Steering Wheel Radio/Stereo Control for After-market HU

[yojabbajabba]

Back again Iggy!

I have received my ASWC, and the harnesses necessary for my new head unit (which I'm picking up on Wednesday - Alpine CDE 133 BT). This is a good things, as it means I can now proceed to doing all preparation wring :D

So, here are my troubleshooting questions.

Connecting the ASWC harness to D74:
Quote:
"5. Connect Pin 6: SWG (ground) on Connector D74 to ground"

Does that mean I have to cut off Pin 6 and re-wire it to the Ground used in "1."?

Connecting the ASWC harness to D74 (general)
- When "tapping" wires, does this literally mean joining the wires from the ASWC in-line with the wires on D74 - i.e. stripping off a part of the insulation on the respective wires, and then soldering the ASWC wires in-line? I'd like to avoid cutting off the OEM harness connector.

That's about it for now,

Thank you for your help!
Aaron

[Iggy888]

Hello Aaron. It is good to hear from you again. I am glad you are making some headway getting your steering wheel switches ready for your new head unit.

Originally Posted by yojabbajabba

Does that mean I have to cut off Pin 6 and re-wire it to the Ground used in "1."?

Yes, the wire from Pin 6 needs to be grounded. I wired mine to connect to the ground used in step 1 and had no issues.

Originally Posted by yojabbajabba

When "tapping" wires, does this literally mean joining the wires from the ASWC in-line with the wires on D74 - i.e. stripping off a part of the insulation on the respective wires, and then soldering the ASWC wires in-line? I'd like to avoid cutting off the OEM harness connector.

Yes, cutting into the wires and soldering them together is the most secure way to join the wires. It ensures the best mechanical connection and best electrical connection.
Soldering the wires together is what the instructions recommend.

However, having said that I chose not to cut up my wiring harness. Instead, I used wire tap splice connectors since they could be easily removed later without killing the harness.
One big caveat with using tap connectors is to make sure to get the right size (I used 22-18Awg connectors).

Background: I had used tap connectors to install another component in an earlier project and had trouble getting it working. Looking closely at my new connections, they seemed to be held securely in place by the tap connectors. What I did not realize at the time was that though the wires appeared to be joined together with the tap connector, they had not made a good electrical connection.

It was only after I removed the tap connector and inspected the two wires closely that I realized the tap connector had failed to pierce the outer casing of one of my wires and contact the core wire for a good electrical signal.

Ever since that frustrating experience, whenever I use tap connectors I make sure to get the right size so that when clipped together it makes good electrical contact.
To be sure, I pull out my digital multimeter, set it for continuity mode, connect the leads to the ends of the newly tapped wires and listen for the tone which indicates a good electrical connection.

Below is a picture of what these tap connectors look like:
65-1280.jpg

I hope this helps!