Broken tailgate wire

More good information ! I went to the IPDUSA website as suggested; of those harnesses show, which two should I order ? And, is the driver side harness a mirror image of the pass side ? (Same)

They are different side to side. And there's a -85 and an 85+ version as well.

IPD also has instructions in a .pdf with black and white pictures. Read through the part descriptions and it will say if left side harness or right side is the one for the wiper but, since you're going to be there anyway, replace both. If your wagon is 83/84/85, you'll want to peek at your connectors first to order the correct style replacements.

245 hatch wiring replacement

The hatch is conveniently about 6' high when raised without the gas cylinder. A step ladder in the middle makes removal of one side at a time easy. The OEM wire are fine strand like welding cable to withstand a thousand flexes. The aftermarket ones are not and their lifetime is much shorter.

If the OEM harness has never been worked on there is enough slack to pull some through and splice the broken fine wire outside of the hinge area. My right side has sacrificed slack twice but now needs a transplant.

Don't be afraid to gently pull the headliner back and out of the crimped track. I have had my 37 year old liner out many times without damage.

I have no intention of replacing the harness wire with aftermarket wire that is going to fail within my lifetime (I hope). I am going to use some of the several feet of unmolested fine OEM wire to the lock/light area to splice into the IPD aftermarket harness at the hinge with enough slack on both sides to repair it a couple more times.

The left side has only failed once so I figure I have a little slack to go on that side.

I purchased this car new in 1982 and plan on being buried in it.

TestPoint said:

The hatch is conveniently about 6' high when raised without the gas cylinder. A step ladder in the middle makes removal of one side at a time easy. ...

Click to expand...

Pic is small b/c when it was taken, bits on the internet were costly and slow moving.

Great idea using the ladder ! My 240 wagon is a '90. I would like to get a better idea of each wires function on the drivers side and passenger side.
** Just realized the license plate lights don’t work. Are they powered via the driver side ?

Update: Talked to Swedish Car Parts regarding the harnesses that go to the hatch. First: they were not all the same. He suggested to first note the type/style of connector ( ie round or square ), and the shape of the harness coverings ( square or round ). In regard to using the ladder to hold up the hatch, he said a blanket should be positioned between the hatch and roof.
I'm still at a loss as to how the headliner gets pulled back, any help here will be appreciated.

The head liner is a stretchable vinyl that has a 1/4" wide stiff plastic strip sewn around the edges. The plastic strip turns under into a crimped strip of metal welded the entire circumference of the liner.

Gently pinch and pull a place on the edge of the vinyl until the strip is out of its slot. You will need to take the rear storage light off anyway to get to the wiring and that will give you a place to pull without much tension.

jim_hoyland said:

Update: Talked to Swedish Car Parts regarding the harnesses that go to the hatch. First: they were not all the same. He suggested to first note the type/style of connector ( ie round or square ), and the shape of the harness coverings ( square or round ). In regard to using the ladder to hold up the hatch, he said a blanket should be positioned between the hatch and roof.
I'm still at a loss as to how the headliner gets pulled back, any help here will be appreciated.

Click to expand...

Another picture from the 20-year-old Tiny Image Gallery...



Amateur Tip: Wear clean gloves, if you've been into the black butyl rubber sealing the hinges.

Miserable job.

I’ve seen speakers installed in the gate. Must be a job to run the wires.

^^
Samsonite ?

I like the garage door trick and also the step ladder idea