Help please - and dont take the wee wee
Discussion
ok - I am being dumb here. The bulk connector under the steering column needs undoing as I think I have a loose connection in there. I have taken off the cover on the underside of the column so the connector is nicely exposed. But I cant figure out how the bloody thing comes apart!!!!! There appears to be a couple of placcy clips that need raising on each side. They are stubborn as anything and I dont want to snap them off if its something more simple than that!! is it just a case of levering them with a screwdriver and yanking the thing apart with brute force?
Someone help out an electrical thicko!
cheers
Someone help out an electrical thicko!
cheers
The steering column cover is held in place by 3 screws...
1 is in the hole in front of the hazard lights switch.
2 are in the recess where the manual boot release is ... underneath.
Once all 3 are undone then the covers should come apart without resorting to the use of brute force ...
1 is in the hole in front of the hazard lights switch.
2 are in the recess where the manual boot release is ... underneath.
Once all 3 are undone then the covers should come apart without resorting to the use of brute force ...
Brute force is not required ... subtlety is !
The connectors are held in place as discivered by 2 clips either side. These do tend to get a little brittle after time and therefor may possibly break while doing this. But if you take enough care then you won't have this problem.
Get a large flat bladed screwdriver and prize (sp) the clip away fom its clasp point. This will be easier if they are warmed up a little. Hair dryer .... You may find that once the clips are out of the way the connector will still not come apart.
If this is the case do not use brute force as then you will end up re-wiring something you don't necessarilly need to. Use the flat headed screwdriver to work the connector apart by getting it into the gap between them and prizinf them apart. If this is still prooving unsuccessful then consider using a lubricant which will penetrate between the metal connectors as this is what will be causing the resistance.
WD40 or something similar will help with this ...
The connectors are held in place as discivered by 2 clips either side. These do tend to get a little brittle after time and therefor may possibly break while doing this. But if you take enough care then you won't have this problem.
Get a large flat bladed screwdriver and prize (sp) the clip away fom its clasp point. This will be easier if they are warmed up a little. Hair dryer .... You may find that once the clips are out of the way the connector will still not come apart.
If this is the case do not use brute force as then you will end up re-wiring something you don't necessarilly need to. Use the flat headed screwdriver to work the connector apart by getting it into the gap between them and prizinf them apart. If this is still prooving unsuccessful then consider using a lubricant which will penetrate between the metal connectors as this is what will be causing the resistance.
WD40 or something similar will help with this ...
Schnozz,
I had a similar problem with my connector 18 months ago and attempted to replace it... I had great difficulty like you in pulling it apart, and ended up snipping the wires into the connector. On closer examination of the connector the plastic had melted together inside it!
Those multi-connectors are a bit of a weak point and I was advised to solder the wires together instead of putting them through a connector block. No problems since.
Regards,
Dave S3c
I had a similar problem with my connector 18 months ago and attempted to replace it... I had great difficulty like you in pulling it apart, and ended up snipping the wires into the connector. On closer examination of the connector the plastic had melted together inside it!
Those multi-connectors are a bit of a weak point and I was advised to solder the wires together instead of putting them through a connector block. No problems since.
Regards,
Dave S3c
The connector is originally sourced from a Transit van I believe - but I don't know what year or model so thats probably not much help.
In my case I took the car to an auto-electrician and they replaced the connector with one of their own making that I'm fairly confident will still be working now.
In my case I took the car to an auto-electrician and they replaced the connector with one of their own making that I'm fairly confident will still be working now.
ok - I am being dumb here. The bulk connector under the steering column needs undoing as I think I have a loose connection in there. I have taken off the cover on the underside of the column so the connector is nicely exposed. But I cant figure out how the bloody thing comes apart!!!!! There appears to be a couple of placcy clips that need raising on each side. They are stubborn as anything and I dont want to snap them off if its something more simple than that!! is it just a case of levering them with a screwdriver and yanking the thing apart with brute force?
Someone help out an electrical thicko!
cheers
The two halves of the connector are held together by a plastic arm on one side with a hole in it that engages on a sticky-out bit on the other. To disconnect, you need to lever the arm away from the body of the connector and then pull the connectors apart. This can take a lot of force if the terminals have corroded. I found there are a couple of handy ribs that overlap so that when you squeaze them together with pliers, it pushes the connector apart.
If you want to dismantle the connector and get the terminals out of the housing, that definitely doesn't require brute force. There's a sort of trap door moulded onto the side of the plug. This hinges at one end and opens outwards. On the 'inside' of the door, there are a couple of lugs that stop the terminals dropping out of the housing. When you open the door past about 45 degrees the terminals just drop out.
The end of the trap door opposite the hinge 'snaps' into the housing and you need to pry it out with a small screwdriver. Slightly fiddly but not much force needed.
By the way, for what it's worth a recommend chopping the connectors out completely, and soldering the wires permanently or fitting separate high current spade connectors. Those standard connectors are not really up to the job.
PS the wires are permanently live, recommend disconnecting the battery before you start.
Hope this helps,
Peter Humphries (and a green V8S)
If you're thinking of soldering the wire together, why not consider using a choc-block connector instead...
I use them for all the electric stuff I do. As well as [hopefully] being quicker to connect up, you also wouldn't have to worry about lying on your back waving a hot soldering iron around all the ignition etc. wiring.
As you point out by asking the question, presumably there was some reason for having a connector there in the first place, so using a choc-block would allow fairly easy disconnection/reconnection at some point in the future if required.
I use them for all the electric stuff I do. As well as [hopefully] being quicker to connect up, you also wouldn't have to worry about lying on your back waving a hot soldering iron around all the ignition etc. wiring.
As you point out by asking the question, presumably there was some reason for having a connector there in the first place, so using a choc-block would allow fairly easy disconnection/reconnection at some point in the future if required.
RichardR said: If you're thinking of soldering the wire together, why not consider using a choc-block connector instead...
I use them for all the electric stuff I do. As well as [hopefully] being quicker to connect up, you also wouldn't have to worry about lying on your back waving a hot soldering iron around all the ignition etc. wiring.
As you point out by asking the question, presumably there was some reason for having a connector there in the first place, so using a choc-block would allow fairly easy disconnection/reconnection at some point in the future if required.
Some of the wires are pretty hefty and I think you'd really struggle to get them into a standard chop block. May be OK in the larger size ones. Personally, I don't much like chop blocks because they don't provide any strain relief. This means they tend to break the conductors right at the edge of the block, also the clamping screws damage the conductors. In my experience they tend to gradually end up a mass of frayed and broken wires. Agreed it would be easier than soldering. (That's the main reason I went for individual spade connectors.)
Cheers,
Peter Humphries (and a green V8S)
Shnozz said: much obliged to all of you for your help - and bloody pleased I asked the question now. Since a couple of you mention soldering the wires together I think I will follow that idea. Before I do however, what was the point of it originally having the connector fitted?
So the appropriates switches etc could be removed and replaced.
GreenV8S said: Agreed it would be easier than soldering. (That's the main reason I went for individual spade connectors.)
[quote]
and I thought it was only me that had this problem
I would rather not get out the soldering iron in view of the position I will have to work in to sort it. Interested to read that you used spade connectors Pete - did you just use insolation tape to keep them apart once the connectors were in place?
My mind has been wandering to making shrouds from thick cable to cover the wire and spade connector to ensure nothing touches?
looks like saturday is going to be taken up again!
M@H said: If you solder-coat the wires before putting them into the chocolate block, you will probably eliminated the fraying and strain problems that are described above..?
just a thought..
Matt.
Then they come undone with vibration and arc acroiss as the wires fall out. Secondly the wire will break at the junction where the solder stops as that becomes the next weak point.
Get a set of decent high current connectors from a vehicle specilaist and don't try to botch. It will come back to haunt you otherwise....
Steve
Shnozz said:
GreenV8S said: Agreed it would be easier than soldering. (That's the main reason I went for individual spade connectors.)
and I thought it was only me that had this problem
I would rather not get out the soldering iron in view of the position I will have to work in to sort it. Interested to read that you used spade connectors Pete - did you just use insolation tape to keep them apart once the connectors were in place?
My mind has been wandering to making shrouds from thick cable to cover the wire and spade connector to ensure nothing touches?
looks like saturday is going to be taken up again!
I used good quality uninsulated spades with separate shrouds on each terminal (i.e. the female terminal has a normal push-on shroud, the male terminal has an even bigger shroud that goes right over it. When the connectors are plugged into each other the two shrouds make a double thickness waterproof seal. When they're separated, the shrouds make it very difficult to accidentally short either terminal against anything. The spade connectors are very tight - although it's possible to pull them apart, there's no way they're going to disconnect on their own. Because the spades have a separate crimp onto the cable outer and the shrouds extend some way down the cable, it gives pretty good strain relief. It's not the best solution in the world, but it's more than good enough for the job, and dramatically better than the original 4-way connector.
Cheers,
Peter Humphries (and a green v8S)
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