Voltage ???????

[cleanmerc01]

ok fellas i think i have a problem and need some help. first off i was trying to install a second battery and well i messed it up lol. when i screwed down the fuse holder the screw was touching frame and well power wire touched screw and bam i welded the e brake cable to the frame. and well after that i just couldnt get things to work right so i just removed all the wiring and said forget it for now. well the problem i might have now is what i need help with. i was wondering if there is a ground stap that goes to the frame anywhere to ground the frame???? and when car is running i hit the brake and volts drop reall quick then go back up its not much of a drop but it does drop is this ok is it doing what its supolsto do ??????

[slymer]

battery may have a weak cell from the grounding action. There is a frame ground up front in the engine area. Typically it's from the battery to the frame or from the engine to the frame/chassis/body. Not sure exactly on the 2001, but anything metal in the car should be electrically grounded as far as frame/body/chassis goes.

[cleanmerc01]

alright i can see 1 that goes from firewall to engine. and i have done the big three. wich is power wire frome alt to battery then ground from battery to engine and frome battery to body( i ran mine to rad support). i guess i will take to autozone to have battery checked. i just want to make sure i didnt damaged anything before i start with any more mods.

[SVT98t]

There is a ground from the engine to the battery. It's hooked up to the upper transmission to engine bolt.

-ryan s.

[cleanmerc01]

yea i seen that one too i hooked up another one to the front of motor cause of the price of wire $6 a foot. i going to run a high output alt and yellow top i think that will be good for my new setup.

[SVT98t]

$6 a foot? I just got 25 ft of 8 ga for $40. Can't be much bigger than that.

-ryan s.

[cleanmerc01]

0-gauge is about 3x bigger then 8-gauge. i not sure how big it actually is but its about as big round as my thumb

[SVT98t]

I wasn't sure of what you were using the 0-ga for. It sounded like you used it as a ground. Sorry. And I know how the SAE gauge wire system works.

Good luck mang!

-ryan s.

[cleanmerc01]

ok got car back from shop today they said they did something with ground wire. wife picked it up sorry for lack of info. they said if it keeps doing it to replace alt. well it is still doin it so i get new alt this weekend. question i have is when i went to car wash as soon as the water hit the front of car volts dropped way down but came back after a min. would a bad ground do that???? do want to waste money on alt $199.99 if that not the prob. could use money to take to different shop "the dealer" OUCH!!!!!!

[GoodSamaritan]

Sounds like a bad connection somewhere to me.

If you try the dual battery thing again, let me know, I'm running two on my wagon. 1800 cold cranking amps, and your own car being able to jump start itself = WIN. (if a bit heavy, but then emission control termites ate a bunch of heavy components, so it evens out.

[cleanmerc01]

ok i went to shop today and talked with guy. he says alt acting alittle weird so he thinks its the diloads???? basicly i shorted the rectifire he beleives. said he went through all grounds and they were all fine. he said he took all of them off and cleaned them up and tightened all of them. he said when water is hitting alt its shorting out alt. but he said it what he thinks he not sure. said i can remove alt and he can put on machine and test all of it. autozone check is no good he said he can test with load. i just cant go without car for to long i need to get to work so what do you guys think

[1990LTD]

Sounds like a bad connection somewhere to me.

If you try the dual battery thing again, let me know, I'm running two on my wagon. 1800 cold cranking amps, and your own car being able to jump start itself = WIN. (if a bit heavy, but then emission control termites ate a bunch of heavy components, so it evens out.

I like the sounds of that set up. How are the batteries wired in your rig?

[GoodSamaritan]

It's a very simple setup actually.

I removed the radiator overflow/windshield spritzer bottle and put a battery tray there.

Then I bought some extra long battery cables and wired everything up like the drawing here.

[cleanmerc01]

so no thoughts guys i confused and i not rich. Another guy i know that worked at ford dealership as a machanic said the shop sounds right. but he did say there might be diloads in the wiring harness he cant remember. does anybody else know if there is???? i would like to know by this weekend cause i getting new alt and battery then and its going to cost me $350 for both.

[gadget73]

No diodes in the harness. There are fuse links though. They live between the alternator plug and the plug on the fender that it goes to. Remove the split loom tubing and you'll find them. If they are melted, they're bad

[cleanmerc01]

are you talkin about the power wire from alt to battery or the wires from the plug??? the plug that has like 3 wires comin from it and go somewhere. i have replace the power wire from the alt to fuse box, i ran 0-gauge wire and went straight to battery.

[gadget73]

durr, 01, right, there still should be fuse links in it, though I think yours are actually right at the fuse box where the charge cable from the alternator connects. Its the fat cable from the alternator.

Oh, does the alt or batt light come on when you turn the key to on, with the engine not running? If the lamp is out, the alternator won't charge.

[cleanmerc01]

gadget i didnt run a fuse and i ran to battery not fuse box. i ran a wire from battery to fuse box. i went ahead a bought new alt. and battery. i think it's fixed the voltage does drop still but not as much and it goes right back very little drop but i think that normal right????? i will be putting in fuse tomorrow. is there a fuse in that box for the charging????

[gadget73]

The original system used fuse links at the fuse box for the charging system. They should have been good for 200-250 amps. Honestly I'd just use the stock charging system fusing and cable. Its heavy enough.

And the "big three" is related to grounding, battery to engine, battery to body, body to engine.

[gadget73]

The original system used fuse links at the fuse box for the charging system. They should have been good for 200-250 amps. Honestly I'd just use the stock charging system fusing and cable. Its heavy enough.

And the "big three" is related to grounding, battery to engine, battery to body, body to engine.