Club 80-90 Forums

Was going to post this in electrical but here goes....

Can anybody please tell me if all the wiring that is running through the interior channels near the roof of my van is important other than courtesy light wiring?

My van was originally a panel van that had homebrew camper interior when I bought it. I am about to re-wire all the courtesy lights along with new lights for the living area etc. There are random wires that I think are from the previous camper interior install and some that appear to be for courtesy lights. I would like to rip it all out ready for the new wiring to go in but being cautious incase there's anything important up there.

Thanks, Jon.

Do you have rear wash wipe or heated rear window?

I will check. Thank you.

Nope no rear wash wiper or heated rear window

Chances are that if it has not already been updated, then it is only for interior / courtesy lighting.

On an 82 van, there wasn't very much fitted.
On my 83 van, there isn't even a hand brake tell tale.

If you are doing a re-wire, you might be interested in adding some of the most basic stuff like intermittent wiper, hand brake tell tale and up-rated head lamp wiring with relays.
And separate fuse feeds for the heater blower, radiator fan and wiper motors.
(I know two of these share the same fuse on the early fuse panel).

Robsey wrote:Chances are that if it has not already been updated, then it is only for interior / courtesy lighting.

On an 82 van, there wasn't very much fitted.
On my 83 van, there isn't even a hand brake tell tale.

If you are doing a re-wire, you might be interested in adding some of the most basic stuff like intermittent wiper, hand brake tell tale and up-rated head lamp wiring with relays.
And separate fuse feeds for the heater blower, radiator fan and wiper motors.
(I know two of these share the same fuse on the early fuse panel).

Thanks for that mate some great information there. With having never driven my van I didn't know those type of things were not on it. Although I have never thought about it, saves me being disappointed when I finally get it on the road.

I was only planning on rewiring all the interior lights whilst upgrading to LEDs and putting in various lights and sockets. I was going to do this myself but I'm getting a quote from an auto electrician first.

I had thought the fuse box in the engine bay looked rather basic compared to others I've seen. So this must be why!

I will ask the electrician about the bits that have been mentioned.

Thanks, Jon.

There is a load of information in the Wiki.
It covers the head-lamp upgrade and the intermittent wiper function.

Hope your auto electrician is conversant with eccentric German vehicle wiring.

Regarding the fuse box -
Try looking at the mass of spaghetti up behind the glove box.

There are 12 main fuses of the old fashioned European torpedo variety.
Plus an option for 4 or 5 more for added options.

It is likely that your van will NOT have the following: -
Rear heated window element.
Rear window washer and wiper.
Front Foglights.
Hand brake tell-tale (no switch or wiring at all)
No buzzer of doom. (Some may see this as a blessing in disguise)
No cigarette lighter / charge socket.
The wiper arm is easily converted to provide intermittent wipe position - remove a white plastic clip in the switch mechanism and fit a suitable relay.
The headlights are controlled directly from the light switch, so the switch contacts can burn out quite easily.
Fitting relays can provide brighter illumination and increase the life of the switch.
On my van there was only one courtesy light up on the driver's side above the door frame.
Nothing in the load area nor the engine bay.
No central locking.
No immobiliser nor alarm.
One bulb to illuminate the heater panel.
And three bulbs to illuminated the instrument cluster.
No rev counter and no clock.
My converted van came with a plastic blanking plate over the radio aperture.

So very basic and very easy to re-wire.
Makes a good blank canvas to work from.

Thanks again Robsey. My van isn't on the road/running at the moment so I want to get the engine fitted and MOT'd before the summer is over. This may be a job for the winter months when I will spend more of my days off at home tinkering.