73 Battery Wiring
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Oct 2017
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
73 Battery Wiring
Hi guys. Ran into an issue and I'm hoping you might be able to help me out. I replaced the battery in my car. There was a small red wire to the positive battery post and as I was putting it on it broke in the frame and I can't get to it. I am not sure where the other end goes.. whether to the engine compartment, fuse box etc. Haven't found the answer online yet. Any ideas? Car won't start without this.
Racer
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 334
Likes: 17
Officially and according to the 73 wiring diagram there is no separate line from the battery's plus to anywhere but the main thick wire (going to starter where it is connected to a smaller wire coming from/going to the horn relay as a major "plus" distribution point).
So I would assume someone (not to say Bubba) has built a special solution here. You could check in a first step whether the horn relay is powered.
Do you have a wiring diagram?
So I would assume someone (not to say Bubba) has built a special solution here. You could check in a first step whether the horn relay is powered.
Do you have a wiring diagram?
Racer
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 396
Likes: 101
From: Lehigh Valley Pennsylvania
Does anything work? If you tell us what works and doesn't work, we will be better able to help.
Also there is a member on-line that has access to and sends wiring diagrams free to members. If you can't find him in a search, I'll dig up the link
Also there is a member on-line that has access to and sends wiring diagrams free to members. If you can't find him in a search, I'll dig up the link
Banned Scam/Spammer
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 2,966
Likes: 991
From: MA
Someone might have put in a kill switch with that wire. There is not supposed to be any wire like that on the battery cable.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Oct 2017
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
Thanks for the info guys. The battery had a knife switch on the positive terminal so I am not sure if that smaller red wire that broke off in the frame was acting as a kill switch.
Doesn't seem like I have power to lights, radio etc. I will have to look for power at the horn relay.
Doesn't seem like I have power to lights, radio etc. I will have to look for power at the horn relay.
Racer
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 396
Likes: 101
From: Lehigh Valley Pennsylvania
Thanks for the info guys. The battery had a knife switch on the positive terminal so I am not sure if that smaller red wire that broke off in the frame was acting as a kill switch.
Doesn't seem like I have power to lights, radio etc. I will have to look for power at the horn relay.
Doesn't seem like I have power to lights, radio etc. I will have to look for power at the horn relay.
The only thing that the junction terminal and the horn relay share in common is the mount to the fender well and an internal connection between the junction and the horn relay. Check the horn. The horn relay is fed directly from the junction. If the horn worked before and still works, you have power to the junction, since the horn is fed directly from the junction. If the horn works, the problem is likely in the fusible link to the body, which supply power to most of the items inside the car. If the horn does not work, you problem is likely in the fusible link between the starter and the junction. In any event, it appears someone likely bypassed a defective wire or fusible link.
Another quick check is to put a jumper between the battery positive and the junction.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Oct 2017
Posts: 23
Likes: 0
Thanks guys. With regards to this "Another quick check is to put a jumper between the battery positive and the junction."
Is the junction on the drivers side fender? What would I then check in this scenario to validate what is wrong?
As the car sits now I have battery voltage at the starter but then when I check the post on the junction there is zero. How do you check if a fusible link is bad? Does it visually look bad?
While I was under the starter I was moving some wires and the purple wire broke near the fusible link. I was hoping to clean the ends and put them together to see if I had power but ran out of time.
Is the junction on the drivers side fender? What would I then check in this scenario to validate what is wrong?
As the car sits now I have battery voltage at the starter but then when I check the post on the junction there is zero. How do you check if a fusible link is bad? Does it visually look bad?
While I was under the starter I was moving some wires and the purple wire broke near the fusible link. I was hoping to clean the ends and put them together to see if I had power but ran out of time.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
Racer
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 396
Likes: 101
From: Lehigh Valley Pennsylvania
Alan was kind enough to post a picture of the junction in a previous post.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-location.html
This is for a 70? My 73 has a lug not a bus, but it is in the same general location. This is located on the driverside fenderwell.
I believe the purple wire is from the ignition switch and is powered when the key is in the start position.
If it isn't visibly broken/melted, sometimes you can feel the broken wire. If not, I stick a straight pin through the insulation.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-location.html
This is for a 70? My 73 has a lug not a bus, but it is in the same general location. This is located on the driverside fenderwell.
I believe the purple wire is from the ignition switch and is powered when the key is in the start position.
If it isn't visibly broken/melted, sometimes you can feel the broken wire. If not, I stick a straight pin through the insulation.