Gauge Panel Rewiring

[jrdnshaffer]

Hey y'all, so I just bought a 1983 ranger that everything has been redone except for the instrument cluster. None of them work, including the fuel gauge and tac. The switches for the running lights, bilge, and aerator all work. He took out the original ignition and put in a remote starter and throttle. Would it be ok to take out the wires connected to the gauges and just completely redo them all? There's also a ton in the rear of the boat that look to be connected to nothing.  All that is connected to the battery right now is the motor, trim, and trolling motor on the other battery. The motor on it is a 03 Yamaha 4 stroke, so I have no idea where to start with rewiring the gauges or anything. Any help or advice would be appreciated!

[Princeton_Man]

The most likely reason some things aren't working is that they aren't compatible with the Yamaha and I'm betting they simply aren't connected. Gauges that monitor the motor like the tachometer and water pressure as well as the throttle/starter motor specific. I'd bet that boat originally had a Merc, Evinrude, or Johnson on back and whoever slapped the Yamaha on there did the bare minimum to make it work. Rigging a boat for a different brand of motor is a lot of work and usually includes new gauges. You'll probably find the wires not connected aren't connected because the instruments simply aren't compatible.


Unless the wiring has really been butchered or the insulation is brittle, you may want to rethink it. Completely rewiring is a huge job and probably not necessary to get everything working. If the tach hasn't been replaced with one compatible with Yamaha. Speedometers are driven by water pressure either from a pickup on the stern or a pickup on the lower unit of the motor. The water pressure gauge on the dash may also need to be replaced with one compatible to the motor. If the dash lights work, I'd troubleshoot the fuel gauge starting with the sending unit in the tank and then the gauge itself. If the dash lights don't work, it's probably a grounding (-) issue and getting that resolved may take care of the fuel gauge problem. If not, start by trouble shooting the sending unit in tank. Wiring color codes have been pretty standard for a long time and you can probably find the color codes and a schematic online.  I've got a list of codes I downloaded long ago for my Stratos. If I can find it I'll post for you.

[jrdnshaffer]

Appreciate the response! I'm a teacher so right now I have nothing but time and trying to make the boat to the best shape it can be in is up there on the list of things to do!

[Deadeye]

PM is correct. Especially about the Ignition and Motor Controls. They are Motor Brand specific and do not swap over.

SOME gauges can be used no matter what the Brand and others simply will not.

Did you start with checking for a Main Breaker that runs all the power to the Dash?

Did you check for any Blown Fuses that control Gauges within the Dash?

There should be a Fuse Panel somewhere on the Boat. Could be under the Consul OR in the Compartment directly ahead of it. OR it could be all the way back in the Bilge-- but I doubt that.


Before I'd start tearing out wires I'd start tracing the wires and where they go to. More than likely there is a bunch of blown or CORRODED fuses or the entire panel is crap.

There is also a GROUNDING PANEL. It will need to be cleaned specially if the boat has sat for a bit of time. Nothing and I mean nothing is worse on Boating Wiring than Non-Use.


I seriously doubt that entire wiring system just stopped working. More likely it is severely corroded and needs cleaned.

[Bud Kennedy]

Also being an owner of a vintage Ranger, I can tell you there is only one circuit breaker in the boat back by the trolling motor batteries and only used for the trolling motor.  Everything else electrial is from the fuse panel located near the helm.  There also are in line fuses in likely spots and need to be investigated as to location and purpose.

I agree that it isn't likely that you would need to do a complete wire although some individual wires might require replacement.  The best thing to do is to perform a close inspection of all the wiring looking for breaks, nicks or insulation damage.  I would think you issues are mostly in the fuse panel if indeed all of your gauges are not functioning.  If it is only the motor related gauges then that is a different deal and would then involve checking clear back to the motor and possible breakers or fuses that live there.  On a side note you also need to inspect the kill switch while you are at it.

Most of these old rangers also had a wiring diagram inside the lid of the battery compartment that you may also find helpful with your trouble shooting.  Even the basic Ranger owners manual has some good layouts of the fuse panel you may also find helpful.

Glad you have a lot of time to do this because it certainly will take time while you are up under the dash in a less than comfortable position.   

Corrosion is the enemy in usual cases with vintage boats.