Any input on these ground wire replacements??

BigDaddy90Cabby · Post by **BigDaddy90Cabby** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 12:09 pm

I would like to replace my ground wires,,, does anyone have any feed back on these.. I will be putting red wires though. I am still really new at this stuff, so any feed back would be great!

Thanks

Post by **Calimus** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 12:39 pm

My personal view on these is that I can do a better job for less money and keep clutter to a minimum.

My forumla is the following.

Replace the neg batt cable with a 2 guage cable form Autozone for $4. This will be run strait from the neg termin to the top tranny bolt.

Add a smaller 8 guage cable from the neg terminal to the body. Can be done for about $2

Replace the pos bat cable with a 4 guage cable. Once again, autozone, and about $4.

Clean/replace the ground strap from the head to the firewall. In most cases this is free.

Clean the grounding "roses" under the dash. Free as well, though with the kneebar in the cabby's it's a bit of a bish.

So for about $10, you can have a much better grounding system, bigger wires = happier electrons, they will be in the stock positions meaning no real extra clutter. If you look at that pic you posted, everything grounds to the same spot (which is not a good idea) and the wires are small (which is why there are so damn many. smaller wires mean more resistance and more point are needed to help free the electrons). Better yet, everything you need can be found at your local autozone/advanced/flapps, or whatever the hell you have in your area.

It's pretty straight forward work, just a bit time consuming.

sixsracing · Post by **sixsracing** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 2:11 pm

Two schools of thought on the grounding to the same spot.

One ground:
If you lose the ground there or if it is compromised in any way then you lose ignition, charging, fuel etc. With multiple grounds you will only lose whatever is using that ground.

Multiple grounds:
if you lose the ground you have to go searching for it, can be a real pain. However, if you lose the ground to the interior lights, you can still drive home.

I have seen it done both ways and I have always liked the appearance of one ground. My uncle did boats for many years this way and I have seen all kinds of custom vehicles wired like this. But as in life, there are pros and cons.

I hope I confused the issue enough.

1lowcab · Post by **1lowcab** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 1:29 am

i think it looks cool but i'll prolly do it the cheap way like cal.

BigDaddy90Cabby · Post by **BigDaddy90Cabby** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 2:47 am

which way is more reliable>>??? i know it looks cool, but what about reliability?

sixsracing · Post by **sixsracing** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 8:24 am

Reliability would be better with multiple grounds in my opinion.

Redundancy factor and less chance of crossover interference from sharing grounds.

BigDaddy90Cabby · Post by **BigDaddy90Cabby** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 8:39 am

That what I would think, where as with one grounding point, if that goes bad, you would loose everything. Hey, I guess everyone has their own Methods. Thanks

1lowcab · Post by **1lowcab** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 11:24 am

another thing that makes it cool...OETTINGER!

BigDaddy90Cabby · Post by **BigDaddy90Cabby** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 12:40 pm

What is OETTINGER?

kda339 · Post by **kda339** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 10:32 pm

this is oettinger....

http://oettinger.com/

take a look at it some cool stuff.

CalAltaDubber · Post by **CalAltaDubber** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 6:09 pm

BigDaddy90Cabby wrote:I would like to replace my ground wires,,, does anyone have any feed back on these.. I will be putting red wires though. I am still really new at this stuff, so any feed back would be great!

Thanks

Honestly, If you are going to replace ground wires, you don`t need some fancy gismo like you have shown. If the screw to the main plate becomes loose, you will have all sorts of gremilens.

Personnaly, I would suggest doing them yourself. Just use good quality wire, crimp the lugs on securley and ensure a good bond where you attach the wires. You will save a lot of money and it will be custom fit to your car.

BigDaddy90Cabby · Post by **BigDaddy90Cabby** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 8:09 pm

Gotcha. I So this kinda stuff isnt worth the money? I see. Thanks.

Moljinar · Post by **Moljinar** » Wed May 04, 2005 12:22 pm

sixsracing wrote:Reliability would be better with multiple grounds in my opinion.

Redundancy factor and less chance of crossover interference from sharing grounds.

As an electrical engineer I can mention that multiple grounds lead to what is known as "ground loops" that can cause signal loss. It's usually not a problem in DC systems but can lead to voltage losses. However the cost of copper means that the car manufacturer isn't about to run a ground wire for everything in the car, it'd be way too costly, so the frame is used and he ground conductor.

Crossover interference is actually WORSE with multiple grounds. Tv and radio staions go out of their way to ground everything to a single ground buss.

The best way to deal with grounds in your VW is what Calimus offered. New cables and tight connections!

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Any input on these ground wire replacements??

Any input on these ground wire replacements??

Re: Any input on these ground wire replacements??