Wiring colour codes

Many British designed vehicles use colour coded cables to assist in identifying the various circuits in use. This is an extract from BS-AU7a 1983 Colour Code for Vehicle Wiring, from the British Standards Institution, 2 Park St., London W1A 2BS.

(Note that these colour codes may not apply directly to older cars. For example, the wipers on cars up to 1980 (at least) are not on a separate fuse circuit, so they are not orange, but green. Check the schematic for your car to be certain. - cak)

MAIN TRACER PURPOSE

This page is split into USEAGE by MAIN COLOUR then TRACER

So Black Red looks like this:

NOTE! the colours are for illustration only, you will soon see from your loom the difference between

light green and green!!!

BLACK MAIN

Black All earth connections
Black Brown Tachometer generator to tachometer
Black Blue Tachometer generator to tachometer
Black Red Electric or electronic speedometer to sensor
Black Purple Tempreature switch to warning light
Black Green Relay to radiator fan motor
Black Light green Vacuum brake switch or brake differential pressure valve to warning light and/or buzzer
Black White Brake fluid level warning light to switch and handbrake swith, or radio to speakers
Black yellow Electric speedometer
Black Orange Radiator fan motor to thermal switch

BLUE MAIN

Blue Lighting switch (head) to dip switch
Blue Brown Headlamp relay to headlamp fuse
Blue Red Dip switch to headlamp dip beam fuse
Fuse to right-hand dip headlamp
Blue Light green Headlamp wiper motor to headlamp wash pump motor
Blue White a) Dip switch to headlamp main beam fuse
    b)Headlamp flasher to main beam fuse
    c)Dip switch main beam warning light
    d)Dip switch to long-range driving light switch
Blue Yellow Long-range driving light switch to lamp
Blue Black Fuse to right-hand main headlamp
Blue Pink Fuse to left-hand dip headlamp
Blue Slate Headlamp main beam fuse to left-hand headlamp or inboard headlamps when independently fused
Blue Orange Fushe to right-hand dip headlamp

BROWN MAIN

Brown Main battery lead
Brow Blue Control box (compensated voltage control only) to ignition switch and lighting switch (feed)
Brown Red Compression ignition starting aid to switch
Main battery feed to double pole ignition switch
Brown Purple Alternator regulator feed
Brown Green Dynamo 'F' to controlboxl 'F'
Alternator field 'F' to control box 'F'
Brown White Ammeter to control box
Ammeter to main alternator terminal
Brown Yellow Alternator to 'no charge' warning light
Brown Black Alternator battery sensing lead
Brown Slate Starter relay contact to starter solenoid
Brown Orange Fuel shut-off (diesel stop)

GREEN MAIN

Green Accessories fuesed via ignition switch
Green Brown Switch to reverse lamp
Gree Blue Water temperature gauge to temperature unit
Green Red Direction indicator switch to left-hand flasher lamps
Green Purple Stop lamp switch to stop lamps, or stop lamp switch to lamp failure unit
Green Light green Hazard flasher unit to hazard pilot lamp or lamp failure unit to stop lamp bulbs
Green White Direction indicator switch to right hand flasher lamps
Green Yellow Heater motor to switch single speed (or to 'slow' on tow- or three-speed motor)
Green Black Fuel gauge to fuel tank unit or changeover switch or voltage stabilizer to tank units
Green Pink Fuse to flasher unit
Green Slate
    a) Heater motor to switch ('fast' on two- or three-speed motor)
    b)Coolant level unit to warning light
Green Orange Low fuel level switch to warning light

LIGHT GREEN MAIN

Light green Instrument voltage stabilizer to instruments
Light green Brown Flasher switch to flasher unit
Light green Blue a)Flasher switch to left-hand flasher warning light
    b)Coolant level sensor to control unit
    c)Test switch to coolan level control unit
Light green Red Fuel tank changeover switch to right-hand tank unit or entry and exit door closed switch to door actuator
Light green Purple Flasher unit to flasher warning light
Light green Green Start inhibitor relay to change speed switch; or switch to
heater blower motor second speed on three-speed unit
Light green White Low air pressure switch to buzzer and warning light
Light green Yellow Flasher switch to right-hand warning light; or differential lock switch to differential lock warning light
Light green Black Front screen jet switch to screen jet motor
Light green Slate Fuel tank changeover switch to left-hand tank unit; or entry and exit door open switch to door actuator
Light green Orange Rear window wash switch to wash pump; or cab lock-down switch to warning light

ORANGE MAIN

Orange Wiper circuits fused via ignition switch
Orange Blue Switch to front screen wiper motor first speed timer or intermittend unit
Orange Green Switch to front screen wiper motor second speed
Orange Black Switch to front screen wiper motor parking cicuit, timer or intermittent unit
Orange Purple Timer or intermittent unit to motor parking circuit
Orange White Timer or intermittent unit to motor parking circuit
Orange Yellow Switch to headlamp or rear window wiper motor feed, timer or relay coil
Orange Light green Switch to headlamp or rear window wiper motor parking circuit timer or relay coil
Orange Pink Timer or relay to headlamp or rear window wiper motor feed
Orange Slate Timer or relay to headlamp or rear window wiper motor parking circuit
Pink white Ballast terminal to ignition distributor

BLUE MAIN

Purple Accessories fed direct from battery via fuse
Purple Brown Horn fuse to horn relay when horn is fused separately
Purple Blue Fuse to heated rear window relay or switch and warning light
Purple Red Switches to map light, under bonnet light, glove box light and boot lamp when fed direct from battery fuse
Purple Green Fuse to hazard flasher
Purple Light green Fuse to relay for screen demist
Purple White Interior lights to switch (subsidiary circuit door safety lights to switch)
Purple Yellow Horn to horn relay
Purple Black Horn to horn relay to horn push
Purple Pink Rear heated window to switch or relay
Purple Slate Aerial lift motor to switch up
Purple Orange Aerial lift motor to switch down

RED MAIN

Red Main feed to all circuits mastered by sidelamp switch
Red Brown Rear fog guard switch to lamps
Red Blue Front fog lamp fuse to fog lamp switch
Red Purple Switches to map light, under bonnet light, glove box light and boot lamp when sidelamp circuit fed
Red Green Bulb failure unit to right-hand-side and rear lamps
Red White a)Sidelamp fuse to right-hand side and rear lamps
    b)Sidelamp fuse to panel light rheostat
    c)Fuse to panel light switch or rheostat
    d) Fuse to fibre optic source
Red Yellow Fog lamp switch to fog lamp or front fog fuse to fog lamps
Red Blakc Left-hand,sidelamp fuse to side and tail lamps and number plate illumination
Red Pink Sidelamp fuse to lighting relay
Red Slate Lamp failure unit to lef-hand side and tail lamps
Red Orange Fusebox to rear fog guard switch

Slate Window lift main lead

WHITE MAIN

White Ignition switch or starter solenoid to ballast resistor
White Brown Oil pressure switch to warning light or gauge, or starter relay to oil pressure switch
White Blue Choke switch to choke solenoid (unfused) and/or choke to switch to warning light, or electronic ignition distributor to drive resistor
White Red Starter switch to starter solenoid or inhibitor switch or starter relay or ignition (start position) to bulb failure unit
White Purple Fuel pump no 1 or right-hand to changeover switch
White Green Fuel pump no 2 or left-hand to changeover switch
White Light green Start switch to starter interlock or oil pressure switch to fuel pump or start inhibitor switch to starter relay or solenoid
White Yellow Ballast resistor to coil or starter solenoid to coil
White Black Ignition coil contact breaker to distributor contact breaker, or distributor side of coil to voltage impulse tachometer
White Pink Ignition switch to radio fuse
White Slate Current tachometer to ignition coil
White Orange Hazard warning lead to switch
Yellow a) Overdrive
    b) Petrol injection
    c)Door locks
    d)Gear selector switch to start

Many of the usual suspects carry Lucas bullet connectors. A few carry reproduction wiring harnesses. But very few carry the properly color-coded wire, and most of those only carry a small selection of colors and sizes.

However, there is one place that I've found that carries the whole gamut:

British Wiring Inc
20449 Ithaca
Olympia Fields, IL 60461
(708) 481-9050 voice & fax

They have every color combination listed above, in lots of sizes, as well as connectors, clamps, lamp fixtures and other random bits and pieces that you'll need. I've been very happy with the products I receive from them. Be warned that wire is often backordered and may take a couple of weeks to arrive. They have a nice catalog that's free.

Here are some other sources that have a more limited, but sometimes better stocked, supply:

British Pacific Ltd
3317 Burton Avenue
Burbank, CA
(800) 554-4133
Narragansett Reproductions
Box 51
Wood River Junction, RI 02894
(401) 364 3839

In the Uk:

Bulbs, Wire & Connectors: Merv Plastics,

aka Vehicle Wiring Products,

8 Buxton Court, Manners Industrial Estate,

Ilkeston, Derbyshire,

DE& 8EF Tel : 0115 9305454 Fax: 0115 94400101

E-mail sales@vehicleproducts.co.uk

Personal Reccomendation from John C Bullas details found at:

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/martinwhistler/Suppliers.htm

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Wiring, (vague) standard for Britsh car wiring

Brown = always hot, unfused

Purple = always hot, fused

white = ignition on, unfused

Green = Ignition on, fused

red = lights  (blue on Minis!)

black = ground

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See http://www.fatblokeracing.org/wirecode.shtml which says:

In the United Kingdom......... the British Standard BS-AU7

determines colour coding of automobile wiring (Fig. 14.6).

Lucas use a 7 colour set in which plain colours - purple, green,

blue, red, white, brown and green are supplemented by a

further group using a base colour with a thin line trace of a different colour, thus:

Other colours are used, according to equipment specifications, eg light
green, pink, slate. Handbooks are usually printed in black and white only,
so the cable colours are identified by a lettering code, such as:

When a cable has a base colour and a second colour spiral trace the code is code is, for example: WG = White with green trace

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