Wiring Harness? Choosing one?

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Jordan Goodwin

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Looking at complete wiring harnesses for my ‘85 k30. American Autowire lists only one complete option on their website for an ‘85 chevy truck- their “classic update” kit, MSRP $1,069. Classic Industries has this same harness listed under “Universal Harnesses” for $883. Haven’t priced it anywhere else just yet. LMC does not have that specific kit, but does have an AAW harness “designed specifically for your vehicle”, that appears to have just a couple slight differences, don’t know what the difference is in plug and play abilities. That harness is $1,016.

I’m planning to keep this truck mostly stock. Which harness is going to be the easiest and quickest to install? Is there another option that’s easier?
 

Tonimus

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Tonimus

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Keep in mind that I'm a cheap son of a gun, too. The wiring harness in my race car is basically the cheapest AAW kit you can get. But I did their kit in my '84 C30 when I had it and that was one of the easiest kits I've done. And I've done too many.
 

CalSgt

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Looking at complete wiring harnesses for my ‘85 k30. American Autowire lists only one complete option on their website for an ‘85 chevy truck- their “classic update” kit, MSRP $1,069. Classic Industries has this same harness listed under “Universal Harnesses” for $883. Haven’t priced it anywhere else just yet. LMC does not have that specific kit, but does have an AAW harness “designed specifically for your vehicle”, that appears to have just a couple slight differences, don’t know what the difference is in plug and play abilities. That harness is $1,016.

I’m planning to keep this truck mostly stock. Which harness is going to be the easiest and quickest to install? Is there another option that’s easier?
Unless your stock stuff has been burnt up or badly damaged, I recommend just tidying it up and staying stock. The GM harness and fuse box is every bit as quality as anything available on the aftermarket
 

Doppleganger

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I almost bought the OE replacement Painless kit - $700ish. What I wound up getting was a Painless kit for a GM column (the hardest part IMO) for <$400 as I am replacing the entire harness myself with relays, etc. Even had many more circuits for adding power windows, locks, etc.
 

Matt69olds

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Unless your stock stuff has been burnt up or badly damaged, I recommend just tidying it up and staying stock. The GM harness and fuse box is every bit as quality as anything available on the aftermarket


Agreed! Even if you’re starting from scratch, you could buy a couple good used harnesses and build one far cheaper.
 

Jordan Goodwin

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Not sure what you were seeing, but I see the $1,016 at Classic Industries. https://www.classicindustries.com/product/1985/chevrolet/k30/parts/510706.html

The classic update kit is mostly plug and play and replaces nearly everything. It's a nice kit and worth the extra money, IMHO.
Bummer, yeah that exact listing is in their newest paper chevy truck catalog that I JUST got like a week ago, and it is listed for $882.99. But as their policy states, prices can change anytime and the most updated price is the one on the website. Quite a price jump.
 

Jordan Goodwin

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Thank you for your replies, gentlemen. I debated how much to put in my OP, but I guess there are a lot of factors I'm trying to weigh. Overall, I am trying to minimize cash cost to some extent, but time is probably most valuable to me these days, and while I don't want to shotgun money at this thing, I really also don't want to be constantly fighting electrical issues, or spend weeks rebuilding what is there if it would take significantly less time to do a total rewire- that said, y'all are inspiring me to look closer at what I have, but up til now it has been pretty discouraging to say the least. It seems like every wire I look at is either broken, cut off, has bare spots, or the insulation is crumbling. And, due to lots of moisture in the truck as it sat in the trees for the last decade, corrosion is everywhere. Under the dash is a mess, and most of the fuses were corroded badly, some to the point they came out in pieces. The fuse block may be fine, but it is certainly going to require a thorough cleaning at least.
 

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