Hi i bought a 78 el camino last year and the guy had already put a 350 into it the guy i bought it from told me that it was a project car im just now getting to work on it well underneath the steering wheel is a bundle of wires everywhere i had a wiring diagram i printed from here but there is wires that are different colors and everything the car wont start and the battery dies instantly so im thinkin there is a parasite load somewhere in the car i was just wondering if anybody has any more in detail wiring diagrams and i was also wondering how hard it would be to just take out all wires and start from scratch if anybody has done that and how hard it is and where i would find the wires to do all that please help im lost and any help will be greatly appreciated

thanks
jake

I just did that and guess what... MINE IS A '78! Rewireing will take you aproximately a week or two if you do it right. Get a painless wireing harness, it is about $150 to $300 depending on who you buy it from, you won't be disapointed make sure that you get GM Keyed Ignition 18 circuit. The first thing you need to do is get the dash out of there, it is a helluva lot easier to work on then. Get a new Haynes shop manual (this is what I used) it is by far the most accurate for rewireing out of all the aftermarket shop manuals. Make sure you invest in a good 500 or so mini zip ties and masking tape (this will keep the wires in good order and marked easily with a sharpie and tape). There will be a number of modules to be aware of, includeing the lighting timer (if equiped, orange box), horn relay, key buzzer and seatbelt buzzer. Feel free to email me I will be happy to walk you through it! It is pain in the butt, but if you have a couple cases of your favorite beverage and couple freinds... there is nothing better! :cool:

Here is the website http://www.painlesswiring.com/viewnews.asp this is the part number 10201 just click on universal harnesses. You can get this from Summit Raceing Equipment, and OPGI. :cool:

Installing a universal harness in to replace the OEM harness might not be such a good idea. I have also bought cars with wiring nightmares and I know the urge to say "screw-it, I'll just start all over" is strong but you may want to reassess the situation first. Just my opinion based on a lot of real world situations.

There's lots of project cars for sale "90% complete"
But one friend explained that the first 90% of the job takes 90% of your time and money, and the last 10% takes the other 90% of your time and money. :lol: When guys figure that out they dump the 90% project.

Seriously, our public library has factory manuals for Chevy--big fold out schematics for the main wiring diagram and color coded wiring charts for individual systems like cruise control. Check your library.

thanks for the replys ill check out the wiring schematics before i go all out and buy the wiring harness for $315 i appreciate all the help

take your wirering diagram to kinkos and have it blown up real big.that way you can hang it up on your garage wall and its not as hard on the eyes 8O . you can highlight it with markers as you go this work great been ther done that