I'm planning to hook up the battery and start testing the electrical system.... ie brake lights, turn signals, headlights, etc...

Are there any do's and don'ts I should be mindful of?

BTW - I have no gas in the tank and have not started up the engine yet....

Would it be OK to crank the motor? (I changed the oil)....

You may want to pull all the fuses, replacing one at at time and testing each circuit like that. That way if you happen to have more than one serious problem you don't let the smoke out of everything.

Have you recently rebuilt the car where you have removed and replaced the electrical system?

If you'll be doing key-on testing, you should disconnect the +12V to the coil so you don't damage the coil or points.

Removing the fuses and installing one at a time as suggested would be a safe way of proceeding with your testing.

Yep. The wiring was moved up front and to the engine for paint and metal work... and it seems to have sat around exposed for some time....

At the risk of sounding disagreeable, how would removing the fuses help anything? If there is a short, it will blow one fuse. If the short is in an unfused circuit then you could get smoke, but in that case removing the fuses doesn't help either.

Take a few minutes and double check there is no wiring that could short out, and then just go for it.

Don't know about you, but i've had wires smoke and not pop a fuse, at least not till the wire was melted. If you put one in at a time, you can feel the fuse get hot and yank it quick like.

If you pull out all the fuses and relays (including relay board & ECU)... When connecting the battery cables you should have ABSOLUTLY NO SPARK at the terminal. Just lightly touch it. If you see a small spark you may have a problem. You can also use a fuse in between the battery and terminal. if it blows with everything removed you may have a short somewhere.

I would only do these steps if you have reason to suspect a problem in your wiring. If all the wire insulation is good and wires are connected you should not have a problem.

with Mike, and would add; if you suspect there may be a problem, hook up the positive post- then use a jumper to hook the negative to ground. If there is no spark, you can begin testing the circuits. If a problem shows up, the jumper can be disconnected quickly.
Tom

That's a good idea

Thanks y'all.

Hooked up the battery and got just under 12 volts inside... both red and green lights at "on"

Downside... the headlights are.. off (see picture) and the starter does not crank...

That car is drunk. I can tell by the eyes...

So I adjusted the lights per Andy's classic thread and got both sides correct... but now the pass side motor isn't working.... bad relay?

Rear lights work too....