Engine Wiring Question

[Linc]

Long time reader, first time poster.

To make a very very long story short, I had my 68 camaro being built buy a shop down in Texas. My car was there for 2.5 years, with not much getting done. This is my first time building a car, and I made the mistake of paying a good chunk up front and then the car just sat. I travel quite a bit for work, hence why I did not do a lot of the work myself. I have since moved to Washington and had my brother pick up the car for me today. I would say it is about 90% done.

I bought the American Auto Wire Classic Update Kit. All is wired except for the engine bay. I did add a Vintage Air AC, EFI and a different (more powerful) alternator. For the Engine, it is a ZZ4 Crate that has been bored so it is a 355.

I consider myself to be very hands on, mechanically inclined and I can figure things out fairly easily. With that being said, should I have any issues wiring the front end of the car and installing the EFI. I have never done one before and I am sure I am going to be spending more time on this forum and YouTube then actually working on the car. I had the motor gone through and rebuilt but it has never been fired.

Thank you for your help!

[dhutton]

You are sort of asking folks here to assess your capabilities. Anything can be done but in my opinion it might be easier to find a reputable shop to complete the car. Here is an honest shop in WA:

http://www.chrisholstromconcepts.com/

Don

[Linc]

Thank you Don! I was asking more along the lines of the American Auto Wire Kit. The front end is all that needs to be completed then I can get her up and running. I just wanted to know the skill level needed (with the appropriate tools) to get it done.

[cdrod]

The AAW kits are really well done with good instructions; they've made it almost idiot-proof. The forward wiring harness is pretty much point-to-point, just follow the instructions and measure twice-cut once! LOL. You should buy or rent the correct crimping tools to make sure your connections are good and practice a few times with some extra wire and terminals before jumping into the project. Also get a heat shrink gun and some good heat shrink tubing to protect your connections.

I just did a '72 Olds 442 convertible with the AAW Classic Update kit. I say go for it!

Rodney

[csouth]

I the AAW kits are pretty straight forward. I rewired my 72 Cutlass with one of their builder kits before they had an update kit for the car. I can say that the tech people were very helpful if I had a question and always eager to assist. Don't be afraid to call them if needed.

[dhutton]

There is some very good AAW instructional videos too.

Don

[69_Sportsroof]

If it's a plug and play type kit and you follow the instructions you should be okay. Things like lights and all are very straightforward to wire. On sensors sometimes you need special grounding or shielding but if you buy a reputable kit that's taken care of for you.

If you're willing to give it a shot you can save some money. Just watch some videos before you decide, see if you can make sense of the schematics. If you can read those you'll be fine. After you make every crimp tug on the wire to make sure it doesn't pull loose and you'll avoid chasing intermittent issues.

[CarlC]

It seems there's two different questions that that you have, the front end wiring and the EFI. Both are quite distinct in their needs.

The AAW kit is very good for what it is, but it does not typically integrate easily to an EFI system. That's going to take some studying and planning to make the two blend together well. There's no better way to get to know all of the systems then by trying to make them all work together.

[csouth]

It seems there's two different questions that that you have, the front end wiring and the EFI. Both are quite distinct in their needs.

The AAW kit is very good for what it is, but it does not typically integrate easily to an EFI system. That's going to take some studying and planning to make the two blend together well. There's no better way to get to know all of the systems then by trying to make them all work together.

So true.... Definitely a good way to learn your way around your own car.