civicdust

As i was starting the car sparks shot out of the gorund from the tranny to the chassis. What could be causing this>??

Also, any consequence out of this?

_Cyclone_

Loosen the bolt, clean the contact surfaces, tighten it back down.

civicdust

so this will also stop it from heating up and burning up? (the wire)

_Cyclone_

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jose! &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">so this will also stop it from heating up and burning up? (the wire)</TD></TR></TABLE>

You didn't say it was getting hot and burning up, you said it was just sparking... which is it? That would be a completly different problem...

civicdust

well yeah, when i try to turn over the motor, its cranks, and then smokes comes out. Melting the plastic down

_Cyclone_

Oh, well then disregard my original post then... that's something totally unrelated. Check the connections on your alternator... then post back.

civicdust

Okay the green one seemed OKAY. The other in the other hand was lying on the black piece of plastic.

Anything else i should check?

still gets warm

dantastic

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jose! &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Okay the green one seemed OKAY. The other in the other hand was lying on the black piece of plastic.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

it thick white wire to the altenator should be bolted securely to the altenator

civicdust

it is, but is it suppost to be sitting on the plastic? or can i put a screw n the bottom to get good contact?

civicdust

i checked again. It still gets hot

_Cyclone_

This might be a bit drastic, but try unplugging your alternator completly so there and remove the alternator belt. Make sure ALL accesories are OFF, fan, lights, dome light, radio... EVERYTHING! Now try starting it to see if the wire still gets hot. Don't let it run for more than a few minutes because the engine electronics and various other things will drain the battery quickly.

Hybrid96EK

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jose! &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i checked again. It still gets hot</TD></TR></TABLE>

Is this a "home made" ground wire you are using? If the wire is getting hot and smoking then you have exceeded its current capacity. Sounds to me like you are using either a wire of too small gauge, or a damage wire. Perhaps some strands have broken inside and thus effectively reduced the gauge of the original wire. I would suggest replacing the wire with a new one prefferably from Honda. This should resolve your issue. I fail to see how any of this would have anything to do with your alternator. Its plain and simple... The power is sent from the + wire down to the starter. The starter grounds to the tranny case/engine... electricity will always seek the SHORTEST path, thus it will use the ground on the tranny in this case to return to its source. The alternator will not be involved in this path and neither will the main wire harness for the engine. The + supply to the starter is a seperate feed.

Hybrid96EK

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CycloneBlue_1.6EL &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">This might be a bit drastic, but try unplugging your alternator completly so there and remove the alternator belt. Make sure ALL accesories are OFF, fan, lights, dome light, radio... EVERYTHING! Now try starting it to see if the wire still gets hot. Don't let it run for more than a few minutes because the engine electronics and various other things will drain the battery quickly. </TD></TR></TABLE>

:shakes head:

why do all this? Sounds like your just tossing things out there with no real basis for the thought.

_Cyclone_

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Hybrid93Eg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Is this a "home made" ground wire you are using? If the wire is getting hot and smoking then you have exceeded its current capacity. Sounds to me like you are using either a wire of too small gauge, or a damage wire. Perhaps some strands have broken inside and thus effectively reduced the gauge of the original wire. I would suggest replacing the wire with a new one prefferably from Honda. This should resolve your issue. I fail to see how any of this would have anything to do with your alternator. Its plain and simple... The power is sent from the + wire down to the starter. The starter grounds to the tranny case/engine... electricity will always seek the SHORTEST path, thus it will use the ground on the tranny in this case to return to its source. The alternator will not be involved in this path and neither will the main wire harness for the engine. The + supply to the starter is a seperate feed.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Right, I never thought to ask if it was getting hot only when cranking. If that is the case, then Hybrid is right.

NathanMorris

either your wire gauge is too small for the current, or, you may have a short somewhere.

- Nathan

_Cyclone_

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Hybrid93Eg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">why do all this? Sounds like your just tossing things out there with no real basis for the thought.</TD></TR></TABLE>

My "basis" for thought is experience my friend. I watched the main engine ground burn on my friend's Tempo when the alternator fucked itself. It somehow started applying the generated (+) current to the case of the alternator, which went through the bracket, engine, and the main ground. This caused the ground to get hot and melt the coating off. I replaced the the alternator and left the ground because it was fine, and the problem went away. Process of elimination if the wire is getting hot while running instead of just cranking.

Hybrid96EK

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CycloneBlue_1.6EL &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

My "basis" for thought is experience my friend. I watched the main engine ground burn on my friend's Tempo when the alternator fucked itself. It somehow started applying the generated (+) current to the case of the alternator, which went through the bracket, engine, and the main ground. This caused the ground to get hot and melt the coating off. I replaced the the alternator and left the ground because it was fine, and the problem went away. Process of elimination if the wire is getting hot while running instead of just cranking.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I hate to point out the obvious, but a Temp electrical system is indeed very different then that of a Honda system. You want to talk experience, I have been "tunning" Hondas for 8 years now and hold several ASE's including that in electrical systems, on top of taking 4 years of electronics in high school. That doesn't mean I know everything. Trust me here, the electrical system on that Tempo makes for a bad example. Especially when he tells you he has this problem when the engine is cranking, not when its running. The alternator isn't even into play at that point.

_Cyclone_

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Hybrid93Eg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I hate to point out the obvious, but a Temp electrical system is indeed very different then that of a Honda system. You want to talk experience, I have been "tunning" Hondas for 8 years now and hold several ASE's including that in electrical systems, on top of taking 4 years of electronics in high school. That doesn't mean I know everything. Trust me here, the electrical system on that Tempo makes for a bad example. Especially when he tells you he has this problem when the engine is cranking, not when its running. The alternator isn't even into play at that point.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Okay, I already told you you're right. I'm not questioning your knowledge or anything, I was just pointing out how it "could" be the alternator. I had suggested the alternator initially before going back and realizing that it happens when he tries to crank the engine, not while it's running. So it's my bad for even bringing the alternator into the equation.

The electrical system of a Tempo is indeed different from a Honda, but all alternators work the same way. Some of that coil inside the alternator that rotates came apart and was making contact with the case. If the some of the coil inside a Honda alternator came apart like that, it might do the same thing.