Ok, tell me if I am right but it looks like a simple pull and plug solution? If anyone has done this, answer a couple of questions for me before I proceed. Now, the double spades are used in place of the spade above and below the old ceramic type fuses? sp they plug into each single spade on the new box?


I just hate to see my wiring get fried....looks like a rats nest anyway.


Is there any difference between the JWest and the Engman type fuse box upgrade?


Michael

I put a JWest fusebox in my six. It really is a plug & play process & should take no more that 2 hrs. Rule # 1: disconnect your battery. The only problem I encountered was the length of the stock wires in the harness going to the fusebox. I wound up leaving the bottom row alone & used short 2" to 3" extensions on top. ONE AT A TIME. Do them right & dont use additional connectors. I just snipped off the spades that were there, peeled the insulation back enough to splice & solder an extension onto the wire, put a new spade on the end. ONE AT A TIME. Don't use electrical tape to insulate your solders... use shrink wrap. Voila, modern fuses & you can get rid of the old ceramic ones. Unless your into concours... then sell the JWest fusebox & stay old school.

plan on spending a while. mine took the better part of 3hrs, maybe a little more to get done. i ended up putting the new fuse box right up to the old one and one-by-one unplug then plug in the connectors.
mine had doubles in slightly different places, so i repositioned them as my layout dictated. if you take your time, it's not that bad and really looks/works great.

Is there any difference between the JWest and the Engman type fuse box upgrade?

i can't speak to this.

paul

I installed the Engman fuse panel and I love it. It was quite a task though. The fit of the original fuse box is tight enough. One of the problems I ran into was that the harness wires plug into the top of the stock fuse panel but the wires plug into the side of the Engman panel. Because of this, it took quite a bit of tricky placement to get the wires fitted around the relays. The other side of the panel was not a problem. I was unable to use the "T" type adaptors supplied with the Engman panel (used to plug in multiple leads to a single fuse) but instead used the stacking type of adaptors with much more luck. I had the added hastle of not having my harness properly installed by a previous owner so it actually took me a couple of days to install. Mine was also a "rats nest" and had a couple of fried wires in the harness I had to replace. If everything is correct it should be a 1/2 day project and about a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10. MAKE SURE YOU SHRINK WRAP ALL OF THE BARE CONNECTORS! When you pack everything back into there it is really tough not to have connectors touch each other or ground out. Also plan on taking all of the grounds loose behind the panel and cleaning them.

You are correct about the multiple connections.

The JWest fuse box has highly detailed labels that are specific to your year of 914 and include wiring colors, fuse ratings, and a list of all the items protected by each fuse.

I installed JWest fuse panels in both my cars. I just did my 6 today and it was a bit more difficult because of the roll cage kinda got in the way a bit. Impossible to get the old rubber relay mounts back into the holes. I couldn't use the supplied metal mount for the panel anyway. Just tucked the relays under the dash. I have been totally satisfied with JWest products.
cheers, Elliot

I installed it in mine as well, and took around 30 minutes. You can get the fuse holders from waytek wire, if you want to save some money, and come up with your own mount.

I used Armor All & needle nose pliers. Lube them up, put them in place & finish the job w/ the pliers. I was worried about ripping them & but it worked out perfect, no damage. Take your time w/ this step & nothing gets ripped.

great tip..I wondering how I was going to accomplish this....


Michael

Actually, in retrospect, I should have used my own spit instead. I think spit is much easier on the overall life of rubber vs. Armor All. Not trying to be gross, just know rubber likes spit.

Rubber also likes creamy peanut butter... it's what I use to get the wax off of the rubber on any of my toys... you know, that wax that gets on it & dries white after you wash & wax your Teener? My .02.

You can get your own holders and save some loot. I think mine cost under $20, minus the cost of new blade fuses. Not a plug and play like the kits, but not $100 either.

I'm running into some issues with the JWest replacement as well. Probably because of a PO with random wiring skills , but, still, I'm left with a conundrum. Here's the front of the fuse box:

Click to view attachment

The bottom connections make sense (ignore the brown wire, it's part of the PO mess):

Click to view attachment

However, the top connections are FUBAR. See the missing yellow headlight motor wire (nowhere to be found...) and the "extra" dangling red/black wire.

Click to view attachment

I'm off to scrutinize my current flow diagrams , but I thought maybe someone here would have a quick tip.

The JWest panel fits much tighter than the original. I got some nylon washers and super glued 2 together on each side and made a 3/4" extension, also got longer screws. My #12 fuse never worked since I got it, and havent taken it apart to find out the reason. I just hooked up another single.

I found out the same thing, very tight fit...I would love to help you but my wiring is totally different due to mods....

Michael

racunniff,
It seems to me I had to jumper from the yellow wire to the headlight motor fuse. I switched from the original fuse panel, so I'm pretty sure my connections were all correct. Hope this helps.
Aaron

That is correct, the first two pairs of headlight fuses are internally bussed on the input side so that one wire feeds two headlight outputs.

The black/red should be for the fresh air fan and goes to fuse #8. What color is the other wire you have on fuse 8? It looks tan but that would not be correct.

That tan one is part of the PO "engineering". I have removed it. I assume the black/red wire goes in its place?

Fun, can't wait to install mine, already have a known ground issue and FUBAR right front turn signal issues, and a non-working fresh air fan. Waiting to really see the PO's mods in the fuse panel!

Best of luck racunniff in sorting it all out.

Hey, anyone make new wiring harnesses, might be easier for some with really messed up stuff to get a new one and start from scratch.