Project Electrical System started not long after the Mustang was declared mechanically safe to drive back in November. When I started, I had roughly half of my electrical system in a non-functional state:
Items that were not working:
- Outer headlights (high beam)
- Inner headlights
- Dome light
- Brake lights
- Windshield wipers
- Turn signals
- Emergency flashers
- Horn
- Gas gauge
- Temp gauge
As I reflect on the last few months working through fixing these issues, a few things jump out at me as being important learning experiences:
- Wiring diagrams are worth their weight in gold
- Don’t make assumptions that just because one thing has power on a circuit that everything on that circuit also has power
- Knowing a few fundamentals about electricity makes things go a lot easier
Now that it’s all said and done, the highlights of the last couple of months of work are many:
Blinky blinky lights on my hood:
An awesome new instrument cluster:
A new turn signal switch:
…which gave me a functional horn, brake lights and turn signals:
A conversion to LED lighting:
A working radio/electric choke system:
And lastly: light, heat and power in my shop:
Project Electrical System was a lot of fun, but it’s now time to look ahead at the next phase of the restoration. There’s still a lot to do before the Mustang gets painted. I’ll have a post this weekend talking about what I’m planning.
The Mustang Restoration 
2 thoughts on “Retrospective Electrical…”