what is this wire?

Anyone know what this wire does, the gauge and what type of wire to replace a section of it with? As you can tell there is some damage to it and ive noticed the car has been sputtering to death after i remove the key. Its a red wire with green stripe and plugs into the distributor

If its the red wire that goes to the coil pack that is the 12 volt positive for the coil(always hot with key on). The other 3 at the coil is how the computer controls when the coils fire.

Thanks, the previous owner spliced into thay wire to connect the radiator fan motor since i assume he ircm is shot. When he did so somehow he managed to sever most of the copper wiring on that 12 vvolt wire, leaving it connected by only a few tbreads. I ended up cutting the bad section out of it and connecting both ends with the hot wire for the fan motor with one of those plastic crimp connectors

Cuztom Dreamz said:

Thanks, the previous owner spliced into thay wire to connect the radiator fan motor since i assume he ircm is shot. When he did so somehow he managed to sever most of the copper wiring on that 12 vvolt wire, leaving it connected by only a few tbreads. I ended up cutting the bad section out of it and connecting both ends with the hot wire for the fan motor with one of those plastic crimp connectors

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Man,

You are the best thing to happen to that car in a long time. Sounds like you are cleaning up a big mess! By the way, if the fan relay in the IRCM is bad, it is replaceable. You have to drill out the rivets holding it together and do a little soldering, but it's not too bad.

Egads, He did what!

Dude you really need to wire that correctly. That red/grn wire is the coil hot. It also has connections to the alternator, and as I recall the instrument panel or comes from there. It needs to be clean. There is also a relay that it connects to in the power distribution box. What year is your car. I can likely send a schematic if you like.

Cuztom Dreamz said:

I ended up cutting the bad section out of it and connecting both ends with the hot wire for the fan motor with one of those plastic crimp connectors

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I wouldnt do that.. Better to wire in a relay for the fan motor (provided you cant find a good IRCM). That thing draws wayyyy to much current for that wire and circuit. The fan power also has a fusible link... If the fan blows the fuse link, the fan quits.. you blow the power link, and the fan also quits and your engine shuts off.

Yeeea its not right for sure. The car stays SUPER cool too which i dont know if thats a bad thing. The mechanic who swapped motors for me also replaced the tstat im assuming with a 195. My normal operating temp is just a hair above the C on temp gauge. Unfortunately im just as illiterate with electrical as i am with most mechanical work maybe i can find somebody good with that stuff to help me do it, unless the new relay and wiring is easy and you guys can walk me through it

S_Mazza said:

Man,

You are the best thing to happen to that car in a long time. Sounds like you are cleaning up a big mess! By the way, if the fan relay in the IRCM is bad, it is replaceable. You have to drill out the rivets holding it together and do a little soldering, but it's not too bad.

Click to expand...

Thanks Mazza I share a passion for these cars and ive got high hopes for it (and myself in the learning process). These t birds are getting so rare theyre pretty hard to find in good condition nowadays. Mine went through a river flood which went half way up the car and previous owner blew the motor in it which was when i bought it... I dont think ill ever have the heart to send it to the junkyard if something else major happens to it, id just pull it in the garage and try and do whatever needs to be done with the help of you guys, lol.

I would replace the the relay in the IRCM like Mazza said. Take that wire off of the red/gr. splice the red/gr back together and make it water tight with shrink tubing. Then find out why the fan isn't working. Check all wiring, fuses, and relays in the circuit. you really need a wiring diagram. You should get an EVTM from Helm.

gr8ghost said:

Dude you really need to wire that correctly. That red/grn wire is the coil hot. It also has connections to the alternator, and as I recall the instrument panel or comes from there. It needs to be clean. There is also a relay that it connects to in the power distribution box. What year is your car. I can likely send a schematic if you like.

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Do you have a schematic available? I have a 93 auto. Not that I know how to read those things but hopefully I can figure it out. What kind of options do I have to doing this correctly without getting a new IRCM? I don't have the money at the moment to get one but if you guys say what is already there is bad then I need to fix it somehow, at least temporarily

I'm not saying your IRCM is definitely bad, but as you said, the fan hookup that the previous owner did is a clue that it might be. Then again, for all I know, maybe the IRCM was fine and the ECT sensor that should tell the EEC when the car is hot went bad. It's hard to say without putting a voltmeter on it, you know what I mean?

You can do some free diagnosis if you follow these instructions for checking EEC codes:
http://www.oldfuelinjection.com/?p=13

In the beginning of that process, the computer will try to run the low speed and the high speed fan for a couple of seconds. If the fan does not run, check for voltage at the wires from the IRCM to the fan. No voltage there means either the relay isn't working or it isn't being triggered. Actually, there are 2 relays - 1 for high speed, and 1 for low speed. You may even be able to use a test light to test for the trigger signal. I assume there are separate wires from the EEC to the IRCM for each relay. Not 100% sure without the schematic in front of me. See what you find out.

You can also test the ECT with a voltmeter (or ohmmeter) and some long straight pins in the back of the connector.
http://www.oldfuelinjection.com/?p=28

Incidentally, here is some good reading on IRCM internals. Different models, some differences in the units, but it's the same idea.
http://www.stangnet.com/mustang-forums/threads/ircm-relay-box.515313/

http://www.accutach.com/Documents/Anatomy of a 96 Mustang CCRM-R1.pdf

Ya. I can send a schematic in a PM. It will be a couple of days because I have to go to LA today and work tomorrow. Shoot me a PM to remind me.