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Hey guys,

I've gone on a side quest while trying to figure out the brakes still. I wanted to try and get the window to roll up on the car and I discovered the nightmare that is the relay and fuse box.

I've read the sticky and a couple other posts about the wiring on these cars and it is not looking fun. My relay box under the dash is MESSED UP and extremely corroded in all of the blocks that had missing relays. Is there any hope of disconnecting the blocks (since it looks like they go together like legos) and cleaning them out? I believe with the fuses I'll be able to clean up the contact points and put in new fuses, but not totally sure what to do about the one missing contact

My plan was also to try and restore the wiring back to factory as much as possible and use oem style harnesses because whoever wired this car during its journey created chaos. I have not been successful in finding any harnesses, but it is also hard for me to search for part numbers as I don't know fully what's there, what's not, and what has been rednecked. Is there anywhere that has oem style harnesses premade?

Here is a video of the nightmare https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-5xPucGCBHtrMK--Jzxv7uHUsgvwp848/view?usp=sharing
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Just trying my best to figure this out without total failure

Poppy the '82 924 Resurrection in Progress

[chuck21401]

[chuck21401]

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[Beartooth]

My 931 had/has similar issues - maybe not as bad. I'd dig up something called Deoxit (a deoxidizer for electronic connectors and components) and give every contact a squirt. One issue I had was my blinkers would barely cycle, or sometimes blink once and stay on; once I cleaned up the blades on the breaker and the socket, it worked fine. That switch Chuck pointed out sure looks like somebody's temporary (hopefully) solution for a bad relay. I just used a jumper wire while I was working to get my car to run, and I think that's ok when you're just working to get it going. I'd have about the same answer on the wiring harness - it's probably going to be a custom job and very expensive. But the good news is, your fuse and relay boxes don't look any worse than mine, and my car has been functional enough to put on over 6000 miles. The fuel pump circuitry has been the one big problem: I've had a couple no-starts and died on the street once because of losing contact at the fuse. 924ACR has a post somewhere in which he details spicing a blade socket and fuse in place of the original fuse. Anyway, I can say the electrics are one of the biggest trouble spots on these, but most likely you can clean up what you've got, and you should only have a few things to fix or bypass.
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1980 931 diamond in the rough

[chuck21401]

[Beartooth]

You can find anything you'd need at a parts store, but for the price of a handful of connectors, you can buy an assortment online with a hundred or so pieces of the same or better quality that will come in handy down the road. Lowe's or Home Depot will have the standard wiring multitool (has a cutter, stripper, terminal crimper, and a few other things built in), as well as assortments of terminals - but they're pretty low-grade. Definitely investigate anything you're buying online - the low-grade stuff will probably work, but you get what you pay for to some degree. I buy a lot of stuff like that from Summit Racing; not the cheapest source, but they're reasonable and have always had great service if I've had an issue. https://www.summitracing.com/search/part-type/wiring-terminals $50 worth of terminal assortment and wiring tool should get you going. I've also bought a ratcheting crimper and a variety of terminals, but you don't need much to start.
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1980 931 diamond in the rough

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Thanks Chuck and Beartooth, I'll have to get to hunting for supplies. I'm planning on starting with the fuses as I think it'll be the easiest to start (and I need that stupid window to roll up because winter) I will get to the relay panel eventually as honestly I'm afraid to touch something and then the car stops running. Do you happen to remember off hand what gauge and size spade connect we need?

I will report back with cries for help if things go south once I get started.
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Just trying my best to figure this out without total failure

Poppy the '82 924 Resurrection in Progress

[924RACR]

Yeah, those brass terminals are super-common and easy/cheap to replace; it's just a matter of getting a good properly-executed crimp on them.

$0.26 each at Newark Electronics, where I got 'em for my rewiring...
https://www.newark.com/amp-te-connectivity/60249-1/terminal-female-disconnect-0-81mm/dp/99B2261

I got my crimpers from Cycle Terminal, and I find them excellent (along with the instructions he has for how to properly execute good crimps).

I really dislike anything bought from the local hardware or auto parts store - it's all the cheapest Chinese junk, and while it'll do in a pinch for roadside repairs, the objective here is making things better than 20-40-year old wiring, which means high quality new connectors and good quality tools, proper heat shrink to keep the water out, and good execution.

Unfortunately, just putting new connectors on the old wires isn't quite as awesome as all new wire - since water can wick up inside the insulation and cause corrosion there too - but it's easily 80-90% of the way there.

I have also used brass/silver polish - Tarn-X - on my connectors, especially the ground connections hard-mounted to the body, since they can't really be replaced - and I've found it to do wonders... very easy to use with an old toothbrush and get in all the nooks and crannies...
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Vaughan Scott
Webmeister
'79 924 #77 SCCA H Prod racecar
'82 931 Plat. Silver
#25 Hidari Firefly P2 sports prototype

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[924RACR]

Most important thing to get those crimps done well: a reference for what is a good crimp, and why.

Cycle Terminal, in addition to selling very good tools at a reasonable price for the hobbyist, has EXCELLENT detail on this with photographic examples on his website:
https://www.cycleterminal.com/crimp-tools.html

It's a must read if you want to do a good job; just scroll past the tools to about halfway down where he shows what good and bad crimps look like.
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Vaughan Scott
Webmeister
'79 924 #77 SCCA H Prod racecar
'82 931 Plat. Silver
#25 Hidari Firefly P2 sports prototype

[Raize]

Get a set of de-pinning tools, it makes it a lot easier and you will be able to de-pin all sorts of connectors on the car if needed.

None of the relays will stop the car from running except the fuel pump relay.

Given the corrosion, I would ask, is the battery tray solid?

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[Raize]

Might be that the options were in all the looms but the relays and the actual hardware not present. Probably just the previous owner couldn’t afford relays or stole them for something else.

You’re missing in the top row:

Fuel pump
Fog lamp (think these hang below the front bumper, or it might refer to rear fog lights which are in the rear light cluster)
Seat belt warning (lol)
Rear window defogger

And in the bottom row:

Headlight flasher relay (low beam high beam switch)
Extra headlight relay (these are in the front bumper)
Fan relay (not strictly necessary)

Power windows is the one hanging on its own.