Dohn
Well-Known Member
Been away for a bit, but need help from the hive mind. My coupe is a '74 with a '87 735 3.5l motor with Motronic, and a five-speed. The previous owner did the engine swap, and I have minimal documentation on the conversion.
Last spring I was driving my coupe to the Vintage, hit a pothole, and the engine died. Flatbedded home, and after several weeks my local shop diagnosed several shorted wires, which they replaced.
All was well until I tried to go to O'fest, stopped for gas in Kent, Ohio, and had smoke coming from the dash. Flatbedded to Larchmere Imports in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. He found melted wires from the headlight switch to the fuse box. Lights, turn signals, and brake lights still work, but when he diagnosed it he found the starter motor spun when the lights were turned on! He traced and disconnected the wire that was spinning the starter, but recommended not using the lights until all is fixed. I had been driving with my headlights on, and just before the smoke had sat for a while with my brakes and turn signals on as well, waiting to turn, and he suspects all that electrical load, coupled with the starter spinning, overloaded the circuit. He also showed me several shoddy details in the wiring, which led to his final recommendation. At this point the horn and ventilation fan are also non-functional. I was able to drive it home to Dayton, with some friends following.
Ever since I got the car, when you turn the key to the accessory position, the fuel pump starts running. He found it was running from a jumper of the main ignition at the fuse box, rather than through the Motronic. This and other details led him to recommend the replacement of the engine harness with a clean one from a late '80s car, returning the fuel pump and main relay controls to their factory configuration, and then careful dissection and repair of the body harness.
The shop owner was not interested in spending the time required to fix the wiring, so I contacted Paul Wegweiser, who then recommended Ben Thongsai. Good choice? Anyone have contact info for Ben, or other recommendations?
That's my burning question for today...
Last spring I was driving my coupe to the Vintage, hit a pothole, and the engine died. Flatbedded home, and after several weeks my local shop diagnosed several shorted wires, which they replaced.
All was well until I tried to go to O'fest, stopped for gas in Kent, Ohio, and had smoke coming from the dash. Flatbedded to Larchmere Imports in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. He found melted wires from the headlight switch to the fuse box. Lights, turn signals, and brake lights still work, but when he diagnosed it he found the starter motor spun when the lights were turned on! He traced and disconnected the wire that was spinning the starter, but recommended not using the lights until all is fixed. I had been driving with my headlights on, and just before the smoke had sat for a while with my brakes and turn signals on as well, waiting to turn, and he suspects all that electrical load, coupled with the starter spinning, overloaded the circuit. He also showed me several shoddy details in the wiring, which led to his final recommendation. At this point the horn and ventilation fan are also non-functional. I was able to drive it home to Dayton, with some friends following.
Ever since I got the car, when you turn the key to the accessory position, the fuel pump starts running. He found it was running from a jumper of the main ignition at the fuse box, rather than through the Motronic. This and other details led him to recommend the replacement of the engine harness with a clean one from a late '80s car, returning the fuel pump and main relay controls to their factory configuration, and then careful dissection and repair of the body harness.
The shop owner was not interested in spending the time required to fix the wiring, so I contacted Paul Wegweiser, who then recommended Ben Thongsai. Good choice? Anyone have contact info for Ben, or other recommendations?
That's my burning question for today...
