Electrics on a GD with Rover 3.5....help!!

[martin_t]

Hi
I am at the stage with my GD (Rover 3.5 engine) that I want to wire it up for first start. I have spoken to various guys on the forums and bought a couple of book on auto electrics but still dont understand. What I would like is a straight forward "connect this to this and that to that" aproach. Everything else I have done has not been to much of a problem but I guess its easy to screw the electrics up so I need help. A couple of questions I would like answering:
1) Where do I get the 12v supply from. Is it all from the main battery lead? Do I take a seperate lead from the battery positive terminal (even ore than one?).
2) If I want to connect something that needs a 12v supply (for instance an electronic fan controller) do I just splice into that same 12v supply from the battery?
3) what is the minimum I need to connect up to run the engine for the first time?

Any help will be greatfully accepted!!

Martin

[katanaman]

I can help a lot with this but I need more info.

Do you have a fuse box that is switched either by key or switched?
Do you have any wiring at all?
Is this a temp just to get it running?
What ignition are you using?
I assume its carb?

The reason I am asking is I could go through a whole process when all you really want is a quick way to test the engine lol.

[v8alex]

I'm with Katanaman on this - more info required !

Having recently wired up a 3.5 RV8 for first engine start myself I had the following connected:

Electric choke
Coil
Ignition system
Oil pressure light
Oil pressure sender
Alternator (battery feed, +12v and charge lamp)
Starter Solenoid
Rev counter
Water temp sender
Temp Gauge
Fuel Gauge
Electric fan

Though it's a lot more complicated than it sounds. There's fuses, earth connections, various forms of positive feed (always +ve unfused, always +ve fused, ignition switched +ve fused, ignition switched +ve unfused). I needed voltage conditioners for some of the gauges etc etc.

Do you have any form of loom supplied by GD ? I'm doing a DAX and decided to source their loom with wiring instructions - saved me a whole load of hassle.

Alex

[martin_t]

I'm with Katanaman on this - more info required !

Having recently wired up a 3.5 RV8 for first engine start myself I had the following connected:

Electric choke
Coil
Ignition system
Oil pressure light
Oil pressure sender
Alternator (battery feed, +12v and charge lamp)
Starter Solenoid
Rev counter
Water temp sender
Temp Gauge
Fuel Gauge
Electric fan

Though it's a lot more complicated than it sounds. There's fuses, earth connections, various forms of positive feed (always +ve unfused, always +ve fused, ignition switched +ve fused, ignition switched +ve unfused). I needed voltage conditioners for some of the gauges etc etc.

Do you have any form of loom supplied by GD ? I'm doing a DAX and decided to source their loom with wiring instructions - saved me a whole load of hassle.

Alex

Hi

Basically I have no wiring at all yet. I have the coil and alternator connected as per instructions form JRV8 when I bought the coil from him. I have the plug leads on. The ignition is the standard electronic ignition from an SD1 which I have had reconditioned. The carb fitted is a Holley 390. Everything but the electics is together, even the exhaust. Please look at my website to see the position I am in at the moment.

Esentially I need enough to get the engine started. I have a basic engine loom supplied by GD but it is not specific for a Rover. The loom consists of :
Branch 1 - Starter solenoid (crank terminal), Charge warning Light(brown yellow)
Branch 2 - Oil warning light switch, Oil pressure or temp sender
Branch 3 - Water temp sender, rad\fan thermal switch
Branch 4 - coil + feed, coil - for tacho

Distributor (separate to the main loom) feed from coil -ve to distributor
Alternator (section supplied separately) white red to crank position, Brown to battery position, brown yellow to brown yellow on Branch 1.

Now that all may sound like I know what I'm talking about, but I'm just quoting from the bit of paper (thats all it is) that GD gave me.

I don't understand the basics of where I get the 12v supply from and how I connect it to the loom.

Sorry to be a bit thick on this and I'm sure its not as difficult as I imagine, I guess I just need a bit of starting advice from someone.

Thanks

Martin


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[kiwicar]

Hi
to save alot of grief I would recomend getting intouch with Premier wiring looms, www.premierwireing.co.uk 0800 0742789. they do wiring looms/kits for about £150, this actually works out cheeper than buying the wire and connectors youself as if you do it all yourself you end up buying enough wire to do three looms. Tell them the car you have, the engine spec (carbed or efi) list the gauges and things like the electronic fan stat every thing you want to fit (radio, cd etc). they will almost certainly have done one (probably many) of these and be able to make a loom that fits properly.
The instructions you get off them are pretty much connect A to B using wire colloured Red/green it makes it about as simple as it gets. I have a loom from them for my project, I am an ex prototype wireman and now a broadcast engineer, so I thought of doing it myself, but went this route and am very glad I did the result is very tidy. well worth it.
Mike

[ChrisJC]

I would say that you need to find a mate who lives around the corner who can give you a hand. I've helped out a mate on a couple of kit-cars, and I am of the opinion that it would have been a complete nightmare to try to do it over the interweb. You can't beat actually being there.

Chris.

[Ian Anderson]

Does GD not offer a loom?

At least then it will fit reasonably well.

Ian

[martin_t]

Does GD not offer a loom?

At least then it will fit reasonably well.

Ian

Hi Ian

Yes they do provide a loom but as stated in an earlier post it is not specific to the Rover and there is no wiring diagram as such just a bit of text saying which coloured wires go where. What I don't know is how to get the 12 v supply and how. Do I connect a separate wire direct to the battery, can I take it from the coil (there are two spare connectors on that). Just not sure. As someone else has said, maybe the best thing for me to do is to find somone local who knows about these t hings.

Regards

Martin

[ChrisJC]

Well, there should be a fat 12V lead from the battery +ve to the starter. Then a smaller (but still fat) 12V lead from either the battery +ve or the starter to the alternator. You can take your +12V feed from any of those three, depending on which is the most convenient.

To get it started, you need to hook up the coil -ve & coil +ve, +12V into the loom. Oil pressure light is a good idea too!

On the starter motor there should be a spade terminal to take the starter output.

Also on the alternator there will most likely be a 'normal' rather than 'large' spade terminal for the charge light.

And the engine & battery need to be earthed to the chassis very well.

Chris.