yarddogg77
Junior Member
I have a 1994 Ram 1500 that I bought a while back. I found a good dash and dash cap in the wrecking yard, it was like winning the lottery, so I quickly went and snagged it. Once I had it out, I noticed the interior wiring harness was in far better shape than mine so I snagged it too. and all the switches that looked better than mine. The wrecking yard truck was a automatic, 2wd, with manual windows and seats, mine is an automatic, 4wd with electric windows and seats. The two wiring harnesses have the same numbers on them, but they do not have all the same pigtails and wires. So I have a couple questions.
My truck seems to have been butchered and danged near nothing was working. It was missing the black rectangular box which mounts on the lower backside of the dash to the right of the steering column, So naturally I snagged it. What is that thing?
Also, My truck had a strange copper coil winding with what looks to be a relay mounted in the center of the dash on the backside. I've traced out a few of the wires and one of them goes to the stereo, indicating to me that it has something to do with noise interference for the antenna or something, not sure, What is that thing? Do I need it?
Other than those two components, the two harnesses are comparable. There are some wires on my original that are not on the wrecking yard harness, but because my truck had more options, I'm assuming I should add them to the wrecking yard harness. I don't want to repair my harness because there has been so much butchering done to it. Any odd info you can think of to throw out there will be welcome. I have only had one other 2nd Gen Ram and didn't work on it enough to consider myself proficient at the wiring.
Whatever the P.O. did to this thing must have been done in tweeker mode. The wires that come from the ignition must have gone to that black box, which I am assuming must have something to do with safety features, door chimes, bells and whistles etc. They had been looped right back to the steering column and somehow????? I can't really explain it. I want to make sure everything that came from the factory is wired and functioning so I have an un-molested starting point.
My truck seems to have been butchered and danged near nothing was working. It was missing the black rectangular box which mounts on the lower backside of the dash to the right of the steering column, So naturally I snagged it. What is that thing?
Also, My truck had a strange copper coil winding with what looks to be a relay mounted in the center of the dash on the backside. I've traced out a few of the wires and one of them goes to the stereo, indicating to me that it has something to do with noise interference for the antenna or something, not sure, What is that thing? Do I need it?
Other than those two components, the two harnesses are comparable. There are some wires on my original that are not on the wrecking yard harness, but because my truck had more options, I'm assuming I should add them to the wrecking yard harness. I don't want to repair my harness because there has been so much butchering done to it. Any odd info you can think of to throw out there will be welcome. I have only had one other 2nd Gen Ram and didn't work on it enough to consider myself proficient at the wiring.
Whatever the P.O. did to this thing must have been done in tweeker mode. The wires that come from the ignition must have gone to that black box, which I am assuming must have something to do with safety features, door chimes, bells and whistles etc. They had been looped right back to the steering column and somehow????? I can't really explain it. I want to make sure everything that came from the factory is wired and functioning so I have an un-molested starting point.
