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Ammeter Removal From Painless Harness

willtel

Sr. Member
Joined
Oct 3, 2003
Messages
593
A long time ago I upgraded my alternator to a 3G and never connected the ammeter to it because I didn't really know how. My Painless Wiring harness has a large yellow wire that runs from the alternator into the dash and loops through the ammeter gauge to read the current. That yellow wire has been disconnected in the engine compartment for years now with no issues. Yesterday I got bored and decided to remove the yellow wire to tidy up under the hood. I pulled it back to almost the fuse panel and then got cold and stopped messing with it.

This morning I looked at the Painless manual to see if I could figure out where the wire goes to remove it and saw this:

The 2 wires of the AMMETER must be connected even if an AMMETER is not being used your charging circuit will not function, and the Painless harness will have no Power if they are not connected.

One end of mine has been loose for years with no charging issues at all. Does anyone know how to remove that wire and keep everything working (except the ammeter, I'll convert to a voltmeter)?
 

DirtDonk

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Nov 3, 2003
Messages
47,355
It reads that way only if you are running the stock type alternator AND using the ammeter still. Since you are running a 3G and presumably using a large gauge wire directly from the alternator's output and the battery, that is why your system still works.

The Yellow wire (you sure this is not a Centech harness?) and the Red wire at the starter relay are the same circuit. So they're connected at the fuse panel, but basically create one long wire between the alternator and battery. Going through the ammeter in-between.

In a stock setup, if you disconnect the Yellow wire you won't be able to charge the battery.
If you disconnect the stock wire at the plug behind the alternator (your aftermarket harness would not have that plug usually) everything dies. If you disconnect the Red wire at the starter relay everything dies.

But because you have the alternator going directly to the battery (or starter relay) you still charge the battery. Because you still have the Red wire connected too, you still get power to the fuse panel and all the other circuits.

So yes, if you can trace the Yellow wire back to it's other end and there are no splices along the way, then you can safely remove it.
If there are any splices along the way however, where some circuit or another is tapping it's power from the Yellow wire, then you either need to leave that part of the Yellow wire intact, or you have to cut the wires out and extend them to the fuse panel, or the Red wire.

Paul
 

DirtDonk

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Nov 3, 2003
Messages
47,355
I should have added that it doesn't have to be a Centech harness to have a Yellow wire at the alternator. I believe that the older Painless harnesses would have had one as well. The later Bronco-specific harness from Painless uses a Black wire with a yellow stripe instead. Just like Ford used.

Paul
 
OP
OP
W

willtel

Sr. Member
Joined
Oct 3, 2003
Messages
593
I should have added that it doesn't have to be a Centech harness to have a Yellow wire at the alternator. I believe that the older Painless harnesses would have had one as well. The later Bronco-specific harness from Painless uses a Black wire with a yellow stripe instead. Just like Ford used.

Paul

Thanks for the response! It all makes sense now. My Painless harness is an older one, before they integrated the fuse panel into the glove box like the new ones.
 
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