I have read through at least 30 old topics on grounds, but never found an answer on what parts to exactly ground.

So a new topic.

What points should I ground, besides the existing grounds on my car.

I want to upgrade the original grounds to 8 Awg and the battery ground to 4 Awg. So should I be connecting ground wire to anything else while i'm at it ?

Also has anyone rerouted the engine ground that is on the valve cover ?

 

There is no need to do this.. Spend the time and money on something more constructive and less wasteful.

 

Apparently, upgrading your grounds have been proven to free up a couple ponies. I don’t have any first hand experience but the people who have done it say they have felt better throttle response and smoother idle.

 

Psssssh. Not worth it. I did it on my R and didn't really notice anything. Hoping for better gas milage and better throttle response and received neither.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by white rocket &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Psssssh. Not worth it. I did it on my R and didn't really notice anything. Hoping for better gas milage and better throttle response and received neither.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Same here...

The companies that claim these things....have they backed them up with factual data? Of coarse one can D.I.Y.S. and save a ton of money but for the most part the time wasted and the money wasted could be better used on something else.

The aftermarket kits...way too much money. I'd rather have a midget transvestite punch my in the nuts repeatedly then pay money for one of those kits.

 

Actually the best difference you can make to the stock grounds is make sure they are corrosion free and/or make sure that there is pleanty of surface to surface contact and no nicks in the sheathing or frays in the wires.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Haleiwa-Brando &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Actually the best difference you can make to the stock grounds is make sure they are corrosion free and/or make sure that there is pleanty of surface to surface contact and no nicks in the sheathing or frays in the wires.</TD></TR></TABLE>

WORD.

Trust the guy with the megabucks multimeter to tell you you don't need more grounding

But no, I'm serious, don't waste the coin on it. Clean up your old grounds if anything.

-Chris

 

I had some 4awg cable and some 2 awg cable lieing around, so i added to the stock grounds, total cost was less than 20 bucks for some ring terminals.

Not bad I don't think, I wasn't doing this to improve horsepower or anything, but to improve battery life, I am under the understanding that cars with sound systems shoudl upgrade the battery ground.

Anyways thanks for the advice.

 

Another thing about grounding is that you need to provide a path that will give the least resistance. Your example of the stereo...or more specifically an amp will actually work better the shorter the ground is. The gauge of wire is also important. Too small...and it is too resistant. Too big and the copper will draw more electrical current. By that in lamens terms, picture a fast moving river coming to a wide area. The water is drawn out and slows down.

The same goes for all the grounds in the engine bay....well any ground for that matter. The shortest path to ground is the ideal path. The straighter you get the ground to be between contact A and contact B is ideal also. Everything travels fastest in a straight line.

You could go a step further and solder the grounds also. Though I've never heard of anyone doing this. It would be a bugger if you ever needed to get to your thermostat.

 

haleiwa-brando great reply, very informative.

Thanks

I hope this thread provides some advice to those who search for this in the future.