upgrading size of positive battery cable.. some Q's

jT · Post by jT » Mon Oct 15, 2007 10:57 am

i want to change out my positive battery cables at the same time as i upgrade the ground wires (and get a new battery)... mainly because they are crap and corroded and need new terminal clamps too...

i had thought of this a while back when i posted about changing to a side post battery but never got around to it.. heh..

im thinking 4awg or maybe even 2awg ... the ground will be 4awg or 2 awg also.. dont know yet.. i dont run a huge audio system or anything but whatever... should the awg be the same for + and - or does it not matter

ok the first part is not a problem... battery to fuse box and to starter.. would have to come up with a creative way of connecting them since i saw one thread that said they couldnt get that "T" tap kind of thing for the battery cable

dumb question #1) how do you get the plastic housing thing off so you can access the starter connection? i played with it a little but didnt want to break it off

#2) where does wire #2 go? it looks like it groups up with some other wires then goes back up and over and down the back side again.. could not trace it any further than that... does that wire need to be upgraded if i increase the size of the + to the starter?

#3) where does wire #1 go? it looks like it groups with the same set of wires as #2 and goes who knows where... i doubt that should be upgraded but... does it? what is it?

i know that one of the two goes to the alternator.. but couldnt see which.... so shouldnt it be upgraded to match the new battery cable?

ok thanks

please excuse my dumb ass

bigjosh · Post by **bigjosh** » Mon Oct 15, 2007 11:20 pm

If I remember correctly, to get the starter connector out of the plastic thingy there is a nut that you need to loosen all the way to pull it out. Can't remember where each wire goes, but it's pretty easy if you just pull out all of the cables and check. I had to change out my battery cables a few months after buying my car because I made a stupid mistake installing my stereo system (which was stolen later anyway).

It's not that hard to change out the cables. The only PITA is trying to get to the nut at the starter.

I did something for that t-tap thing, but it's too hard for me to describe it...

jT · Post by jT » Tue Oct 16, 2007 2:46 am

i dont think changing the size of the one wire and not any other would have any negative affect on the rest of the system.. +12v is +12v regardless of the size of the wire.. resistance .. i dunno.. still dont think it would matter

i think ill be ok just changing out the terminal clamp wire to the starter and fuse box

thanks for the tip

and if you can a pic of what you did for the t-tap would be great... just to get an idea.. depending on the battery clamp i get i might just be able to throw both wires in it and not have to deal with anything creative

anomalous0 · Post by **anomalous0** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 5:10 am

eh, upgrading the wires will make you start quicker. Nice in a cold climate, but I don't live in one. I did it anyway though. I just broke the plastic connector off since it's a huge PITA, used some liquid electrical tape to make sure it didn't short out, and rerouted my wires so that I didn't have to undo it to take my intake manifold off. wire 1 and 2 don't need to be upgraded. I will say I managed to my grounds and positive to starter and fusebox at 2AWG with some sidepost style terminals and creative clampdowns. And I use the little brass marine adapters to make them work on my top post battery.
No huge difference, but it makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside.

jT · Post by jT » Tue Oct 16, 2007 6:08 am

good 'nuff for me.. thanks

ill try to get the plastic thing off without breaking though.. hehe..

now to find the time to do this.... and to find the 2awg cable (i actually want red and black to stick to the universal color scheme of + and - lol)

Post by **occasional demons** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 6:58 am

Item # 1 has a little red lock that needs slid back like all the other connectors, but it still is a pain to squeeze the release tab and get it to slide off. #2goes to the alternater and battery if someone didn't post that already. but you shouldn't need to remove #1 to remove #2. #1 just powers the starter solenoid. no reason to upgrade.

jT · Post by jT » Wed Oct 17, 2007 8:14 am

i got to get that whole black top off to see the connection from the battery

i dont know what kind of terminal it is... just an o ring or what .. .

i want to do this today before i go to bed as long as i can get the 2awg wire.. but i dont know what kind of terminal that is underneath the plastic

OverDrive418 · Post by **OverDrive418** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 8:35 am

Your negative should be the same or greater size awg than the positive cable. If you upgrade to 4awg positive you should use 4awg or 2awg cable for negative. if you use 2awg positive use 2awg negative NOT 4awg.
Path of least resistance rule applies here, will help decrease chance of shorting out the system.
4awg for both should be plenty for your project. I would upgrade your other grounds (engine, trans, chasis) to 4awg as well though for extra protection. If your battery cables are shot chances are the grounds are as well.

jT · Post by jT » Wed Oct 17, 2007 11:00 am

yeah after looking at 2awg cable at lowes i decided ill go with 4awg.. 2awg is not flexible or pliable whatsoever and would not make for a good mod.. heh

ran into a dilemma though.. i cracked the plastic housing off the starter connections and found that its not a standard type of connection.. its like 2 metal plates bent into an L shape and pressed into the starter ... not a standard connection that i can easily modify

what did you guys who have changed this wire do for this? im gonna send some PM's also to anyone who said they changed this wire..hehe

Post by **occasional demons** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 11:22 am

jT wrote:i got to get that whole black top off to see the connection from the battery

i dont know what kind of terminal it is... just an o ring or what .. .

i want to do this today before i go to bed as long as i can get the 2awg wire.. but i dont know what kind of terminal that is underneath the plastic

Assuming you are talking about the starter connector... the cable terminal (aternator Black?) slides out of the other part , yeah, basically it's a ring terminal just made to fit together for easy removal/assy. you'll just need to attach a ring terminal and bend the cable at a 90* to simulate the factory piece. I would suggest some heavy shrink tubing on the terminals as close to the hole as possible as you won't have the plastic shield any more. then slide both on the stud and tighten...

krc21 · Post by **krc21** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 10:02 pm

post ressurection please somebody post some more pics!!! i dont know if there are pics on this thread or not but i cant see anything... i really need to know how i can upgrade all these wires!!!

krc21 · Post by **krc21** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 10:28 pm

bump common people please!!!

jT · Post by jT » Tue Mar 25, 2008 3:28 am

damn yo you need to let more than 26 minutes pass before bumping and begging more..

there were pics but they got deleted from the host i had them on.

just get yourself some wire, a battery terminal, and 2 o-rings.. connect about 12" or so of wire to an oring and terminal wire it to the fuse box, then 30" or so on the other oring for the starter.. the starter plastic cover is a pain in the ass

i still have not got around to doing this, but those measurements are what i came up with for a pretty good estimate of lengths

krc21 · Post by **krc21** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:23 pm

ok thanks alot man! yeah sorry I was having trouble waiting... anxiety is a killer