1978 New Yorker: Adding optional equipment

[Chinoz71]

Hello All,

Just purchased a 1978 New Yorker Black Coupe with 34,000 original miles. i love it but it seems to not be as well equipped as other New Yorker's I have seen.

It has:

Cloth interior
Standard am/fm radio

Does not have:

Power Seats,
Power Trunk Release
Tilt / Telescoping Wheel

My question is can I add power seats and trunk release and any other electrical accessories such as cb radio or 8 track player radio without modding the dash harness? Are the harnesses provisioned with the necessary connectors for optional equipment from the factory?

Thanks!

 

[73 T&C]

Here she is:

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Very nice car you got there!!! Congrats.

As to swapping out options, the answer is yes but....

In some cases, you will need to modify the wiring harness to accept them. Seats, tilt /telescopic steering wheel both will. Seats willl require a power run under the carpet at a minimum. Tilt wheel has a different ignition switch plug which will need to be spliced in at a mimimum also.

Most of the radios are plug and play.

Best advise is to get the wiring diagrams from a factory service manual (FSM). The plug in accessories are all shown there as such.

Best of luck with your beautiful new car.

Javier

 

[Chinoz71]

Very nice car you got there!!! Congrats.

As to swapping out options, the answer is yes but....

In some cases, you will need to modify the wiring harness to accept them. Seats, tilt /telescopic steering wheel both will. Seats willl require a power run under the carpet at a minimum. Tilt wheel has a different ignition switch plug which will need to be spliced in at a mimimum also.

Most of the radios are plug and play.

Best advise is to get the wiring diagrams from a factory service manual (FSM). The plug in accessories are all shown there as such.

Best of luck with your beautiful new car.

Javier

Thanks for the info Javier!

 

[commando1]

More background on the car, please.
Who what when where why

 

[1978 NYB]

If you put a T&T column and steering wheel in make sure you get the steering column extension wiring harness that is with it too. It is all plug and play. No splicing necessary. As a matter of fact, every car with T&T has that extension wiring harness at the end of the steering column harness.

Take the door sill plates up and you'll find the harness plug ins for the power seats.

There is only one wiring harness on a 78 Formal so if your car doesn't have the option Chrysler just tucked the connector out of the way like under the door sills for example.

 

[commando1]

There is only one wiring harness on a 78 Formal so if your car doesn't have the option Chrysler just tucked the connector out of place like under the door sills for example.

Might even have the motors for the rear windows in there. I've seen it.

 

[1978 NYB]

Might even have the motors for the rear windows in there. I've seen it.

It does have the rear motors mounted too.

 

[73 T&C]

If you put a T&T column and steering wheel in make sure you get the steering column extension wiring harness that is with it too. It is all plug and play. No splicing necessary. As a matter of fact, every car with T&T has that extension wiring harness at the end of the steering column harness.

Take the door sill plates up and you'll find the harness plug ins for the power seats.

There is only one wiring harness on a 78 Formal so if your car doesn't have the option Chrysler just tucked the connector out of the way like under the door sills for example.

What he said !!!!!!
He really knows a lot more. I never noticed the wiring extension/adapter on my T andT column. Good to know that the power seat harness connectors are there under the door sills too. Thanks for the correction/expansion of my reply Bob!

 

[1978 NYB]

If I remember correctly.... the T&T wiring harness is actually a GM part and Chrysler used an adapted wiring harness extension that is only about 12" long that is plug and play. Every Formal with T&T has that.

I'm almost 100% sure and I think the 1973's have the same setup for the T&T.

 

[Chinoz71]

More background on the car, please.
Who what when where why

Hi commando1,

Well, here is the story as much as i can remember. I live in Texas and this car was bought and has stayed its entire life in Chicago until i recently purchased it.

I bought it from the original owner's Nephew. The car was purchased by the original owner to transport his parents to and from doctor's appointments and dog shows. Used for short trips only. When the parents passed away, the car just sat in the garage for 30 years. It had two flat tires out of the 4 orginal Goodyear HR78-15 tires including matching original spare which is still in the car with unused jack.

The owner passed away last year and his wife sold their house and had their nephew sell the car for her. That's about all i know. I can tell you that it still has a kind of new smell in the interior which is probably the off gassing of all the plastic parts inside. I really like the car especially in black. What you are seeing in the pictures is the factory paint. I am almost 100% certain of it. Very straight body and no rust anywhere on the car.

The only flaws I do see on the outside are pitting on some chrome surfaces like the tops of the mirrors and door handles, top of the grills and bumpers. I wonder if the chrome on these cars was inferior to previous model years because the car sat inside and the chrome still got pitted. Moisture from cold weather maybe?

 

[CBODY67]

Adding the power deck lid release could well be "some disassembly/assembly required".

I believe all of the radio faceplates were the same size? BUT, adding the speaker wiring harnesses would be more labor-intensive, I suspect. There should be a particular power CB radio antenna (with "the load" in one section of the telescoping mast), plus any electronics to make the CB section work. Performance of the factory CB was not as good as the middle-line aftermarket units, typically, so I'd rather aim for the factory stereo instead . . . which usually sounded better than any other non-Chrysler OEM factory system.

The car looks really nice and pristine! Changing it from what it currently is might somewhat detract from that as any item you add will be "used" and possibly NOT in the same condition as if the car had come with them originally. On the other side . . . as the power seat and tilt/telescope column are basically bolt-in items, plus the 4-speaker stereo (which might need a new panel and brackets for the dash speakers) would probably be all I'd do, if it was mine (AND I was younger).

To me, there's a certain mystique about a car that's not like everybody else's similar car. Fewer options can also mean "fewer problems down the road".

Adding "factory" equipment where it wasn't installed would possibly only increase the joy of ownership, but add little money to the actual resale value of the car. As things are now, the main drivers of "value" are the really nice general condition of the car, the low miles, and the many "like new" areas. So, from a $$$ point of view, little return on investment, it seems.

In ANY event, getting EVERYTHING off of the donor vehicle can be very important. Having the donor wiring harnesses with the correct plug-ins might be more "dreaming", considering how some salvage yards normally "snip" than "unplug".

CBODY67

 

[1978 NYB]

Hi commando1,

Well, here is the story as much as i can remember. I live in Texas and this car was bought and has stayed its entire life in Chicago until i recently purchased it.

I bought it from the original owner's Nephew. The car was purchased by the original owner to transport his parents to and from doctor's appointments and dog shows. Used for short trips only. When the parents passed away, the car just sat in the garage for 30 years. It had two flat tires out of the 4 orginal Goodyear HR78-15 tires including matching original spare which is still in the car with unused jack.

The owner passed away last year and his wife sold their house and had their nephew sell the car for her. That's about all i know. I can tell you that it still has a kind of new smell in the interior which is probably the off gassing of all the plastic parts inside. I really like the car especially in black. What you are seeing in the pictures is the factory paint. I am almost 100% certain of it. Very straight body and no rust anywhere on the car.

The only flaws I do see on the outside are pitting on some chrome surfaces like the tops of the mirrors and door handles, top of the grills and bumpers. I wonder if the chrome on these cars was inferior to previous model years because the car sat inside and the chrome still got pitted. Moisture from cold weather maybe?

My 78 NYB had the same chrome issues. I could grate cheese on the grill top. My car sat outside in York, Pa for 30 years.

It is not inferior chrome. I was lucky and got the entire chrome off an NYB in a New Mexico junkyard and every piece is as good as NOS.

 

[Chinoz71]

My 78 NYB had the same chrome issues. I could grate cheese on the grill top. My car sat outside in York, Pa for 30 years.

It is not inferior chrome. I was lucky and got the entire chrome off an NYB in a New Mexico junkyard and every piece is as good as NOS.

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Love that color on yours!

 

[Dobalovr]

My 78 NYB had the same chrome issues. I could grate cheese on the grill top. My car sat outside in York, Pa for 30 years.

It is not inferior chrome. I was lucky and got the entire chrome off an NYB in a New Mexico junkyard and every piece is as good as NOS.

View attachment 174804

And here I am contemplating one for myself....and more keep popping up to convince me I am NYB material....thanks for posting nice car!

 

[1978 NYB]

Btw, the power antenna and wiring is totally different between CB equipped cars and the other radio's and don' t interchange.

The power antenna on a CB car doesn' have an antenna switch on the dash and automatically goes up when you turn the radio on and automatically goes down when you turn it e radio off. Parts are not available for CB antennas and I converted mine to the standard power antenna and I added the switch on the dash. I have an aftermarket radio which I only use the MP3 feature with my IPOD.

 

[1978 NYB]

Love that color on yours!

B3 Cadet Blue Mettalic

 

[1978 NYB]

And here I am contemplating one for myself....and more keep popping up to convince me I am NYB material....thanks for posting nice car!

Thanks Graham.

I'e been working on this car for a long time.

 

[Dobalovr]

Thanks Graham.

I'e been working on this car for a long time.

She is a beauty Bob! Don’t know how you choose which to drive...Ram or NYB!

 

[1978 NYB]

She is a beauty Bob! Don’t know how you choose which to drive...Ram or NYB!

If it's a nice weather day I try to drive the NYB. But that RAM is spoiling me!

The 300C is nice too.

 

[Chinoz71]

B3 Cadet Blue Mettalic