4th generation wiring 101 for dummies?

[matthewkristof]

hi all

after reading many of your threads for months, and seeing so many awesome modifications on your beloved t4rs, i feel inspired to begin some minor mods on my 2007 sport 2wd

i'm having some trouble with wiring. i'm looking into installing a gentex auto dimming mirror, for starters, but have no clue on how to wire into the fuse panel. i hear things like #A9 connection, ground, tapping in, and i get lost. i want to do these myself and not pay the dealership an arm and a leg...plus it will be a heck of a lot more fulfilling.

here's the gentex mirror i speak of.

http://www.google.com/url?q=http://...KJD6cg&usg=AFQjCNEFs25koFH6h1P_3P4zDYnBca59nA


i've ran a search already but found that most of the threads are 5 or 6 years old. i know this is a really easy install...but i have no idea where to start. i also want to add things like seat warmers from Rostra:

http://www.rostra.com/manuals/250-1550-install_Form4708C.pdf

am i in over my head or are these feasible projects? wondering if anyone can point me in the right direction.

thank you so much in advance

 

[cabowally]

am i in over my head or are these feasible projects?

"but have no clue on how to wire into the fuse panel. i hear things like #A9 connection, ground, tapping in, and i get lost. "

I think you answered your own question.



.

 

[matthewkristof]

I'm just trying to learn. Didn't study electrical engineering.

 

[girvinman]

Just about anything can be done if you can do the reasearch and follow instructions. Its cool that you have the ambition to tackle these projects and the satisfaction of completing it yourself is great. Just know that if it is not done correctly you will have a very expensive lessons learned.

 

[TRDCal]

I would like to help you, but you'll have to be more specific on what help you need. Like as far as where to start, not to be a smart ass but step 1 is a good place

Basically in electricity you have negative and positive, ground is the same as negative, most metal surfaces in the truck will provide a suitable ground. As far as #A9 connection, thats is refering to one of the terminals it wants you to tap into (you'll have to refer to the figure 7 I believe to find out which teminal it is). Tapping into a wire just basically means connecting into that wire. Sorry if this doesnt make much sense, I'm tend to not be very effective at getting my thoughts out

 

[Kmvreter]

Just about anything can be done if you can do the reasearch and follow instructions. Its cool that you have the ambition to tackle these projects and the satisfaction of completing it yourself is great. Just know that if it is not done correctly you will have a very expensive lessons learned.

To the OP,
I can't help you with specifics of the mods but one way you can minimize the risk of the lessons learned is to ALWAYS disconnect the NEGATIVE battery cable, no matter how trivial the work may seem. This interupts any power when working on electrical items before or after a fuse.