Fox T-Bird/Cougar Forums

Technical => Engine Tech => Topic started by: Dougy_Fresh on March 28, 2012, 04:02:01 PM

Title: 87 5.0 harness into 88 3.8 car
Post by: Dougy_Fresh on March 28, 2012, 04:02:01 PM
will it work? pretty sure my 3.8 is on its last leg
Title: 87 5.0 harness into 88 3.8 car
Post by: cougarman on March 28, 2012, 08:22:43 PM
It will, buuuut....some of the connecters are different from '87-'88, mainly up by the master cylinder.
Title: 87 5.0 harness into 88 3.8 car
Post by: Dougy_Fresh on March 28, 2012, 08:40:16 PM
that is where i am concerned about.
Title: 87 5.0 harness into 88 3.8 car
Post by: Dougy_Fresh on March 28, 2012, 10:14:42 PM
are the wire colors and functions the same, just different plugs?
Title: 87 5.0 harness into 88 3.8 car
Post by: jpc647 on March 29, 2012, 10:49:44 AM
Quote from: Dougy_Fresh;385483
are the wire colors and functions the same, just different plugs?

Depends on what the harness comes out of, what options the car had. For example, if you have the base dash, and the wiring harness comes out of a car with the full digital dash, there are going to be extra wires. But nonetheless, the connectors from an 87 will not plug right into an 88. Best bet is to find an 88 v8 harness. That's what I had to do.
Title: 87 5.0 harness into 88 3.8 car
Post by: Shadow on March 29, 2012, 10:56:42 AM
he asked because i had suggested re-pinning the 3.8 plugs to the 5.0 harness.. lol
Title: 87 5.0 harness into 88 3.8 car
Post by: TurboCoupe50 on March 29, 2012, 07:56:57 PM
Quote from: jpc647;385528
Depends on what the harness comes out of, what options the car had. For example, if you have the base dash, and the wiring harness comes out of a car with the full digital dash, there are going to be extra wires. But nonetheless, the connectors from an 87 will not plug right into an 88. Best bet is to find an 88 v8 harness. That's what I had to do.
I've got my doubts about buttstuffogue and digital engine harnesses being different, that said '87 & '88 are different but the color wires should match... Biggest issue is the '87 harness is powered by a third plug the '88 doesn't have, those connections were added into the two other plugs...

 I have a '87 Sport engine harness that had digital in my '88 TC... To use it I cut the 2.3 TC engine harness plugs and Sport body plugs to build a adapter to connect it to my TC(wires mostly matched)... Wouldn't have made any difference which harness I used, the '87-'88 TC is unique unto itself everything out there requires adapting...