Severe Engine Wiring Problem

[fjaen]

I have a real problem. My engine wiring harness in my 87 toyota camry melted internally, and I have shorts left and right and the car's accessories and engine work intermittently at best. The mech wants an arm and a leg to fix this, and I asked if it would be okay just to replace the engine wiring harness. He said I would also have to find what shorted it out in the first place, as a fuse on the battery kept blowing. Now I dont know if the fuse on the battery could have been blowing because of the condition of the wires (though it was driveable for a while) or something else entirely. I'm worried I'm in a lot of trouble. Could I just go to a junkyard and pull a harness, and swap it out? Do i have a procedure for testing shorts at individual components? Thank you, I've done a head gasket before but I feel I'm in way over my head on this one.

When the engine is shorted out, Most of the accessories don't work, and the only thing that turns on when the car is turned on is the charge light (and no it's not a problem with alt or batt), and it clicks at the fuse box... All the fuses check out okay though. definitely severe melting around the battery cable, and into the engine wires.

[66conv6]

Other than finding an obvious short, I'd replace the harness first from a junk car. If your harness is that messed up it would seem hard to pinpoint something and if there is electrical component damage... well, the damage is probably already done.

I'd possibly look at how many wires are fried and why. If it's only a couple of wires you could splice in a new section. I'd definitely try to figure why the whole thing started in the first place if you can so doesn't fry again. I'd check frayed wires, loose wires grounding out and wires touching things they're probably not supposed to.

Off the 10FWY right at the off ramp for Ahwatukee there was a Firestone place with a master ASE certified mechanic that helped me with the A/C fan not coming on. He wasn't cheap but he sure did know his stuff.