# Cleaning an entire loom off the car



## Fentum

In another part of this parish, I am detailing the restoration of my E Type, but I now have a technical question I'd like to pose here because I think it is a more suitable place. It might seem a bit of an odd question.

I have to hand the ECU and engine control loom from a 1995 Jaguar XJR6. These will be fitted to the E Type.

Both are in good condition but have been sitting in the engine bay of the car for twenty-three years. I'd like to give them a deep clean.

I don't have much of a problem with cleaning the ECU in that the metal housing is still watertight and can be given a good degrease and buff up. The electronic circuit inside and the block connectors outside are in a good clean condition, with no signs of oxidisation, so I thought I'd just use a computer maintenance air sprayer on the circuit board and switch cleaner on the connectors and then just leave well alone.

With the loom on the other hand I'm slightly at a loss at how to shift the gunk. 

Were it attached in the car, I dare say I'd follow my usual engine bay detailing routine and give the area a good steaming, then use Koch Chemie Green Star (and possibly Golden Star) to deep clean the loom, followed by something like KC Motorkonservierer Charlie or Aerospace 303 to try to make it easy to keep clean. I suppose I could clean every inch of the loom this way.

But my question is whether having it loose presents any labour-saving opportunities? 

As my wife is away, could I fall back on my carb cleaning trick and just chuck the loom in the dishwasher to effectively and quickly degrease it or would that be fatal for the plastics/rubber/wire in the loom:devil:? (It will have weeks to dry out.)

Thanks in advance

Peter


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## SunnyBoi

Fentum said:


> As my wife is away, could I fall back on my carb cleaning trick and just chuck the loom in the dishwasher to effectively and quickly degrease it or would that be fatal for the plastics/rubber/wire in the loom:devil:? (It will have weeks to dry out.)


Don't do this. Your loom will have many connectors which are supposed to be waterproof (including ECU connectors). Washing them will start corroding pins inside these connectors which will be a massive and a very expensive headache to fix later on.

If I were you and I have seen the amount of detail you've been putting on your Jag, I'd remove all the tape from the old harness using a seam ripper, wipe clean all the wires and tape them back again using Tesa 51036 tape. Not only will it look much cleaner but it will also be better protected with the new tape.


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## Andy from Sandy

> ...tape them back again using Tesa 51036 tape.


Where are you buying it from?

I can see it on ebay for £3 but £10 delivery from the US.

Not available on Amazon.


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## Fentum

SunnyBoi said:


> Don't do this. Your loom will have many connectors which are supposed to be waterproof (including ECU connectors). Washing them will start corroding pins inside these connectors which will be a massive and a very expensive headache to fix later on.
> 
> If I were you and I have seen the amount of detail you've been putting on your Jag, I'd remove all the tape from the old harness using a seam ripper, wipe clean all the wires and tape them back again using Tesa 51036 tape. Not only will it look much cleaner but it will also be better protected with the new tape.


SunnyBoi,

Thanks for the advice.

So, sadly, no short cut but I don't want something to come back and bite me in the bum!

Peter


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## percymon

How much of the XJR loom are you actually using ? Are there elements that need to be stripped out for the E type installation ?

If so an ideal opportunity to redo the wrapping in either Tesa tape, or the woven pvc 'net' type sleeving. Its also a good opportunity to add some stiff metal rod in specific areas to allow the loom to take certain shapes for a close fitting install in the engine bay


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## Fentum

percymon said:


> How much of the XJR loom are you actually using ? Are there elements that need to be stripped out for the E type installation ?
> 
> If so an ideal opportunity to redo the wrapping in either Tesa tape, or the woven pvc 'net' type sleeving. Its also a good opportunity to add some stiff metal rod in specific areas to allow the loom to take certain shapes for a close fitting install in the engine bay


Thanks percymon,

That's a great idea, the metal rod one.

I think I'll need most of this one (really a sub-loom) as it is largely ECU communicating to various engine sensors, TBUs etc.

But I think there's a lot in the idea of stripping things down and cleaning, not to mention inch by inch checking to ensure another 25 years of life.

I have a new sub-loom for the gearbox and will need to find another couple depending on what bits get transplanted from the XJR.

Peter


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## Forsh

I too was thinking a re-wrap would be the best solution

As for the connectors, a trick I learned from a Ducati owning mate that helped with electrical issues I was having on the GM components of my Saab at the time, was to pack the multiplugs with dielectric grease. Ensures contacts remain moisture & corrosion free

http://cpc.farnell.com/dow-corning/...zc1Do2W3FwGGk3rm0p5-FAL0Nu1LgCVxoCqXgQAvD_BwE


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## SunnyBoi

Andy from Sandy said:


> Where are you buying it from?
> 
> I can see it on ebay for £3 but £10 delivery from the US.
> 
> Not available on Amazon.


I'm not from the UK, I checked tesa site and got contacts for a local distributor.

I used to order from this seller and have a friend carry the tapes for me before getting the contact from tesa.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/4-Rolls-of...rior-Harnessing-19mm-x-25m-Each-/361580771841



Fentum said:


> I think I'll need most of this one (really a sub-loom) as it is largely ECU communicating to various engine sensors, TBUs etc.
> 
> But I think there's a lot in the idea of stripping things down and cleaning, not to mention inch by inch checking to ensure another 25 years of life


Hello Peter,

I did something similar to a friend's car when he went for an engine swap. I ripped apart the wiring harness that cane with the replacement engine, wire for the fuel pump was cut in the middle! Someone had been in here before and added a box and cut wires for injectors to add some controller for LPG. It was definitely a good call to remove all old tape and inspect every wire before taping it up.










You can look for split corrugated plastic tubes (not sure what they're called in the UK) you can add on top of the taped wires for a much cleaner look and better abrasion resistance.

Last word of advice, keep the new loom in the car with wires going to all the plugs before final taping. This way you can re-route the wires and make sure it will not be tight anywhere.

Cheers,
Sunny.


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## Fentum

Andy from Sandy said:


> Where are you buying it from?
> 
> I can see it on ebay for £3 but £10 delivery from the US.
> 
> Not available on Amazon.


Andy,

It's on UK eBay, too, if you put "Tesa wrap" in a the search term. It doesn't like the number, even though some of the listings quote it.

Best

Peter


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## Fentum

SunnyBoi said:


> I'm not from the UK, I checked tesa site and got contacts for a local distributor.
> 
> I used to order from this seller and have a friend carry the tapes for me before getting the contact from tesa.
> 
> https://www.ebay.com/itm/4-Rolls-of...rior-Harnessing-19mm-x-25m-Each-/361580771841
> 
> Hello Peter,
> 
> I did something similar to a friend's car when he went for an engine swap. I ripped apart the wiring harness that cane with the replacement engine, wire for the fuel pump was cut in the middle! Someone had been in here before and added a box and cut wires for injectors to add some controller for LPG. It was definitely a good call to remove all old tape and inspect every wire before taping it up.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> You can look for split corrugated plastic tubes (not sure what they're called in the UK) you can add on top of the taped wires for a much cleaner look and better abrasion resistance.
> 
> Last word of advice, keep the new loom in the car with wires going to all the plugs before final taping. This way you can re-route the wires and make sure it will not be tight anywhere.
> 
> Cheers,
> Sunny.


Thanks Sunny.

I'll be doing just that after a little bit of eBay action for the wrap and grease.

My wife's away until Saturday so I can use the floor to put down a decorator's dust sheet and spread out.

Peter


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## SunnyBoi

Fentum said:


> It's on UK eBay, too, if you put "Tesa wrap" in a the search term. It doesn't like the number, even though some of the listings quote it.


I just checked all listings for tesa on eBay UK, it seems all of them are for PET fleece tape which is strictly for interior use.

How do I know? I bought the same tape 3 years back and used it on my car's engine :doublesho










Check the taped wire near the coolant bottle, the adhesive started to come undone in 3 weeks and after more research I realised I had bought the wrong tape.

In short, avoid all listings which mention "PET Fleece". Another reason I was specific about the number was because Tesa 51036 is the only tape rated for high heat and use in engine bay. You can use Tesa 51026 if you get it, its just one version older its exactly what I had used in my previous post.

Tesa has a UK page with couple of phone numbers, they might be a better bet at getting tapes https://www.tesa.com/about-tesa/locations-subsidiaries/united-kingdom.html

Cheers,
Sunny.

EDIT : This site has the older version of the correct tape. Perhaps you can ask them if they have the right tape with them? https://www.shandhigson.co.uk/tesa-...pe-manual-unwind-tesa-51006.html#product-tabs


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## Fentum

Thanks sunny boi,

A helpful warning.

I ordered this one - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-E30-...193420?hash=item4418f08a8c:g:tnUAAOSwR29ZGL6H - which is either Tesa 51036 or 51026, depending on what they have in stock, according to the vendor.

Best

Peter


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## Fentum

Oh, for those others looking, and while we are still in the EU, this mob - 
autofonica_deautofonica_de on ebay.co.uk - have the older tape. 

They have always had what I need for car electronics - good quality, reasonable (combined) post and quick delivery.

Peter


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