1996 Bronco Alternator wiring question.?

Question

The alternator on my bronco went out. Now, there are 2 "connector" wires hooked in and one that I need to unscrew to get out. All three wires run through a black hose and simply ground on the body next to a bunch of other wires. Can you buy that WHOLE wire set that goes to the alternator? I screwed up and broke a wire. The one you need to unscrew to get off. It broke right at the alternator. But I don't know where I would buy one, or if I would need to buy all three or if they are all connected and you buy it as a single unit. Thanks guys!

Answer 1

It's sold as a wiring harness. I suggest you just splice the wire that broke.

Answer 2

Unfortunately, Ford and most other automakers do not make their own wiring harnesses. They typically have a vendor that makes these harnesses. The vendor usually only makes a particular harness a couple years. These harnesses usually become obsolete and out of stock within about 5-7 years.

It is not cost effective for dealers to stock wiring harnesses since it ties up shelf space as well as inventory dollars. You would be hard pressed to find a dealer that would actually have one in stock even if you did an O.S.I. (Obsolete/Supersede/Interchange) search through a dealer.

With that said, your next best bet is to go to a wrecking yard for your harness. Now you run into another problem. Few wrecking yards like to butcher a harness so that a customer can have just a section of harness. They may be willing to sell you the entire engine harness at a pretty substantial cost.

Your next best option is to try to repair the harness in question. If it is just a wire I would solder in the section that is broke. If it is a connector that is broken, you may be able to purchase the connector that is broken. This usually requires soldering in the new hardshell connector.