Me again. So it’s time for engine start up. I have had to repair and replace various parts of the loom. So today I connected the battery and turned the key and….. nothing, not a thing, no dash lights, clicks or thankfully no smoking or strange crackly, melty noises. I have 12.5 volts to the starter but nothing coming out of it. My understanding the red and white and red and black wires are meant to power the front of the car? Any and all help is greatly appreciated. John Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Can't help you on your electrics but i would change your fuel pipe ...looks like its fraying and seen better days .
I would also, once the wiring's sorted, move those +ve terminals well away from the motor/chassis. They're connected straight to the battery (no fuse) and there'll be some fireworks if they short out.
So here is a wiring diagram off the Samba ( https://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/wiring/baybus_79_color.jpg) - looks like you are missing some connections or some have got put in the wrong place . On the spade terminals , both of them same connection. Red/black - 4.0mm2 goes to ignition switch crank position. Red/white - 0.5mm2 goes to double relay if you have a T4 engine or not present on a T1 On the big bolt Red/white - 6.0mm2 goes to front of bus, fuse box and other permanently powered circuits. Red - 6.0mm2 goes to alternator B+ Black 25mm2 goes to starter motor. Red - 1.5mm to the test socket (optional to omit these days) An alternative aftermarket wiring has a single 25mm2 to the battery positive, then the alternator B+ wire and the red/white 6.0mm2 wire going to the battery positive terminal, crowding out the positive terminal on the battery.
Shouldn’t the red and white wire be on the stud with the battery wire? It looks like you have it on the spade terminal
Looking at the diagram , it is confusing as the red/white wires are the same colour code but different diameters, doing different jobs. Using an aftermarket wiring harness or repairs has probably made it worse by not using the original sized or colour coded wiring. I have seen a T4 harness e.g. where there were two thinner wires doing the job of one original wire. This is a good reason why replacing the wiring harness should be the absolute last resort , when often cleaning up a few terminals or re-crimping new ends would have fixed the old one. Obviously if its missing or melted then replacement is a good idea. So there should be two big wires and one massive one on the main starter motor stud.
Black and Red is your "trigger" wire from the ignition that activates the starter solenoid. Leave that where it is on the spade terminal. You just need to move the red/white cable to the same stud that the thicker red wire is currently attached to and you should be golden. That cable feeds the main fuse board so it being were it currently is would explain you having no dash lights etc.
