XFute-1JZsoarer

I've put the XG fuel tank in my ute, so I could keep it pretty simple with the wiring, but I am thinking of putting in a EB Fairmont gauge cluster, I will pull the oil pressure sender and that out of the EB to make it all work. Thinking I might just get it running 1st before I worry bout any of that though.

Actually, that last engine bay diagram also helps with the layout of where the washer bottles and purge canister and that kind of stuff goes.

Thanks heaps Gav, awesome help mate! Yeah I'm swapping the entire XG pretty much, from radiator to the taillights and everything in between. I've got the XG heater box now installed, along with the passenger side engine harness. I spent yesterday doing rust repairs to the drivers side floor and the drivers side vent that caused it. So I can now put the drivers side harness in. I've got the XG dash ready to go in from there, it's still got all the smartlock and dash harness installed in it. I got a new J3 chip to disable the smartlock so I don't need to worry about any of it not working properly (1 less headache for now). From looking at the firewall grommet on the loom itself, I can sort of trace where the relay block, battery terminals, alternator wiring and the HEGO plug goes. But the headlight plugs threw me for a spin as I was looking at it being similar to the original XF loom, expecting the little side indicator bulbs being with the headlight plugs like on the XF, but I didn't realize that they are actually on the guard behind the front wheels instead of being on the bumper, so I was a little confused till I looked at couple of XG pics. I'm now wondering if I should swap the XF body harness over and just try and use the fuel tank part of the loom seperately, or just swap the entire XG one in as well... But thanks to you, I have a much better understanding as to how it all goes in. I'm gonna go down to the wreckers soon and take some pics of its wiring to see how and where it all clips into the shell. I think that with the info you have given me, along with some pictures, I'll have it all under control. Your help is greatly appreciated mate, thanks very much for taking the time to help. I'll keep you posted on how I go with it. Cheers mate. Jay.

Hi all, can anyone tell me if I need to get Falcon ute buckets certified/mod plated if I swap the bench seat out. I just want to use standard seats, maybe later model, but no mods to them. Don't want a floor shift manual and bench seat is all...

Yeah, they are pretty sweet. But the prices I've been seeing them at is a little too rich for my liking, it's money I'd rather spend on the engine and driveline for now. Maybe once it's all sorted though...

Thanks Slydog, some good info mate. I realized that my ute doesn't need the holes drilled, I just didn't notice them before, probably because of the rust distracting me I think. Lol. I'm going to wait till I bolt in a short shifter and make my decision based on how well it fits with the bench. I'm definanlty going to upgrade to the XG seats though. I'm not so worried about getting pulled over as much as being involved in a accident and having them use the non mod plated modifications against me. It'll only cost me another $60 to have the code put on if I get it inspected at the same time I get the engine conversion done.

It's cool mate, you've been a fantastic help as always anyway, I don't know many people that would go to that sort of effort to help out someone they barely know. Just goes to show what a top bloke you are mate. Seems like I'm making better friends on this site than with the people I do actually know... I just hope I can return the help you've given me someday. As always, it's very much appreciated. Cheers bud. Jay.

It does sound like an internal problem, hope it's nothing major, it is handy to have that light working though, it's so easy to knock the highs on and not notice till irrate drivers start flashing you eh. I reckon you'll work it out, as it looks like you've got things pretty well in hand so far.

There's not much on the board to go wrong with the light circuit, other than corrosion, I can't think what else it could be. But I reckon it wouldn't be too difficult to diagnose if that was the issue. You've really got me scratching my head thinkin now. Lol. Keep us posted how you go bud, be interesting to see what the issue is... Good luck.

Those little bulbs can be deceptive to look at. I'd take one of the bulbs that you know work and just swap it with the highbeam bulb to confirm if it's the bulb or the board. Otherwise, pull the bulb and grab a little 9v battery and see if you can light it up with the battery, just a quick tap on the terminals to see if it flashes. New bulbs are pretty cheap, I got a pack of 2 in the glovebox as spares, you could just throw one in and cross your fingers.

Thanks heaps Polson, your pics and advice have been a huge help as always mate Cheers

Cheers mate, I always appreciate your input, as I know it's coming from personal experience, and let's face it, you haven't steered me wrong, while plenty of others have (thankfully no-one from this particular forum though). That's why OzFalcon is my "go to" site for any solid info or advice. Anyway, the suns out and it's nice and warm compared to the last few days, so I'm gonna make the most of it. I'll have some fresh pics and a update on my build thread hopefully today Oh, and I can't wait to kick that motor over too, I'll try post up a video when I finally get there. Thanks again mate. Jay.

Hi all, I'm at that point where I'm about to put the XG wiring looms into the XF ute, and I'm just curious if the XG dash will hook straight up to the XF heater box, or should I just swap the XG box over instead, hoping to save myself a little more work as I've found some rust I need to repair on the drivers side floor thanks to a bodgy repair on the previous owners part to the drivers side vent/plenum opening. Was hoping this conversion was just a straight up swap over, but now it's looking to be a bit more than that. So would like to save myself the hassle of swapping the boxes over. Thanks in advance. Jay.

Thanks Steve, I ended up pulling the XF box out and side by side, I couldn't pick a difference with wiring and such, though the fan motor seems to slightly smaller. I ended deciding to use the XG one because of the one real difference, the AC pipes. The XF doesn't appear to have ever had AC in it, I thought maybe some on just pulled the AC compressor off the crossflow, turns out it never had one. I will go over the XG one before I install it, but I have a little bit of work to do before I get to putting it in. Hopefully the heater core is still alright, the rest seems to be in good condition. Shame though, cause the XF one appears to be in pretty good nick. Thanks again for the advice mate.

That's exactly the same as mine mate, thanks for the pic, reassures that it is the EA floor. I suspected it was when I put the EA crossmember in last week. Thanks again mate.

I was more after the buckets because of the extra support stopping you from sliding about, especially with the vinyl covered sofa that was in the ute already, but after looking at some XG bench seats, they almost look like buckets anyway, just with the centre flat instead. And I wasn't sure how it's go with the T5 shifter sitting right in front of it, but it appears to have enough space with the original shifter, not sure how it would work with a short shifter installed like the mustang ones I been looking at. I guess if it doesn't work with the short shift, I can always convert it to buckets later.

Thanks for the advice guys, turns out it has the EA style floor pan going off the info you fellas have shared. Only thing I see being a problem is it doesn't have the front holes next to the tunnel for the buckets to fit. I'm yet to decide whether I'll go buckets as the bench seat idea has kind of grown on me. Especially after seeing how nice a cloth XG one looks... I'll keep you guys posted which way I do go. Thanks again. Jay.

Cheers guys, I was trying to avoid swapping plugs over, I know the boxes themselves are the same, it was just if it was plug and play with the XG dash. I'm guessing the AC lines will be different now that you mentioned it, as I'm sure that XG was metric all throughout the ute with XF being imperial still. I hadn't decided on keeping the AC in, but now that you mentioned it, I might try and put it in too. I'll see how the heater core is in the XG box and go from there. Might just be easier to swap the entire thing, you'd think it would make swapping the looms an easier job with the box pulled out of the way too. Appreciate the info guys. As always, thanks

It doesn't really get more robust than audio type power cables (it is only cable, it's just more commonly used in audio setups) the only other cable that comes close is welders cable, and that's usually used as a cheaper alternative to audio cable anyway. I doubt your entire car would draw anywhere near 140 amps, but that's what I regularly run when using test tones through the amps.

Even 2 gauge should be fine mate, but the old saying bigger is better is quite true when it comes to power cables. I use 0 gauge to run 2 Monoblock amps that together can pull loads as high as 140A, split by gold plated distribution block to 2x 4 gauge cables (1 to each amp), so it's more than up to the task for your type of application. I also use a heatproof sleeves whenever I need a cable routed near anything hot (such as the amps themselves). The sleeves I use are made of an asbestos type material similar to exhaust wrap. If you go with 0 gauge, you will be safe with adding anything else with a significant power load without needing to upgrade again, and it's not much more than 4 gauge in price. Also, it pays to use quality fittings as these can also add resistance. The only restriction I find is space, as 0 gauge is a hassle to route through the car, but is quite easy to get around with a bit of thought.

One more thing mate, when buying the cable, stick to the OFC type (Oxygen Free Cable), the other type is laced with aluminium and it's utter crap. There's quite a bit to a length of cable these days, it's pretty easy to spend good money on a shit product, so it pays to know as much on the subject as buying any other part for your ride...

Oh, and keep away from circuit breakers, they aren't the most reliable way to go, and when it comes to power, you don't wanna risk it. Can't go past proper fusing. Fusible links aren't hard to find, try a local car audio specialist or auto electrician, failing that id check EvilBay...

Even 4 gauge should suffice, but if you can squeeze some 0 gauge in, I'd recommend using it instead too. You'll get less voltage drop over the longer distance with 0 gauge. I get right into my car audio so I've got a little bit of experience with power cables. There's some good wire gauge charts online that can help you, just work out the max current draw you'll pull with everything drawing power, figure out the length you need and check the chart. But you can't really go wrong with some quality 0AWG (AWG = American Wire Gauge). 0 gauge isn't the biggest (0000AWG is), but it's the most common size to use. Just remember that like anything else, not all 0AWG is created equal, so only get the very best your budget allows.

Oh I agree there's a lot of practice and educating themselves in the process of becoming that good, but there still needs to be an element of pure talent that will get you there at that level. Your not going to dedicate your life to something that your totally hopeless with, no matter how much you try... You can teach some people the same thing 10 times over, and another will watch it once and get it almost, if not absolutely perfect.

Sorry to bring up an old thread, but it's so good I'm sure anyone else that hasn't seen it will really dig this guys work. Just had a look at his thread on the split window combi ute, that Thai fella is a dead set artist in every sense of the word! It seems like a talent you either have or you don't have at all! If you didn't see the work in progress pics, you just wouldn't believe it...