factory radio harness

[HKB3]

tried searching with no luck, I picked up a new radio for my MJ( it already has/had an aftermarket radio) so I pulled out the current radio to find a hack job spaghetti wiring nightmare(the original factory plug has been cut off). So I want to replace the factory harness so I can install the new radio plug & play.

How tough is it to replace the harness? I can get the wiring from an XJ at the local pick&pull but with the recent weather (100+ temps) I don`t much feel like going and wanted to know what I am getting myself into.

 

Thanks

[jimoshel]

You might get lucky and find one. For some reason it seems like the first thing any body does when they sell their MJ,XJ is remove the radio and do it by cutting the wiring harness instead of unplugging it. Out of 15-20 XJ's i've gone thru I found 3 plugs still intact. Your best bet is to just use the wiring supplied with your unit and splice it in to the original harness. Make sure you cover the splice good so you don't have a short.

[tallon2064]

The first one I found in a yard I snatched up right away. :banana: I was lucky enough to get the factory plug and the after market plug.

[Eagle]

I assume the new radio isn't a factory radio, so IMHO there is nothing to be gained by restoring the factory harness. You'll have a big connector, into which you will then have to plug an adapter which then goes to the input connector for the new radio. Having done that (twice), I can tell you it's a very tight fit with the factory connector in there. The next one I do that has already had the connector cut off, I'm going to splice the connector for the new radio directly onto the cut-off wires and save all that hassle. (And space.)

[dasbulliwagen]

I am thinking that if you want a complete uncut harness, youll need to pull the entire dash out to get the harness out intact, and replace the whole interior harness just to get the radio plug. I agree with nicely repairing the original, maybe get some of the fully insulated male and female spade connectors with the shrink ends to make a clean repair, and plug it all back in real nice. It all depends on how much work you want to do to get it like you want it.

[HKB3]

well the problem is that the wiring is cut so far inside the dash it is hard to work with, who ever installed the current radio just sloppily ran different wires(not connected to the factory wires). I am anal about wiring so I decided to rip it all out & start over fresh with the factory wiring. I would think if I pull the gauge cluster I will have better access to the wiring harness.

[dasbulliwagen]

The factory wiring runs as one harness all the way to the other side of the dash usually terminating at the pass side kick plate where the antenna wire hooks up, and then again at the heater/AC controls on the HVAC housing. I'm not sure if its possible to pull the whole harness out or not wiithout removing the dash, but if youre sucessful, let us know!

[Eagle]

The other problems are that (a) most junkyard donors will be XJs, and the XJ harness is not the same as an MJ harness so there will be splicing and adapting involved, plus (B) most junkyards cut the harness at the radio anyway, so good luck finding a donor harness that's any better than the one you're trying to replace.