I recently saw a video about "beefing up" the grounding wires, etc. on an automobile - Big 3 Grounding Kit, I think it was. I've surveyed three auto techs and one electrician and their opinions are split down the middle. What do you say about beefing up the grounding wires on an otherwise 100% OEM automobile?
GROUNDING KIT
- Thread starter M Smith
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OEM are more than good enough IF the grounds are clean and tight. JMO.. Ed
It's [censored].
Only thing you can hope to accomplish is get back to "stock" levels if yours are heavily corroded. I've not once seen objective proof that those do anything, and my [censored]-meter goes off as soon as I even start reading about the supposed benefits.
Only thing you can hope to accomplish is get back to "stock" levels if yours are heavily corroded. I've not once seen objective proof that those do anything, and my [censored]-meter goes off as soon as I even start reading about the supposed benefits.
most cars if not all are made only good enough. i bought a 1984 ply new. the horn did not work. i bought a factory service manual. it said to ground the steering col. horn fixed.
Depends on your purpose. Is it just for warm fuzzies, or do you have a 2 way radio that's getting some kind of interference/noise that your vehicle is generating, for example?
My point is that there certainly are specialized applications where OEM grounding isn't adequate. Probably not applicable to 99% of drivers however.
My point is that there certainly are specialized applications where OEM grounding isn't adequate. Probably not applicable to 99% of drivers however.
Originally Posted By: eljefino
Worked on a nissan sentra that grounded the muffler. Not sure if they didn't want galvanic corrosion or if it was so someone welding the exhaust didn't fry o2 sensors etc. Seems like overkill, but some engineer put that there...
You definitely don't want a short in the muffler circuit!
LOL
You definitely don't want a short in the muffler circuit!
LOL
I have a CRV and am always looking to squeeze every little bit of power I can out of that little 4 banger. I saw grounding kits available and thought they were a joke. The new grounding wires will just run parallel to the factory grounding wires. It sure seemed to be a big waste of money. Just for kicks, I went to home depot and bought some thick wire and lugs. I started grounding the head to the fenderwell, I grounded the battery directly to the block and I grounded the block to the fenderwell. I saw this as being very redundant as the factory has bolts running from the head to the block and the factory grounds run to the battery and head. Hey for less than $10.00, I thought I would play around. After grounding everything, I noticed that the engine would rev up slightly smoother from 3,000-6,000 rpm. It was not my imagination and I did not do anything else to the engine. IT REALLY WORKS!!!!! The slight difference would only be noticeable to someone who truly knows their car and can feel even the slightest difference in performance.
1. Its one of the first things done when adding a bigger stereo because of more amp draw. 2. The bean counters are not going to over build the wiring in cars/trucks, lower bottom line. 3. Less resistance in all the wiring will let more volts flow along the wires effecting all electrical circuits.
On all of my old toys I always added extra grounds and went with welding cable for the bigger cables. No where did I ever have more than 1 volt drop from engine off battery voltage or engine running battery voltage to end of circuit use. It does indeed work.
On all of my old toys I always added extra grounds and went with welding cable for the bigger cables. No where did I ever have more than 1 volt drop from engine off battery voltage or engine running battery voltage to end of circuit use. It does indeed work.
I owned an 84 Audi Quattro 4000 that has all kinds of mysterious electrical problems from gauges to cooking batteries and alternators and of course the fuel pump wiping out the fuse block under that dash. After wiring the fuel pump circuit outside the fuse box with it's own set of fuses I added ground straps every where and the problems all disappeared.
For the fuel pump I rigged a switch block with a 10A, 15A, and 20A fuse. I set it for the 10A fuse and when the pump wore and started drawing more current it would blow the 10A fuse. You flipped the switch to 15A fuse and so on. When you started on the 20A fuse you installed a new fuel pump. The system worked well and at 20A the pump was toast. This way you could get the max life out of the fuel pump without taking a ride on a tow truck.
This was the last Audi I ever owned. Back in the 80's Audi was on it's way down the drain. I was not until later that Audi re-invented itself and started solving all the problems and recovering from the unintended acceleration problems. Their response was from engineering which was, you're stupid and we don't have time for idiots. I think they learned from that.
For the fuel pump I rigged a switch block with a 10A, 15A, and 20A fuse. I set it for the 10A fuse and when the pump wore and started drawing more current it would blow the 10A fuse. You flipped the switch to 15A fuse and so on. When you started on the 20A fuse you installed a new fuel pump. The system worked well and at 20A the pump was toast. This way you could get the max life out of the fuel pump without taking a ride on a tow truck.
This was the last Audi I ever owned. Back in the 80's Audi was on it's way down the drain. I was not until later that Audi re-invented itself and started solving all the problems and recovering from the unintended acceleration problems. Their response was from engineering which was, you're stupid and we don't have time for idiots. I think they learned from that.
The PO added an extra grounding wire on my XS850G. But those are known to have an inadequately grounded battery.
No expert, but I would think it may help. Car bodies are painted, then grounds are zipped onto the metal over paint.
M Smith, You can buy pre-made cables at NAPA or I'm sure other auto stores of many different length/gauges.
depends on the car. I had an 02 chrysler with 1.1V drop from battery to alternator if the lights were on. that's a pretty bad drop. tied battery, alt frame, intake manifold (there was 0.2V drop just from alt frame to engine block, for reasons I could never figure, under load), ECU frame, body, together on a continuous 12 gauge wire with soldered lugs and the voltage drop disappeared. the odd result was the transmission immediately shifted better-- quicker or more precisely... hard to describe, but a pleasant surprise. engine and accessories had no perceivable change. I think I also did the same thing to a honda accord that did not have more than 0.2V drop anywhere on the big grounds. As one might expect, it made no difference.
Originally Posted By: 1kickbuttranger
No expert, but I would think it may help. Car bodies are painted, then grounds are zipped onto the metal over paint.
True, but the bolt hole threads aren't painted, so as long as the bolt and cable end are clean it should work.... But not all cars are built without design flaws.
No expert, but I would think it may help. Car bodies are painted, then grounds are zipped onto the metal over paint.
True, but the bolt hole threads aren't painted, so as long as the bolt and cable end are clean it should work.... But not all cars are built without design flaws.
Bolt holes are typically painted.
This guy has some good videos. This one is a bit long, but great about the issue.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJBMgrW7MQU&list=UUN467fmgLLlk98JddJLL51w
This guy has some good videos. This one is a bit long, but great about the issue.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJBMgrW7MQU&list=UUN467fmgLLlk98JddJLL51w
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