front loom in little more than an hour, but i've done a few. Realistically, expect to spend a day on it.

Steve

[rolf]

Hi, I also have a loom for my 1974 SPRINT RHD from Autosparks.
I fitted it a few years ago. A very good product.

Rolf

[cleverusername]

The ONLY bit that is hard to access is the plug into the wiper motor. it's concealed underneath the motor which is in turn buried deep in the bulkhead. You normally have to remove the motor to get to it, which is not the most fun in the world, especially replacing it with small washers falling out everywhere. I have seen (rarely) a small sub harness that plugs into the motor, about 6" long which then takes the plug onto the loom into an accessible place. But it's not common, don't hold your breath!

Everything else is pretty much plug and play. Though if you aren't familiar with the layout probably best to to mark/label the old loom as you disconnect it and match the labels to colour codes on the new one.

Excluding the wiper motor, I can change a front loom in little more than an hour, but i've done a few. Realistically, expect to spend a day on it.

Steve

To be honest I didn't find that to be much of a problem, I've got pretty good at unplugging things blind and by feel after working on some modern cars with poor access. Generally I can't be bothered moving things out of the way. Compared to some modern connectors, disconnecting the wiper motor was easy.

[Carledo]

The ONLY bit that is hard to access is the plug into the wiper motor. it's concealed underneath the motor which is in turn buried deep in the bulkhead. You normally have to remove the motor to get to it, which is not the most fun in the world, especially replacing it with small washers falling out everywhere. I have seen (rarely) a small sub harness that plugs into the motor, about 6" long which then takes the plug onto the loom into an accessible place. But it's not common, don't hold your breath!

Everything else is pretty much plug and play. Though if you aren't familiar with the layout probably best to to mark/label the old loom as you disconnect it and match the labels to colour codes on the new one.

Excluding the wiper motor, I can change a front loom in little more than an hour, but i've done a few. Realistically, expect to spend a day on it.

Steve

To be honest I didn't find that to be much of a problem, I've got pretty good at unplugging things blind and by feel after working on some modern cars with poor access. Generally I can't be bothered moving things out of the way. Compared to some modern connectors, disconnecting the wiper motor was easy.

Must be my giant banana fingers then! I've tried several times, to the extent of drawing blood, without success! 50 years in the motor trade working on everything imaginable (and some i'd rather not remember) hasn't helped with this job!

Steve

[IncaDolly78]

Hi I removed the wiring loom out of my car to check it over and fit a newer fusebox and to add fuses to the side light/ tail circuit and headlights circuits as these were not fuse protected. My car nearly caught fire several years ago because the metal bracket at these back of the clock shorted the feed from the clock light against the earth and all the wires melted together. Scary! Ive carried a fire extinguisher ever since. So if needed I'd recommend extra fuses and usual headlight relays.

[James R]

Thanks everyone for the contributions, its very much appreciated.

My haste to replace the loom needs a little bit more thought me thinks before going ahead, but with all the extra information I am pretty sure as to what i am going to do...

Thank you

[Magenta Auto Sprint]

I also bought an Autosparks loom for my 75 sprint many years ago. The only minor observation was that the bulb holder for the dash clock was not the same as the original and I changed this. Otherwise the lengths of spurs etc were ideal,

Malcolom