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Wiring A 1963 Chevy Corvette Grand Sport - A Painless PerformanceFrom the February, 2009 issue of Kit Car By Dave Orson Photography by Dave Orson
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When it comes to vintage specialty vehicles, there never seems to be an end to ideas and designs. From a '30s street rod to the rebuild of a '70s musclecar, an enthusiast will go out of his/her way to have something like no one else. The same goes for Dick Coup of Ft. Worth, Texas. Dick has been a fan of road course racing all his life and has participated on the ISCA show circuit with his '64 Corvette. Dick, a master of fiberglass, decided to build another Corvette, which would be a modified replica of the 1963 Grand Sport. Only five were produced, and they've all been restored. As with any complete build or restoration, several things need to be accomplished. Wiring is one of those crucial items for proper vehicle operation and dependability. Dick contacted the folks at Painless Performance Products, also in Ft. Worth, for advice on his wiring needs. John Roberts, one of the guys seen in the Painless booth at many shows, went to look at the Corvette and suggested the use of one of Painless' new Micro Remote mount harnesses. This harness allows the fuse block to be mounted anywhere in the car. The Micro Remote mount harness was a perfect solution for Dick, since he wanted the fuse block in the center console along with all the other special electrical switches. Great pains were taken to make the car a one of a kind, even down to the small lights that illuminate the numbers on the doors. The Micro harness has enough circuits for all the options, including the air conditioning Dick is adding. Being the car show guy he is, he also made special tubes and troughs to hold and conceal the wiring. Wiring is usually something that is accomplished by someone other than the kit car owner because of how intimidating it can be. Dick is no different. "I'll do almost anything with fiberglass-but the wiring, I leave to someone else." We documented John Roberts' installation of the Painless Performance Products wiring harness to learn how easy it might be for a kit car enthusiast to perform. Follow along and decide for yourself whether you'd rather leave it to the experts or do it yourself for your kit car project.  The first thing John did was...  The first thing John did was to lay out the part number 10130 Painless Performance Products wiring harness kit on a bench and get familiar with the overall design. The fuse block is pre-wired with all the circuits that are fused, and the wires that go to devices such as headlights from the switches are in marked bags for easy identification.  John installed the fuse block-mounting...  John installed the fuse block-mounting base on a special bracket that Dick, the Grand Sport's builder and owner, made. When finished, the bracket will swing out for easy access to the fuse block and wiring.  With the base installed, John...  With the base installed, John snapped on the fuse blocks and routed the wires to their respective destinations.  All the wires are labeled...  All the wires are labeled their entire length. By reading the labels, John confirmed the wires were correctly routed.  This close-up illustrates...  This close-up illustrates how the TXL high-temperature wires are labeled. The insulation and wires within are resistant to both heat and chemicals.  John installed the maxi fuse,...  John installed the maxi fuse, which will protect the entire electrical system from a major electrical short or incident. The key to placement of the maxi fuse is ease of servicing.  Since each group of lay-in...  Since each group of lay-in wires is individually packaged, a few circuits can be installed. When completed, the next group will find their new home, with John at the helm.  The taillight wires are about...  The taillight wires are about 18 feet long. John laid them on the garage floor beside the car to make sure they wouldn't tangle when pulled through the body.  Inside the rear fender well,...  Inside the rear fender well, Dick made a special opening in the B-pillar to allow the wires to be routed towards the front and rear of the body. This opening will also permit the door racing number lights (arrow) to be serviced.  The wires were then pulled...  The wires were then pulled through an opening into the trunk. Note the blue trough (arrow), which the wires will lay in once the final routing is finished.  Exiting behind the driver's...  Exiting behind the driver's kick panel, John routed the other end of the wires to the front of the car.  Wiring in original reproduction...  Wiring in original reproduction taillight sockets, as well as a new license plate light, came next.  The lights were wired in,...  The lights were wired in, and the wires were placed in the trough for a sanitary installation.  Twin electric fuel pumps were...  Twin electric fuel pumps were mounted in the trunk, and additional wires were routed to the fuel pump relays from the switches located in the console. These relays will ensure maximum output from the pumps.  With the taillights finished,...  With the taillights finished, John turned his wiring talents to the dash. First, he wired the headlight switch connector. Using the original style connectors on switches, when available, will allow the dash to be easily removed later for servicing.  The Grand Sports replica creator...  The Grand Sports replica creator found a universal ignition switch with connector, which John wired and installed.  A new dimmer switch was mounted...  A new dimmer switch was mounted in the original location and wired.  John set the dash in place...  John set the dash in place to get a measurement of the wiring harness dash wires. A quick-disconnect will be wired in to allow the entire dash assembly to be easily removed.  After running the dash panel...  After running the dash panel wires, John cut them the required length and installed the quick-disconnect. The 12-way disconnect kit, part number 40011, is also from Painless.  At this juncture, John had...  At this juncture, John had all the gauges and switches installed in the dash panel. He fabricated a small harness and routed the contained wires to the quick-disconnect.  Here's a view of the finished...  Here's a view of the finished dash panel with the quick-disconnect, ready to set and plug in. Note the grounding strip on each lower side of the panel. These terminal strips provided all the grounds needed for the gauges and indicator lights.  Speaking of grounding strips,...  Speaking of grounding strips, this one is on the dash mounting cross bar. The cross bar is tied directly to the chassis when the body is mounted.  The finite details came next-like...  The finite details came next-like plugging in the turn and hazard flashers, tying up some wires with plastic ties and general clean up. With that, the dash area's finished. Note the mounted fuse block in the background with the two 15-amp relays pre-installed. One is for the horn. The other auxiliary relay will be used to power the A/C unit later.  As viewed from a low perspective,...  As viewed from a low perspective, the finished dash looks good. There will be small panels added later to enclose the swing out tray for the fuse block.  Dick and John designed the...  Dick and John designed the fuse block to swing out for easy service.  John tackled the headlight...  John tackled the headlight wires next, which will be routed to each headlight and parking light assembly.  After routing the headlight...  After routing the headlight and parking light wires, he cut them the correct length.  Since there are two headlights...  Since there are two headlights per side, a splice is used to connect the wire from the dimmer switch to the two input wires of the lights. Once the splice is crimped, the heat shrink will cover and protect the splice from the elements.  The new reproduction park/turn...  The new reproduction park/turn socket was spliced in and the horn and fan relay were wired in. This area is finished.  Of utmost importance with...  Of utmost importance with fiberglass-bodied cars, John installed another metal grounding strip at the base of the radiator support on each side, similar to the ones used in the dash area for the lighting grounds.  John installed the electric...  John installed the electric fan relay on the radiator. For maximum performance, it's important that the fan relay is as close to the fan and main power input as possible.  Of utmost importance with...  Of utmost importance with fiberglass-bodied cars, John installed another metal grounding strip at the base of the radiator support on each side, similar to the ones used in the dash area for the lighting grounds.  The wires for the alternator...  The wires for the alternator and coolant temperature sender were routed through a conduit and cut to length. The alternator is a one-wire unit, so it was simple to hook up-just the output wire.  A heat shrink terminal was...  A heat shrink terminal was installed on the coolant temperature wire and installed on the sender. The oil pressure sender was done in the same manner.  John routed the starter wires...  John routed the starter wires and attached them to the solenoid.  John fabricated a ground strap...  John fabricated a ground strap and attached it between the fuel pump block-off plate and the motor mount frame bracket. There can never be too many ground wires connecting the different body parts together.  The finished shot of the engine...  The finished shot of the engine compartment reveals a clean, neat and very functional wiring and engine installation.  The last item on the wiring...  The last item on the wiring installation is to make the battery cables. The Painless kit, part number 40100, came with No. 1 red cable for the positive and No. 1 black cable for the battery ground. A hammer swage device was used to install the copper ring lugs also furnished with the kit.  Once the lugs were installed,...  Once the lugs were installed, a piece of glued heat shrink was installed to protect the connection from possible corrosion.  The cable is completed and...  The cable is completed and ready to install.  Dick installed the master...  Dick installed the master disconnect in the body between the back glass and the trunk lid.  John installed the battery...  John installed the battery cable on the master disconnect and routed it to the battery.  With all of the electrical...  With all of the electrical system now installed, a 10-amp battery charger is hooked to the battery cables. All circuits are tested for proper operation. The battery charger is used, instead of the battery, because if there was a circuit accidentally wired wrong, the small output charger would not cause damage to the rest of the electrical system. As you can guess, no mistakes occurred. The Grand Sport replica is ready to rock, but not shock!
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