Exposed Wiring not fully wrapped/loomed

[BulldogBear]

Been wondering about these two items since I picked up my Bronco, and finally getting around to asking:

The factory-wired plug for the hard top has all of the wires going into the plug exposed/unwrapped. Is that normal, or should there be some kind of strain relief or grommet between the plug and the loom to cover the wiring?

Also, the wiring behind the rear wheels that runs up to the tail lights is also unwrapped and the individual sheathed wires are exposed, which, being right behind the rear wheels, doesn't seem like a good idea for the long-term. Anyone else have this situation?

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[RagnarKon]

Whew... got scared for a second. When I read the title I thought you meant "exposed" as in no insulation. But you're just talking about the cable wrap.

The first image from the tail light is hard to see. From what you can see it seems a little on the sloppy side, but it won't impact functionality. None of the wires are actually exposed and there doesn't seem to be anything nearby that it would rub on. If you are worried about it you can take some heat shrink or electrical tape to wrap it up a little better.

The MIC wiring harness is normal. Shouldn't ever be an issue. That's just cable wrap to keep the cables together in a single bundle so the individual strands don't flop around. It won't ever impact anything from an electrical point of view. Again, you can put some heat shrink to secure the cable wrap to the end closer to the connector if you want. But that's just a largely asthetic fix and and not a functional fix.

 

[MileHighCitizen]

They are all like that, probably not the best design, wrap it with some vinyl tape or large shrink wrap and don't worry about it until its a problem.

I can definitely see water leaking into the outside loom and rotting over time. To be fair though, it doesn't seem much different than what most looms like under the hoods of all cars, which all fail after enough time.

 

[Tricky Dick]

I don't see anything overly concerning. They should have used a molded plug for the hard top but it is what it is now.

 

[Bob Blaylock]

Whew... got scared for a second. When I read the title I thought you meant "exposed" as in no insulation. But you're just talking about the cable wrap.

The first image from the tail light is hard to see. From what you can see it seems a little on the sloppy side, but it won't impact functionality. None of the wires are actually exposed and there doesn't seem to be anything nearby that it would rub on. If you are worried about it you can take some heat shrink or electrical tape to wrap it up a little better.

The MIC wiring harness is normal. Shouldn't ever be an issue. That's just cable wrap to keep the cables together in a single bundle so the individual strands don't flop around. It won't ever impact anything from an electrical point of view. Again, you can put some heat shrink to secure the cable wrap to the end closer to the connector if you want. But that's just a largely asthetic [sic] fix and and not a functional fix.

As a professional electrician, I'll just step in to say that what you said here is, as far as I can see, entirely correct. I see nothing at all wrong in @BulldogBear's pictures, and nothing that he should find worrisome.

 

[BulldogBear]

Thanks for the replies - Didn't mean to alarm people with my poorly-worded subject.

I'm not worried about any of the wiring; I was curious if this is standard across Broncos, or if mine was just a hasty install. Sounds like my build is par for the course.

Still, I am a little surprised the MIC plug & wires doesn't have some kind of strain relief. I'm sure the plug and mesh wrap is adaquate for the number of times people will plug and unplug it as they switch from soft to hardtop. But it's located above a storage cubby, and the mesh wiring wrap sticks out into the rear storage area far enough that I won't be surprised if/when the wiring gets snagged while loading/unloading stuff.

Anyway, my question has been answered, so thank you.

 

[swooshdave]

Thanks for the replies - Didn't mean to alarm people with my poorly-worded subject.

I'm not worried about any of the wiring; I was curious if this is standard across Broncos, or if mine was just a hasty install. Sounds like my build is par for the course.

Still, I am a little surprised the MIC plug & wires doesn't have some kind of strain relief. I'm sure the plug and mesh wrap is adaquate for the number of times people will plug and unplug it as they switch from soft to hardtop. But it's located above a storage cubby, and the mesh wiring wrap sticks out into the rear storage area far enough that I won't be surprised if/when the wiring gets snagged while loading/unloading stuff.

Anyway, my question has been answered, so thank you.

With plugs that require unlatching I don't think strain relief is needed. If you're not grasping the plug it ain't coming out no matter how hard you pull.

 

[ffdemoss]

Pull the door sill plastic trim if you really want to be worried...

 

[HorizonHunter]

Thanks for the replies - Didn't mean to alarm people with my poorly-worded subject.

I'm not worried about any of the wiring; I was curious if this is standard across Broncos, or if mine was just a hasty install. Sounds like my build is par for the course.

Still, I am a little surprised the MIC plug & wires doesn't have some kind of strain relief. I'm sure the plug and mesh wrap is adaquate for the number of times people will plug and unplug it as they switch from soft to hardtop. But it's located above a storage cubby, and the mesh wiring wrap sticks out into the rear storage area far enough that I won't be surprised if/when the wiring gets snagged while loading/unloading stuff.

Anyway, my question has been answered, so thank you.

I think I'll likely put in some sort of clip to hold the loose wires closer to the panels when not in use.

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