As everyone knows, we've got a large number of color combinations of wires under the hoods of our cars - you know, the basic red with blue, blue with red etc etc. Wherever possible, I really like to match wire colors whenever I am splicing, extending etc. but all I have are the basic colors - no tracers.

My question is are there small rolls (say 25' roll) of these wires with tracer colors available, and if so, where?

 

Millions of 'em. Not quite 25', but they're all tucked away inside junked Mazdas sitting at pick-n-pull yards.

No kidding. I don't limit myself to just Mazdas, but this is my primary source of automotive wire.

 

What Joe says, I've bought a spare complete wiring harness to source coloured wires and connectors.

 

That is a great idea - just cumbersome to keep in parts room until I need to get a wire - but it realistically is probably the only source of getting all those crazy color combinations.

Now I gotta find a kid to go to LKQ and get me some wire

Not really that lazy - just that my mobility is somewhat restricted.

 

It's hard to stock and you end up with a ton of colors on the shelf that don't move. MFG mins are typically 1k for the specialty stripes. Could do a group buy or something or just label well. Aircraft often uses only one color to force validation.

Wire, like most rubber, has improved over time. It also degrades just like tires do. I wouldn't recommend re-using 10+ year old harnesses from our cars despite the simplicity and convenience.

 

If you were down in Charleston I would head out to the local LKQ with you to grab harnesses. The LKQ locally knows me as the guy who goes and strips miata's. I generally get there within a day or two of them getting one in and taking everything that I could use or easily resale on here.

I second the buying of spare wiring harnesses. I try to grab them whenever I see one that matches the years of miatas I own, or have connectors that I know I may need in the future.

 

Protip: the stuff under the hood is likely to be hard and brittle. The stuff on the interior is usually still delicious & moist even after 25 years.

 

Also I assume there are lots of cars that are <25 years old in the junkyard. You don't have to get it from a miata.

 

I haz an NB2 chassis wiring harness laying around somewhere.....lmk if you want it