I have just installed my 3rd Autosparks harness, I love them, everything is correctly colour coded to match the wiring diagrams. If you contact them they can make you a custom harness, Say if you have a mk1 with an alternator, fog lights and a backup light, they will add it and wrap as original. Cheap too. The one I did for the Traveller last month was about $350 Canadian. Money well spent.

the biggest issue I think with the electrics is good grounding. Everything else was said above.

I make my own. Just buy a bunch of wire and connectors.

Last summer I installed a universal harness made by Painless.  All color coded and numbered.  Connections and fuse box were GM style.  No regrets.  Do a search for hot rod wiring harnesses and you will find many manufacturers of universal harnesses.  They also have places on the box for relays and flashers.  Nice thing about one of these kits is that if you need a relay or whatever you can just go to NAPA.  While I was at it I hid all the wiring and put the fuse box under the dash where it would stay clean and dry.  It really cleaned up the usually cluttered engine compartment.

Autosparks makes factory original harnesses and components for BMC and BL cars. In the US their vendor is British Wiring, but they also sell through all of the usual suspects and I bet that the harnesses sold by our host are made by them too.


I fitted an Autosparks harness to my MG Midget during restoration and not only was it excellently made, it was factory color wires and wrapping and connectors.  After assembling a completely new system, without 40 years of mishandling and DPO damage AND taking more care than the original factory had done for protecting against wire exposure to sharp metal edges, and using rubber grommets for all pass through holes AND as 1963 pointed out, using dielectric grease on every connection, I have every reason to believe it will last, trouble free, at least as long as any brand new car's harness will last.


N

I haven't used them, but I've heard good things about Autosparks.

".....classic mini (69 Ausi built)?..."

As my Guru (Morris apprentice who graduated to his BC rear shop)...used to say when I complained about having to fix some bit...  "Jeez , that's only (almost) 50 years old... you'd think they'd have made them a bit more durable..."

As Doug said  (well suggested..) 50 years of previous owners can wreak a lot of havoc..  If you chase down all the botched connections/modifications/ additions and service a few bits your Lucas electrics will be just as reliable as any contemporary Japanese car.. (not that you see many of those still alive these days...)

Cheers, Ian

Lucas electrics don't have to be a problem.  The bullet connectors and their couplers can fail or corrode and cause problems.  However, you can systematically go through the harness cleaning the connections, replacing the couplers, and coating the connections with dielectric grease during re-assembly to prevent future problems.  Once you protect the connections both in the wires and for the ground connections the Lucas electrics are no better or worse than any other classic car.  

An alternator conversion for generator equipped cars is a good reliability upgrade if you are not concerned about originality.  There was a thread running earlier this week on that topic.  Likewise, as Bill said, there are aftermarket harnesses available which can be installed if you are not concerned about originality.

They make a universal wiring harness for classic VW. which is only $99. which is color coded. and works GREAT in a classic mini  . and then get proper 70 amp alternator from Ford Tractor.. you should be good to go.. later bc

Electrical system for the classic mini (69 Ausi built)? Don't have much confidence in the Lucas systems as their always seems to be a problem with this and that.