Does anyone out there know a good way to run wires on an 01 Focus ZX3? I just bought the car and would like some advice before I try and run them myself.
I can't find a hole in the firewall for the power wire. Am I going to have to drill one?
If there's a diagram or anything floating around on the net that anyone knows about, or if someone has one they could send me, that would be awesome. But any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot guys!!!
Replies (13)
UKinstaller on 06/1/2005 22:58:36
is it an automatic or manual transmission?? if it's automatic, there is a grommet for where the clutch cable would have run though on the drivers side firewall to the left of the steering column. if it's a manual, you can safely drill up and to the left of the clutch cable. double check the other side, but it should be fine. start with a very small hole, shine a light in there, if you can see the light from under the hood and there are no obstacles, keep going. if you can't, try somewhere else. but up and to the left of the clutch cable should be fine. stick a grommet in the hole you drill to prevent cutting the power wire. it should be included with your power kit.
as far as wiring goes, are you hooking it up to the factory system or an aftermarket cd player?? i can give you the colors you'll need if you're using factory. dropping RCA's and remote wire from behind the radio in those cars are as easy as it gets.
running the wire on focuses is kind of a pain because the trim panels are pretty hard to take off at first, but it shouldn't be overwhelming. if it's 8 gauge wire, you can easily tuck the wires under the trim panels without it being seen. i always tuck them under the carpet, but tucking them under the panels won't do any harm.
overall, it's a pretty simple car to work on. radio pops out with ford keys, wires are easy to drop, once you get the trim panel off, it's cake. have fun!!
remember: LOOK TWICE, DRILL ONCE.
that will save you from a lot of potential problems.
-UK
aaronarn on 06/2/2005 18:50:46
It's a manual. I found a diagram online somewhere that talked about an unused grommet in the doorjam by where the wires go into the door. Ever heard of this? I'd rather not drill a hole in the firewall if I dont have to, but if thats the easiest way I guess I can do that.
I'm hooking it up to an aftermarket cd player that I'll probably install at the same time.
That same diagram talked about running wires along the center console, but that was to install an amp under the passenger seat, and mine will be in the trunk. Any thoughts?
The link for that diagram is: http://www.jwardell.com/focus/amp.html
if you wanna look.
Thanks a lot!
UKinstaller on 06/3/2005 01:16:56
never, under any circumstance, run a power wire though a door jam. it has bad news written all over it. if the power wire pinches metal, you are screwed.
drill a hole in the firewall, it's cleaner and you'll totally forget about having it there.
if installing amp in trunk, run all the wires down the drivers side. don't worry about running the power and rca's down seperate sides, you only need to do that on 4 channel amps.
when installing amp/sub w/ aftermarket radio, just plug the RCA's into the cd player and attach the remote wire for your amp to the blue/white wire on the cd player harness. if there is no blue/white run, attach it to the red wire.
when are you going to get started??
-UK
ttocs on 06/3/2005 11:43:49
what he said.....
door jams = ghetto. Do it right, do it once and you will not have to do it again!
aaronarn on 06/3/2005 12:45:38
Thanks for the input guys. I kinda thought the doorjam thing would look a little ghetto as ttocs said, so it looks like I'll be doin some drillin.
UK...can you give me any hints on getting the rear trim piece out? I got the little piece that runs next to the seat off, but I can't seem to find any clips or anything that would pop the rear trim loose. Everything on these newer cars has to be so dang complicated now.
I'll probably get started tomorrow (saturday) at least on the CD player. I just need to go pick up a wiring harness and a dash kit. I might wait a little on the wires, just depends on how much time I have. Thanks for the advice!
ttocs on 06/3/2005 16:04:31
if there are no screws then just gently start to pull the part off. You may need to pull up or towards the center of the car. You should be able to get them off easily but you may be suprised how hard you have to yank on some....... The newer the car, the tighter the fit...
aaronarn on 06/4/2005 10:59:22
Thanks for the inupt guys. I'm gettin started today, so lets just hope I dont break anything!
aaronarn on 06/4/2005 21:54:50
Ok so I got everything hooked up, but now I don't have dash lights. There were 3 wires on the wiring harness that connects to the factory harnesses that didn't have places on the CD player harness.
They were all 3 orange: 1 was dimmer positive, and another was dimmer negative. I connected these two together at the advice of a friend. Was that the right thing to do?
The third was another orange wire that was labeled as illumination. I'm guessing this is my problem wire, but I have no idea where it should be connected. There are no free wires on the CD player harness, except those for power antenna.
Any suggestions?
ttocs on 06/5/2005 02:41:35
I don't think those two were to go together. You probably blew a fuse. Disconnect the two wires and insulate them, replace the fuse you should be fine.
aaronarn on 06/5/2005 15:57:37
Yeah I tried disconnecting them last night and it worked. Didn't need to replace a fuse though, so looks like I'm good to go.
Now I just need to get my amp working right. The RCA ports on the amp have come loose and I can't get the cables to push in. Hopefully nearing completion though!!
swez on 06/5/2005 17:23:36
Quote: "The RCA ports on the amp have come loose and I can't get the cables to push in."
This can become a little problematic. Most cases, the amp covers have to come off, the main PC board removed and resoldering the RCA connections back into place. It takes patience, a steady hand, some rosin core wire 60/40 electrical solder (small diameter. 1/8") and a 25 watt soldering pencil.
Very common problem in older amps or amps that have been banged around a bit. If these ports are loose, (like a tooth ready to fall out) they will not work properly for long. A little bench time is all that is needed to repair same.
If you need some additional help, just ask. A little heat on the joint first, then easy on the solder so you don't get solder briging shorts. A few high resolution pics can make the job easier to direct your efforts.
Swez
ttocs on 06/6/2005 04:53:46
you may also have a worn out set of cables. Pinch the outside metal in a little to help them get a grip, use gentle pressure and a set of plyers.
Did you check all the fuses? also under the hood? Sometime a fuse you think is unrelated will pop.
UKinstaller on 06/6/2005 09:24:58
anytime you put a cd player in a car, you are bound to have left over wires. just tape them up and forget about them. i put a cd player in a 2004 non-bose system silverado and there were SIX wires left over on the wiring harness.
i guess that's GM for ya.
-UK
I can't find a hole in the firewall for the power wire. Am I going to have to drill one?
If there's a diagram or anything floating around on the net that anyone knows about, or if someone has one they could send me, that would be awesome. But any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot guys!!!
Replies (13)
UKinstaller on 06/1/2005 22:58:36
is it an automatic or manual transmission?? if it's automatic, there is a grommet for where the clutch cable would have run though on the drivers side firewall to the left of the steering column. if it's a manual, you can safely drill up and to the left of the clutch cable. double check the other side, but it should be fine. start with a very small hole, shine a light in there, if you can see the light from under the hood and there are no obstacles, keep going. if you can't, try somewhere else. but up and to the left of the clutch cable should be fine. stick a grommet in the hole you drill to prevent cutting the power wire. it should be included with your power kit.
as far as wiring goes, are you hooking it up to the factory system or an aftermarket cd player?? i can give you the colors you'll need if you're using factory. dropping RCA's and remote wire from behind the radio in those cars are as easy as it gets.
running the wire on focuses is kind of a pain because the trim panels are pretty hard to take off at first, but it shouldn't be overwhelming. if it's 8 gauge wire, you can easily tuck the wires under the trim panels without it being seen. i always tuck them under the carpet, but tucking them under the panels won't do any harm.
overall, it's a pretty simple car to work on. radio pops out with ford keys, wires are easy to drop, once you get the trim panel off, it's cake. have fun!!
remember: LOOK TWICE, DRILL ONCE.
that will save you from a lot of potential problems.
-UK
aaronarn on 06/2/2005 18:50:46
It's a manual. I found a diagram online somewhere that talked about an unused grommet in the doorjam by where the wires go into the door. Ever heard of this? I'd rather not drill a hole in the firewall if I dont have to, but if thats the easiest way I guess I can do that.
I'm hooking it up to an aftermarket cd player that I'll probably install at the same time.
That same diagram talked about running wires along the center console, but that was to install an amp under the passenger seat, and mine will be in the trunk. Any thoughts?
The link for that diagram is: http://www.jwardell.com/focus/amp.html
if you wanna look.
Thanks a lot!
UKinstaller on 06/3/2005 01:16:56
never, under any circumstance, run a power wire though a door jam. it has bad news written all over it. if the power wire pinches metal, you are screwed.
drill a hole in the firewall, it's cleaner and you'll totally forget about having it there.
if installing amp in trunk, run all the wires down the drivers side. don't worry about running the power and rca's down seperate sides, you only need to do that on 4 channel amps.
when installing amp/sub w/ aftermarket radio, just plug the RCA's into the cd player and attach the remote wire for your amp to the blue/white wire on the cd player harness. if there is no blue/white run, attach it to the red wire.
when are you going to get started??
-UK
ttocs on 06/3/2005 11:43:49
what he said.....
door jams = ghetto. Do it right, do it once and you will not have to do it again!
aaronarn on 06/3/2005 12:45:38
Thanks for the input guys. I kinda thought the doorjam thing would look a little ghetto as ttocs said, so it looks like I'll be doin some drillin.
UK...can you give me any hints on getting the rear trim piece out? I got the little piece that runs next to the seat off, but I can't seem to find any clips or anything that would pop the rear trim loose. Everything on these newer cars has to be so dang complicated now.
I'll probably get started tomorrow (saturday) at least on the CD player. I just need to go pick up a wiring harness and a dash kit. I might wait a little on the wires, just depends on how much time I have. Thanks for the advice!
ttocs on 06/3/2005 16:04:31
if there are no screws then just gently start to pull the part off. You may need to pull up or towards the center of the car. You should be able to get them off easily but you may be suprised how hard you have to yank on some....... The newer the car, the tighter the fit...
aaronarn on 06/4/2005 10:59:22
Thanks for the inupt guys. I'm gettin started today, so lets just hope I dont break anything!
aaronarn on 06/4/2005 21:54:50
Ok so I got everything hooked up, but now I don't have dash lights. There were 3 wires on the wiring harness that connects to the factory harnesses that didn't have places on the CD player harness.
They were all 3 orange: 1 was dimmer positive, and another was dimmer negative. I connected these two together at the advice of a friend. Was that the right thing to do?
The third was another orange wire that was labeled as illumination. I'm guessing this is my problem wire, but I have no idea where it should be connected. There are no free wires on the CD player harness, except those for power antenna.
Any suggestions?
ttocs on 06/5/2005 02:41:35
I don't think those two were to go together. You probably blew a fuse. Disconnect the two wires and insulate them, replace the fuse you should be fine.
aaronarn on 06/5/2005 15:57:37
Yeah I tried disconnecting them last night and it worked. Didn't need to replace a fuse though, so looks like I'm good to go.
Now I just need to get my amp working right. The RCA ports on the amp have come loose and I can't get the cables to push in. Hopefully nearing completion though!!
swez on 06/5/2005 17:23:36
Quote: "The RCA ports on the amp have come loose and I can't get the cables to push in."
This can become a little problematic. Most cases, the amp covers have to come off, the main PC board removed and resoldering the RCA connections back into place. It takes patience, a steady hand, some rosin core wire 60/40 electrical solder (small diameter. 1/8") and a 25 watt soldering pencil.
Very common problem in older amps or amps that have been banged around a bit. If these ports are loose, (like a tooth ready to fall out) they will not work properly for long. A little bench time is all that is needed to repair same.
If you need some additional help, just ask. A little heat on the joint first, then easy on the solder so you don't get solder briging shorts. A few high resolution pics can make the job easier to direct your efforts.
Swez
ttocs on 06/6/2005 04:53:46
you may also have a worn out set of cables. Pinch the outside metal in a little to help them get a grip, use gentle pressure and a set of plyers.
Did you check all the fuses? also under the hood? Sometime a fuse you think is unrelated will pop.
UKinstaller on 06/6/2005 09:24:58
anytime you put a cd player in a car, you are bound to have left over wires. just tape them up and forget about them. i put a cd player in a 2004 non-bose system silverado and there were SIX wires left over on the wiring harness.
i guess that's GM for ya.
-UK
Copyright ClubKnowledge 2009 * All Rights Reserved
