I did a Google search today searching for a wiring diagram for my car and, fortunately, found one. (I have another post in here related to this - turn signal issues). Ok, so I looked at the wiring diagram for my '64 LeSabre and the wire colors are in conflict with my car. So I go back to the website and thought, "let me check another year model for my car and see if it shows a match (wire colors)". So I checked out the wiring diagram for the 1963 LeSabre and that diagram matches the wires' colors for my car! As an example, the wire which goes from the turn signal switch in the column to the LR bulb is yellow for the 1964 and is green/white for the 1963 diagram (which matches what my car has). These diagrams are very obviously scanned in ... why is there a conflict like this? Is my car is an "early" production 1964, inheriting the wiring harnesses from the '63?
I can't post a URL until I've posted 10 posts (how dumb). But let's try a workaround ... this is the 1st part of the URL: (put w w w and DOT in front of it first) tocmp.com/ now, add this to the end: tOCMP/wiring/5765wiring%20diagrams/buickindex.htm
Sheesh ... you can't even post replies which have URLs posted within them. Thanks Devon ... I'm one post closer to being "able".
I have seen these wiring diagrams but never paid much attention to them. Electricity and wiring are not my friends! My guess is your car has an earlier build date so they used leftovers from 63. Have you tried decoding your trim tag for build date?
The diagrams you posted are from a "Motor" type manual, which is an aftermarket source as I suspected. I would bet the 1964 Buick Service manual has the correct color wiring diagram.
Send me a PM with your e-mail and I will send you a scan of the 1964 Buick wiring diagrams from the shop manual.
Checked the VIN and all is correct "1964 LeSabre built in KS" and the last 6 digits are for the production numbers. Starting number is "001001", going up. My prod number is "028526", which means mine is the 27,525 car off the line - doesn't make sense, unless I'm decoding it rwong ... there were only 6,685 1964 LeSabre convertibles built. I checked the Body Number Plate and have this for the [Body] Production Sequence ... "Body: BK 766", which makes more sense. I assume that means mine is the 766'th body built at the Kansas City plant.
After spending some time with the OEM's, I have seen a pattern even in one plant. Taking your '64 for example, let's say that in the model run, there were some '63 harnesses available, or left over. These would be used before the '64 harnesses were used. Further, suppose that at Packard, where GM harnesses were manufactured, something either reduced the availability of the harnesses, requiring the use of one from a similar model, such as the Electra. Even if the actual '64 harnesses were available, it is possible for the elements, such as heat, oxidation, or age to change wire colors. It is even possible for that particular vehicle for there to have been a wiring issue during check out at the factory, requiring a replacement harness, or partial harness. It is also possible for a GM dealer, servicing the vehicle, to use a different harness as a replacement. Anytime I need a schematic, I always consider the use of different models or model year harnesses. It is even possible for the outfit creating the scematic to make a mistake, and the supervisors or managers to either miss it or let it go anyway. So many possibilities, so little time...
Interesting information, Ray ... thanks for the details. I can certainly see these scenarios work ... in the long run, it's always about the bottom line For my vehicle, once I discovered the wire color discrepancy (concerning the rear lights), I did spot checks in other sections of the car, and indeed, all harnesses in the car are from the 1963 model year. Thanks again for the feedback!