Professional Motorsports Wiring Harness Venture

[Shoeless]

Hey Guys,

So I have been taking some HPA classes for a bit learning EFI Tuning and general wiring harness construction and recently pulled the trigger on their Professional Motorsports Harness Construction class to learn the methods of constructing a top tier motorsports wiring harness for my GTM. I'm about a third of the way through the classes and have decided to go down this path for my GTM wiring harness. This class builds on what was taught in the previous two classes (Wiring Fundamentals and Club Level Harness Construction).

I figured since this will be an area that might garner a lot of attention, I decided on a new thread separate from my build thread was appropriate. I plan on documenting the training as I go along, the differences between lower level wiring harness construction versus a motorsports level harness, the tools required (which are damn expensive BTW), and the actual construction of the harness for my GTM. What I have learned so far is that this process will easily take 4 X more time than just a standard wiring harness construction, with way more time upfront in planning even before you cut the first wire.

The training starts out with the following main areas:
1. Component Listing and Physical Location
2. Power Supply Design
3. Sensor Design
4. Grounding Design
5. Actuator Design
6. Material Selection
7. Harness Routing
8. Concentric Twisting
9. Construction Plan

I'm currently somewhere between 3 and 5 laying out what the current harness would look like for an AEM Infinity Series 7 ECU integrated into the GTM. This will help me create the plan for the full pin out documentation and a general understanding and check that I have everything accounted for.



As mentioned this process will take significant time, but the end result will be a wiring harness that will withstand any operating conditions and perform for years to come.

Stay tuned for more and I hope this will be as enjoyable for everyone else and it will be for me to learn and actually build a high end motorsports harness.

[GWL]

I look forward to seeing what you put together here. For my roadster build I made significant changes to the harness supplied with my kit. Even added a second harness, ignition switched and unswitched to manage my accessories such as cruise control, A/C and heating, driving lights, radiator modulated cooling fan control and more. Read as much as I could in the standard auto books and got involved in dicussions here and elsewhere but I know I only am touching the surface.

Again, I am looking forward to your posts.

George

[GWL]

Your schematic - what kind of learning curve does it take to develope and what program/software are you using? Obviously I'll be working from the wrong end as my wiring is 95% done.

George

[Shoeless]

Your schematic - what kind of learning curve does it take to develope and what program/software are you using? Obviously I'll be working from the wrong end as my wiring is 95% done.

George

Hey George,

Thank you for the interest in this post. I figured there would be plenty of interest in this community. The software I am using is Visio Professional 2016 and thankfully I had a reason to get it loaded on my work computer. The software itself is pretty straight forward. I simply googled the topics I needed to learn (Creating special connectors, page layout size,...) the simple stuff, but some things were a little difficult to find, like creating custom wire colors. I found this to be cumbersome in the software as you are creating special formatting for each wire and the file size quickly grew out of control and started to lag. In order to alleviate this issue, I followed the training from HPA on wire color choices:

Power Supply - Red
Power Ground - Black
Sensor Supply - Orange
Sensor Ground - Green
CAN H - White
CAN L - Green
All others - White

This will also cut down on the cost of procuring wire. When creating a Club Level/Daily Driver wiring harness TXL wire is the preferred go to, but when you step up to Professional Motorsports level you need to use Tefzel. Tefzel is Milspec, more tolerant to heat, smaller diameter sheathing and requires special tools to strip and crimp.

The learning curve to simply create the diagram is very intensive. The approach I have taken is pull as many schematics from AEM as possible related to a GM LS motor application, using what will apply to my build and deleting what is not used. This is currently where I am at. So far I think I have put in about 30 - 40 hours of pulling schematics, dissecting available pin out documentation from the schematics, and laying out what I will use in my set up. Each harness will be unique to the car and application, so it's important to follow the steps listed in the first post of outlining all the sensors, actuators, and grounding scheme you will use.

Its also worth noting, I have started with no automotive wiring experience, except installing some stereo equipment in my daily drivers, so its a steep learning curve for me at the moment. Not to mention reading the 400+ page manual for the AEM Infinity Series 7 ECU. The majority of topics are brand new to me, so I have taken the time to pick up more books on the topic as well as taking the HPA Tuning Classes.

[crash]

If you are going to step up to "professional grade" wiring harnesses with Tefzel, Deutsch plugs, and Raychem then I would recommend ProWire USA. Nick is a long time supplier for my personal projects and he has everything you could need to build whatever you may want. He also sells in small quantities and caters to motosports. Abouth the only items I have found he doesn't have are Lemo plugs. He says they are too expensive to stock, but I keep asking for them every time I get something from him. Maybe someday...

https://www.prowireusa.com/

[Shoeless]

If you are going to step up to "professional grade" wiring harnesses with Tefzel, Deutsch plugs, and Raychem then I would recommend ProWire USA. Nick is a long time supplier for my personal projects and he has everything you could need to build whatever you may want. He also sells in small quantities and caters to motosports. Abouth the only items I have found he doesn't have are Lemo plugs. He says they are too expensive to stock, but I keep asking for them every time I get something from him. Maybe someday...

https://www.prowireusa.com/

Thanks for the heads up Crash!! With all the suppliers out there its definitely nice to get someone recommended to go to.

[jamesfr58]

Shoeless,
It will be interesting to follow this new thread on building your wire harness. I also scrapped the painless harness on my build. In going with the Infinity Box system, I also built my own wiring to integrate the different components used in my build. I have the Infinity Box CAN bus system, Digital Dawg RFID keyless system, E-brake electronic parking brake. The CAN bus system ties into the Digital Dawg RFID system for safety systems starting the GTM. They control the different accessary systems, accessary 1 come on with the first push of the ignition button turning on systems that I want to run without turning the ignition system on, with a second push of the ignition button the accessory 2 circuit come on turning on all main ignition systems and causing the start button to flash ready for start. The third push and hold to start the GTM with brake depressed (safety system) and ready to go.

I also have a Dakota Digital HDX dash gauge system monitoring all functions and systems required and displayed on the dash. With this system I also have the GPS speed module and a 2 speed fan controller that I can set the on/off temperatures for both fans, this system ties into he AC system to control the fans during AC on / AC off and there is also a window switch controller controlling the AC clutch to protect against over speed conditions that will turn off the AC compressor clutch at a specified RPM and turn the AC clutch back o at a specified RPM.

To get this all to work together I also had to build my own wire harness and bring the wiring from the ECU (I also have a create LS3 engine supplied with custom controller for the engine that was built for my GTM) into the Dakota Digital system controlling everything else.

I am sure your wiring harness when finished will be what my harness should have looked like as all I did was build a logic tree for the systems and build the harness from there. There were a few hiccups and had to move a few wires around but got it all working. Each sensor from engine has its own separate wiring, dedicated ground, power supply and in some cased is inside shielding to prevent electrical interference. I am sure this method caused me to run more wiring than might have been needed but on some of the other cars I have in my collection there have been and still are issues with gauges etc. due to common grounds and no shielding.

It may have been possible to make it look cleaner and hide more of the wiring if I had done what you are doing and put the wiring schematic down on paper instead of in my head, but I did not go through the same exercise you are now doing (or I should say, did not do it the right way after building my logic tree) and develop a really good road map for my built harness should I every forget where the wiring goes (which I am sure I will do someday) to be able to look up and trace a wiring problem easily if there is ever a easy wiring problem!

So now that I have written a dissertation on my wiring, I will be great to follow your new thread on the development and implementation of building a pro class wire harness. Thank you for sharing your learning experience and knowledge as you move forward building a first-class pro wiring harness as I am sure you will do after following you on this form and he work you have done to date. Keep up the good work….

[Shoeless]

Hey James,

Looks like you and I both have some of the same features in mind for our GTMs. Both of our setups will control both fans at different temps, AC clutch control, LS3 with custom controller, and all monitored via a dash display. I always like seeing what others have done/are doing to get ideas and make sure I'm not out in left field with my expectations. Although I have had some setbacks, I think I have it all straightened out now.

Going with a complete standalone ECU that I will wire up from scratch, and program from scratch, A LOT of time will go into the planning. Even once I have the sensors, actuators, power supply, and grounding design all laid out, then comes the routing design (I need to have basically everything on the engine and in place to do the harness routing) and then plan the concentric twisting design.

I'm really looking forward to this as I was originally overwhelmed by the idea of wiring up the GTM, but I'm taking it one step at a time and following the classes I'm taking.

[Shoeless]

I have finally arrived at a point where I can confidently say my pinout diagram and associated documentation for for my standalone ECU is complete. I'll likely do some tweaks along the way, but she is 99% complete. It has been quite the journey from the first posting on this topic. This has taken countless days of research and teaching myself the basics and advance functions of standalone ECU control and the knowledge I have gained along the way will allow me to troubleshoot any issue I find along the way. At this point I can say I have the following items of the 9 step process I'm following laid out.

2. Power Supply Design
3. Sensor Design
4. Grounding Design
5. Actuator Design

I had to halfway skip the first step as I know all the components, but their physical location will take more work on the GTM. Hopefully the guys at Mendy can get me my transaxle and I can start laying out physical location of everything in the car.

[VRaptor SpeedWorks, LLC]

Dang....you are in for a lot of work there!! I do not envy the work you have ahead of you.

[SteveE]

Great Job glad to see that you have gotten the design part out of the way. keep up the outstanding work

Steve

[claybags]

Geezz!!! My hat is off to all you electrical geniuses out there. I thought the Painless harness was a PITA!!
Cheers , Jeff

[Logan]

As a big proponent for Motorsports-grade hardware...this is awesome to see. Keep this ball rolling, and post the updates as you go. It’s fun to follow along!

[Shoeless]

Dang....you are in for a lot of work there!! I do not envy the work you have ahead of you.

You got that right LOL. I was told the amount of time involved in the motorsports grade level harness will be about 4 X that of a track day level harness, but in the end it will be a true work of art.

Great Job glad to see that you have gotten the design part out of the way. keep up the outstanding work

Steve

Thank you Sir!!!

Geezz!!! My hat is off to all you electrical geniuses out there. I thought the Painless harness was a PITA!!
Cheers , Jeff

Thanks Jeff, this was quite the feat to accomplish. Even more challenging was figuring out how to integrate the other systems (InfinityBox, Vintage Air,...) to make sure everything is talking to each other the way it should.

As a big proponent for Motorsports-grade hardware...this is awesome to see. Keep this ball rolling, and post the updates as you go. It’s fun to follow along!

Thanks Logan!!! More posts to come.

[beeman]

Impressive.
Do you have an approximate date for your gearbox?

[Shoeless]

Impressive.
Do you have an approximate date for your gearbox?

Thanks beeman!!!

It was supposed to be 3 months ago when I sent the last check, but then more excuses started to fly. I’m kind of at a standstill as I have the frame on roller dollies to move it around to get the shipping crate into my garage for when the trans arrives. Once it arrives, I can finally put it back on hard stands and throw the motor back in and go from there.

[Shoeless]

Got some goodies in the mail after blowing some Black Friday cash. Although I'm still not ready to start building the harness, I couldn't pass up these deals to start getting everything ready.

- Crimpers and wire strippers on the left include an Ideal Ergo Elite with Wire Stop, Ideal Strip Master HD, Ideal Cutter, Sargent 3137 Splice Crimper, budget crimpers, and various Deutsch and Delphi removal tools.
- Top left is are 25 ft spools or Raychem DR-25 in various diameters.
- Top middle box are various lengths of Raychem RT-375 (used to put over printed heat shrink labels to seal them)
- Top right is a race spec ID kit (used to identify wires when you are using one color, white mainly, for many of your circuits)
- Bottom right is Raychem and Molex splice kit (includes solder sleeves and several variants of race spec splices)
- Bottom middle is kapton tape, kevlar lace, and a couple connector plugs.

I'll still need to pick up a DMC AFM-8 crimper, but before I do that I'll spec out all the mil-spec connectors I will use. Each one has very specific pins and require different positioners for the AFM8 to crimp them properly, so I want to know how many different positions I need before I order those up. Sometimes there are bundle kits that include some of the popular positioners to save a little, so I'll hold off on these.

[jamesfr58]

Sean,

Looking good, it takes a while and I had to modify a few things but in the end you know where every wire and circuit goes which is a help if you every need to diagnosis a problem later. Keep us informed and good luck lots of tedious work ahead but well worth it.

[crash]

I'll still need to pick up a DMC AFM-8 crimper, but before I do that I'll spec out all the mil-spec connectors I will use. Each one has very specific pins and require different positioners for the AFM8 to crimp them properly, so I want to know how many different positions I need before I order those up. Sometimes there are bundle kits that include some of the popular positioners to save a little, so I'll hold off on these.

Just get the three position turret and it will cover all the pins you will use. Basically just three different size pins. Between the tool adjustment for wire size and the turret adjustment for pin size you should be covered. I have never needed anything else.

[Shoeless]

Just get the three position turret and it will cover all the pins you will use. Basically just three different size pins. Between the tool adjustment for wire size and the turret adjustment for pin size you should be covered. I have never needed anything else.

Thanks for the heads up on those. I've seen them and figured they were for several sizes, just didn't quite fully understand them yet. This confirms my suspicion.

[Shoeless]

I've got a couple more orders into suppliers for needed tooling, some Tefzel wire, and several Deutsch AS connectors, so this won't be a large update on the construction of the engine wiring harness process, but on a topic that we all may think is a simple process. Crimping and sealing an auto sport level splice.

As I'm working on knocking out odds and ends, I have finally started on running wiring in the GTM. The first steps I'm working on are following the install instructions for the InfinityBox system. They all basically start with running power and ground, running switch and activation wiring, as well as CAN communications wiring. Since my front Power Cell and InMotion are right next to each other, the long CAN wire is not needed and offers up the perfect opportunity to discuss crimping and sealing in order to cut down the length.

List of Tools and Materials:
Heat Gun
Sargent 3137CT Crimpers
Raychem D-609-06 Mini-Seal Butt Splice
Raychem SCL 3/16 Diameter

First step was to layout and cut the CAN wire to the length needed and then stagger them so the butt splices won't be close to each other. I also did some test insulation stripping and recovered a piece of SCL just to make sure I was going to be happy with the end product.



From there, you need to choose the proper splice. Raychem offers the following three options for smaller diameter crimps and its all based on Circular Mil Area of the combined wires looking to crimp.

Red Band combined CMA 304-1510
Tin Plated: D-609-03
Nickel Plated: D-609-12

Blue Band combined CMA 1058-2680
Tin Plated: D-609-04
Nickel Plated: D-609-13

Yellow Band combined CMA 2350-6755
Tin Plated: D-609-05
Nickel Plated: D-609-14

The wiring for the CAN network on the InfinityBox system is 18 AWG which has a CMA of 1559 and is on the higher end of the red band, but I did a test crimp and pull test and it held perfectly. The proper length of the insulation to be removed is based on the diameter of the wire itself. You want to have between 1 and 2 x the diameter of the wire conductor exposed after the crimping operation is complete. The Tefzel wire strippers I picked up have a wire stop to perfectly be able to repeat wire strip length, but this is not tefzel wire, so I did not use that stripper. You can see in the crimps below that I have about 1 x the diameter of the 18 AWG wire exposed after the crimping operation.



From here, I slide on two pieces of Raychem SCL Heatshrink, as I wanted a semi-rigid and sealed butt-splice, and recovered with the heat gun. You can see after recovering the Raychem SCL that the glue on the inside of the heat shrink has melted and is perfectly sealing the butt-splice.



From there, I completed the other connection and recovered the SCL and now have a finished CAN cable. II performed a continuity check with my volt meter and all checked out. I slid some of the wire protector on from the original section of the CAN wire and installed for a test fit. Perfect fit.



In the long run, if I was going to do more of these types of connections on the InfinityBox setup, I would have approached this completely differently. I would have de-pinned one of the network connectors, procured need terminals that are proper for this plug, crimped on new network connectors, then re-pinned them in the network connector. But since I'm picking up a boat load of other crimpers for the engine wiring harness and battery cables, the pocketbook couldn't quite justify this for only a couple connections LOL.

[Shoeless]

I have started to receive some goodies over the last couple of days and the below Deutsch AS connectors are a perfect example to share some more information. I plan on using these as flange connectors for the wheel speed sensors in the ZR1 hubs I have on my build. I will mount them close to the brake lines, using the appropriate gasket and nut plate, and will provide a sealed passthrough for the wiring for my wheel speed sensors.

Here are the associated PNs:
Left (Flange Socket): AS008-98SN
Right (Free Plug): AS608-98PN
Gasket (not pictured): GV-08
Nut Plate (not pictured): ATM396-8

This set of matched plug/socket combo will accept 3 x 20 ga. tefzel wires and will be sealed with a shrinkable boot and potting compound. This will accomodate the two signal wires and a passthrough of the shielding (the signal wiring will be a two conductor shielded braid).

I'm pacing myself on purchasing all the connectors and raw materials to not take a hit to the bank account all at once LOL. These are a thing of beauty, but damn pricy.

[crash]

You might want to also check out Mouser and the two pin Lemo plugs they offer. I actually am responsible for getting that line item added to their inventory as I use them specifically for the wheel speed sensors. As with the ones you have there, they are pricey, but the Lemo plugs are quite a bit smaller and you can put them on the WSS wire and then mount the connector on the a arm as the form factor is significantly smaller than what you have there. This eliminates a splice, which I do as much as possible.

[Aircontroller]

Hey, is this the course?

https://www.hpacademy.com/courses/pr...-construction/

[Shoeless]

You might want to also check out Mouser and the two pin Lemo plugs they offer. I actually am responsible for getting that line item added to their inventory as I use them specifically for the wheel speed sensors. As with the ones you have there, they are pricey, but the Lemo plugs are quite a bit smaller and you can put them on the WSS wire and then mount the connector on the a arm as the form factor is significantly smaller than what you have there. This eliminates a splice, which I do as much as possible.

I'll have to check those out. Could you share the PN of the ones you are referencing? I did a quick look and there are tons of options for Lemo.

[Shoeless]

Hey, is this the course?

https://www.hpacademy.com/courses/pr...-construction/

Evening Aircontroller,

Yes it is. I started with their wiring fundamentals, worked through the club day course, and finished off the professional motorsports class a little while back. i have also gone through most of the tuning classes as well as I want to do all the tuning on my build myself. The courses are very organized, full of content, and walks you through practical real world examples. Plus once you purchase the courses, you have access to them for life. You can access them as much as you want. I find myself referring back to them several times to make sure I'm absorbing the knowledge.

I started by watching one of their free Facebook 1 hour tuning sessions and at the end they give you a reduced price on their tuning package. From there I sign up for their free giveaways every so often and when they do the giveaway they always shoot you a coupon for $$$ off any new courses you want to order. I also just picked up their new offering by Racecraft on wheel alignment since I'll be do that myself as well.

[crash]

I'll have to check those out. Could you share the PN of the ones you are referencing? I did a quick look and there are tons of options for Lemo.

Sorry, don't have one in front of me and I would prefer getting the PN off the body of the plug so I know it is correct. I'll stop by the shop this afternoon and try and get the PN.

[crash]

LEMO part numbers are:

FGG.0T.302.CLAC50

PHG.0T.302.CLLC50

Mouser part numbers are:

736-FGG0T302CLAC50

736-PHG0T302CLLC50

[Shoeless]

LEMO part numbers are:

FGG.0T.302.CLAC50

PHG.0T.302.CLLC50

Mouser part numbers are:

736-FGG0T302CLAC50

736-PHG0T302CLLC50

Thanks for running by the shop and getting these numbers for me. I'll take a look at the data sheet and get educated on them.

[Shoeless]

Hey guys,

I decided it was time to practice my soldering and potting skills on a test button for my steering wheel button plate I'm putting together. This skill will be repeated several times for every sensor, and possibly every coil, for my build.

Equipment:
Tefzel 20 ga wire and wire ID kit
60/40 rosen core solder
ResinTech TR125 Potting Compound
Swivel base bench vice

I started out by cutting all the wire to length (Red - LED +, Black LED -, White with Black Stripe C, and White with Orange Stripe NO), stripping proper length of insulation, tinning the wire itself, tinned the connectors on the switch, and finally joining the wires to the proper terminals. Once a pull test was conducted I added an additional strain relief loop for each wire and tried to turn the loops inboard. Then cut up some plastic and used packing tape to create a form around the switch to hold the potting compound. Now that the switch was ready, I mixed up RT125, filled a syringe, and then injected the potting compound around the solder joints and filled up the form to cover the strain relief loops. Let set for 24 hours and bam, a fully functional switch ready to install.

I've got to source some moldable shrinkable boots or use a combination of Raychem SLC, ATUM, and DR-25 to finish this off nicely on the back side.

[VRaptor SpeedWorks, LLC]

Very cool! That should be darn-near indestructible!

[Shoeless]

Very cool! That should be darn-near indestructible!

Rock solid, that’s the plan

[jamesfr58]

Looks very good and as rock solid is an understatement, should hold together no matter how much vibration it gets....

[Shoeless]

Looks very good and as rock solid is an understatement, should hold together no matter how much vibration it gets....

Hey James, you hit the nail on the head. The major benefit to going down this path is to withstand vibration. This approach is far superior than purchasing the plug and splicing the wiring. If I go through with my plan on the engine harness, the only non milspec connectors will be for the fuel injectors. The reason behind that is that the LS style injector plugs are USCAR and are designed to withstand a motorsports grade application.

[crash]

You really have to use the plugs that are there for all the sensors, and injectors. Again, Pro Wire USA carries almost all of the pins for the stock plugs so you don't have to try and reuse the ones you pull out. This gives a no splice wiring harness with proper pins that have not been stressed by reusing them.

https://prowireusa.com/

[Shoeless]

You really have to use the plugs that are there for all the sensors, and injectors. Again, Pro Wire USA carries almost all of the pins for the stock plugs so you don't have to try and reuse the ones you pull out. This gives a no splice wiring harness with proper pins that have not been stressed by reusing them.

https://prowireusa.com/

I'm thinking of potting and booting all the sensors to a pig tail with mil-spec connectors. Definitely a costly approach, but rock solid. Plus I'm enjoying the learning.

ProWire has been absolutely great to work with and thank you for recommending them a while back. I've made two orders with them so far and am very pleased with how quickly they pull my order and get it to my door step. Even the packaging is top notch, with most items sealed in individual plastic bags with proper labeling. On top of that, they have been the only place that will sell higher quality larger gauge wire by the foot.

[crash]

I'm thinking of potting and booting all the sensors to a pig tail with mil-spec connectors. Definitely a costly approach, but rock solid. Plus I'm enjoying the learning.

ProWire has been absolutely great to work with and thank you for recommending them a while back. I've made two orders with them so far and am very pleased with how quickly they pull my order and get it to my door step. Even the packaging is top notch, with most items sealed in individual plastic bags with proper labeling. On top of that, they have been the only place that will sell higher quality larger gauge wire by the foot.

That's great to hear as I have used them for over 10 years and seen their line items grow and their business expand. I have always been very pleased with their service, but I do see a lot of new faces when I pop in there these days so it is good to know that the owner is keeping the quality service side going. Here is the specific page with the plug terminals. Some of these I have not found anywhere else, and, as you said, even if I did find them, I would have to buy quantity.

https://prowireusa.com/c-11-contacts-terminals.aspx

[Shoeless]

Thank for the link crash, its great to have exceptional suppliers to work with on a project like this. My final product will only be as good as the input materials.

While my repainted axle is drying I decided to prep and check the four buttons I'll be using for the steering wheel. The first one was a test run to see if everything would work the way I anticipated. All was good so this cleared the way to proceed. Exactly as before, I cut all the wires to length, stripped them, and tinned them with solder in preparation to attach to the switches. I then tinned the terminals on the switches and went to town on soldering all the wires in place. Tested each switch at the end and I'm good to go with the messy part of potting each one individually.

[Shoeless]

Finished potting all four buttons. Next steps will be to layout what the back side of the steering wheel will look like. I'm hoping I can fit a nice Deutsch AS connector for this connection, may be a tight fit.

[HardRocker]

Great work Shoeless. The great stock of tools you have make everything a magnitude easier. A tip on long runs of + - signal wiring like Canbus etc is to pull an arms length longer of wire than you think you’ll need, clamp the ends in your vice, and the other ends in your electric drill. Walk back to pick up the slack and then twist away (for “twisted pair” noise rejection) and then trim the ends. Also get an armful of plastic cable wrap at Harbor Freight! Also those cheap “helping hands” stands with the alligator clips make holding all your soldering work easier still.