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Yet another thread about wiring through JL firewall

donmontalvo

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Read through the half dozen threads on wiring through the firewall on a JL.

Awesome information, very grateful, except for one thing, my firewall looks, well, different.

2020 Jeep Wrangler Sport (JL), 3.6L V6, manual, two door...looks so different from other pics.

The only grommet I found that is usable is on the drivers side, about 12" deep into the engine compartment.

I'm able to take off the grommet, slice the tip off, and I'm able to run the 8 gauge speaker wire through it.

I can send the wire into the hole, but I can't for the life of me find it on the other side, the passenger compartment.

I'm guessing I'm doing it "rong". Advice? Thanks in advance. LOL
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Sting_NC_USA

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The one most folks are using is on the passenger side. It's close to the battery, and you can easily run wires wherever you need to in the Jeep.
 
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Not much space on that side, but guessing that makes sense since all the electronics come from that side.

I'll look for videos on detaching the fuze box so I can run the power cable through that side.
 

Sting_NC_USA

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Not necessary. You can reach it from under the vehicle, or by pulling the fender liner back.
 

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Not much space on that side, but guessing that makes sense since all the electronics come from that side.

I'll look for videos on detaching the fuze box so I can run the power cable through that side.
so I'm in the middle of this install right now actually. had same problem... have 4 door 2020 rubicon manual. I couldn't find it in the wheel liner either after peeling back the fender. not because it was not there but because I couldn't tell what to look for. In the end I ended up starting in the passenger footwell... pushing a hanger through that way and it popper into the wheel liner. hope I didn't do anything too bad but I was able to pull the wires through by taping the wires to a random wire and pulling through. now I'm trying to figure out electrical wiring.
 

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cram501

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so I'm in the middle of this install right now actually. had same problem... have 4 door 2020 rubicon manual. I couldn't find it in the wheel liner either after peeling back the fender. not because it was not there but because I couldn't tell what to look for. In the end I ended up starting in the passenger footwell... pushing a hanger through that way and it popper into the wheel liner. hope I didn't do anything too bad but I was able to pull the wires through by taping the wires to a random wire and pulling through. now I'm trying to figure out electrical wiring.
When I installed my auxillary buttons I did the same thing. I did find the grommet from the wheel well but I found it too hard to get through with the angles available. I found going through the passenger footwell much easier and less dangerous to the existing wire bundle.
 

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So here's what the grommet looks like on the passenger side firewall when you have the power distribution center removed...

IMG_0331.jpg


Near the top of the grommet, there is actually a little nipple for passing the wire through. You can either pierce it, or (if you're running larger wiring) cut the tip of it off. This gives you a clear path to pass the wire through, allows it to remain water tight, and prevents the chance of damaging the factory wire bundle as you poke your coat hanger through it...

IMG_0328.jpg


Now I'm not going to lie and say it was easy to get my wiring through it. Even with the PDC out of the way, it required some contorting (and some cursing) in the passenger footwell to get the wire through that damn nipple. From the inside, you can't see the nipple hole since it's above the wire bundle. This means it has to be done by feel if you want to feed from the interior to the exterior. Since I was running a long length of heavy gauge wire through it, I figured it would be in my best interest to go this route so I'd only have to pass the couple of feet needed to reach my battery through the nipple. If you go from the exterior to the interior, it is easier to find the nipple (obviously) but it is very challenging to poke a tool through it as the tip nearly touches the rear face of the PDC.
 
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donmontalvo

donmontalvo

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So here's what the grommet looks like on the passenger side firewall when you have the power distribution center removed...

IMG_0331.jpg


Near the top of the grommet, there is actually a little nipple for passing the wire through. You can either pierce it, or (if you're running larger wiring) cut the tip of it off. This gives you a clear path to pass the wire through, allows it to remain water tight, and prevents the chance of damaging the factory wire bundle as you poke your coat hanger through it...

IMG_0328.jpg


Now I'm not going to lie and say it was easy to get my wiring through it. Even with the PDC out of the way, it required some contorting (and some cursing) in the passenger footwell to get the wire through that damn nipple. From the inside, you can't see the nipple hole since it's above the wire bundle. This means it has to be done by feel if you want to feed from the interior to the exterior. Since I was running a long length of heavy gauge wire through it, I figured it would be in my best interest to go this route so I'd only have to pass the couple of feet needed to reach my battery through the nipple. If you go from the exterior to the interior, it is easier to find the nipple (obviously) but it is very challenging to poke a tool through it as the tip nearly touches the rear face of the PDC.
Wow, all you guys are awesome, thanks for the insight.

@tonygiotta I'll pop the hood to see if this is something I have the tools (and courage!) to do on my own.

This COVID-19 marshal law stuff is making me crazy, so I might need to go to the garage to not go insane.
 

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Did you find instructions for removing the fuse box?
 

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If you guys are looking for a how-to on removing the PDC (fuse box), search on YouTube for the "The Jeep JL & Gladiator Dual Battery Kit Installation Guide" by Genesis Offroad. Just ignore any parts about replacing or throwing away the factory stuff... lol
 

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donmontalvo

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Sorry for the late response, been busy with contingency plannig at work, so haven't had time to look at this.

Will look for "The Jeep JL & Gladiator Dual Battery Kit Installation Guide", much appreciated!
 

cram501

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Now I'm not going to lie and say it was easy to get my wiring through it. Even with the PDC out of the way, it required some contorting (and some cursing) in the passenger footwell to get the wire through that damn nipple. From the inside, you can't see the nipple hole since it's above the wire bundle. This means it has to be done by feel if you want to feed from the interior to the exterior. Since I was running a long length of heavy gauge wire through it, I figured it would be in my best interest to go this route so I'd only have to pass the couple of feet needed to reach my battery through the nipple. If you go from the exterior to the interior, it is easier to find the nipple (obviously) but it is very challenging to poke a tool through it as the tip nearly touches the rear face of the PDC.
I wish you'd posted this a few weeks ago. It would have made the auxiliary button install much easier. Thanks for the pictures of the layout. Awesome way to access that damn grommet.
 

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I wish you'd posted this a few weeks ago. It would have made the auxiliary button install much easier. Thanks for the pictures of the layout. Awesome way to access that damn grommet.
if you take both batteries, and the fuse box out, you can cut the nipple, and feed the wire from outside to inside, thats what i did, rather then trying to feel it thru from the inside, which as you said was a pain.
 
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donmontalvo

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A lot happened since I started this thread.

I totaled my 2020 Manual in May, and replaced it with a 2020 Auto. Only because I was 30 days into waiting for Geico to finally write off the Jeep, and I needed to get to work and back.

Suddenly running wires through the drivers side firewall hole is a piece of cake, though I found it to be a one time thing, see pics. Luckily I had a couple spare firewall plugs handy.

I was also surprised to see how easy it is to run wires through the drivers side window pillar. I was able to easily route the Ethernet wire for a sPOD Mini-6 for JL that way. And a couple other wires.

Running through the passenger side in an auto is not difficult, and I had a couple space plugs handy, just in case:

Mopar Part No.:68336758AC
PLUG-DASH PANEL
https://www.moparpartsgiant.com/parts/mopar-plug-dash-panel~68336758ac.html

The attached images show a Dometic hard wire kit being run through the PLUG-DASH PANEL. The kit luckily comes with an easy to route wire. I was able to drill two holes into the PLUG-DASH PANEL and then cut out the between holes piece. The housing is oval shaped, and I was lucky to get the hole just about right. I plan to seal it with some liquid tape.

Now I need to run my ARB Dual Compressor hard wire kit through the same hole. I'll need to splice the wiring ARB providesa since one end has HUGE dual fuse housings, and the other end has a 2" proprietary plug. I bought 5' of black 10 AWG wire, and 10' of 10 AWG wire so I can splice the harness and only have to feed a 1/2" thick wire through the firewall hole.

That of course means I'll need to finagle the PLUG-DASH PANEL out so I can widen the hole somehow without having to re-run the wires that are already run through it (through body panels). I really wish Mopar (or a third party) could redesign their PLUG-DASH PANEL, surely they know many of us need to wire stuff! :)

If I'm lucky enough to get this done successfully, I'll post an update with pictures.

HTH,
Don
Jeep Wrangler JL Yet another thread about wiring through JL firewall IMG_4885
Jeep Wrangler JL Yet another thread about wiring through JL firewall IMG_4877
Jeep Wrangler JL Yet another thread about wiring through JL firewall IMG_4872
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