IML: '72 Dipping Ammeter

[Joe Strickland <jwstrick426@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Kenyon;

I looked up the connections to/from the instrument panel on the '73 line and suspect that the '72 is the same or very similar.  It shows that the ammeter leads pass through the bulkhead connector.  Since all the power for ignition and many other items go through these leads, they are highly suspect.  If you do not hear any circuit breakers clicking on and off using the engine-off condition, then a really close look at the bulkhead connector is in order.  Here is what the '73 service manual shows:

1) Dk. Blu.  Electric Fuel Pump (Carline Y)  [might cause fuel pressure to be intermittent.]

9) Dk. Blu  Fusible Link (Red on Instrument Panel side; + feed to fuse terminal assembly).

13) Dk. Blu  (Red on Instrument Panel side;  feed to steering column).

16) Blk.  Ammeter (carline Y)

25) Red   Ammeter (carline Y)

I owned a '73 New Yorker Brougham for a number of years and the bulkhead connector in that car gave multiple problems over a period of years.  The separate connectors have nylon contact housings for the engine-side wiring with latches made of the same material.  The heat of the engine compartment cooks the plastic and makes it brittle.  Disconnecting them tends to make them break and after that they will not stay plugged on securely.  This leads to many intermittent electrical system problems.

Of special concern is the fact that the ammeter leads pass through contacts in the bulkhead connector.  On the New Yorker Brougham I had these had become corroded and had been overheated (probably due to the corrosion).  I ultimately had to run new leads through a rubber grommet I installed to/from the ammeter.  Basically, the new leads I ran went directly to the ammeter without going through the bulkhead connector.  That eliminated intermittent loss of power and ignition in the New Yorker.

>From '69 and up Chrysler used these bulkhead connectors and they are especially prone to problems in the ammeter circuit.  If you see green corrosion on the ammeter connections at the bulkhead, or if the plastic housing for the contacts has turned brown around the ammeter leads, you should either bypass those contacts in your bulkhead connector by running new leads like I did or else invest in a new set of engine compartment wiring harnesses and possibly the instrument panel harness too.  Both would be major tasks to carry out.

Good luck.

Joseph W. Strickland
1021 Vaughan Lane
Tioga, TX 76271-2937

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