Time it takes to notice a bad ground
Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=50027
Printed Date: May 14, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Topic: Time it takes to notice a bad ground
Posted By: skoldspuppy
Subject: Time it takes to notice a bad ground
Date Posted: February 13, 2005 at 3:22 PM
So today I decided to upgrade the ground wire on our spare 2001 Kia sportage, some dumb ass designer thought 8 gauge wire is good enough for ground.. I think not
So I replaced the battery ground with 4 AWG and a new socsche terminal added 2 more 4 awg ground wire in other places
My questions is how long would I have to wait to know if I had a bad ground on one of those.. I did let the SUV run with all accesories on for 10 minutes, then took it for a drive downtown with a lot of stop and go and everything seemed fine Am I in the clear or Should I take a nice 1hour road trip tonight after dark to Make sure Thanks
Skold ------------- 2004 Honda Civic Ex 4Dr
Kenwood DDX-7015/W Nav
4 Fosgate T152C
Hifonics Brutus BX1500D
RE XXX 12 in a 4 Cube Snail Shell
Replies:
Posted By: customsuburb
Date Posted: February 13, 2005 at 3:37 PM
You probobly won't notice a difference in sound. Your car audio gear and the components in your car will like the 4 gauge ground better though.
Posted By: oonikfraleyoo
Date Posted: February 13, 2005 at 3:38 PM
I'm not sure exactly what your asking but I would think that a bad ground would be something that you notice instantly. Either it works, it doesn't, or the cars on fire. Pretty simple
Posted By: skoldspuppy
Date Posted: February 13, 2005 at 3:44 PM
oonikfraleyoo wrote:
I'm not sure exactly what your asking but I would think that a bad ground would be something that you notice instantly. Either it works, it doesn't, or the cars on fire. Pretty simple
Ok so I would notice a bad ground right away, Its not Like the battery is going to drain overnight or anything with a bad ground. Thanks ------------- 2004 Honda Civic Ex 4Dr
Kenwood DDX-7015/W Nav
4 Fosgate T152C
Hifonics Brutus BX1500D
RE XXX 12 in a 4 Cube Snail Shell
Posted By: Drewt
Date Posted: February 13, 2005 at 8:12 PM
not unless you REALLY f*ed something up during the install.....in which case your car would probally be on fire. -Drew
Posted By: Francious70
Date Posted: February 13, 2005 at 11:17 PM
Don't worry man. If it sounds good now, it won't sound any different tomorrow.
Paul
Posted By: skoldspuppy
Date Posted: February 14, 2005 at 10:13 AM
Francious70 wrote:
Don't worry man. If it sounds good now, it won't sound any different tomorrow.
Paul
Theres no system in it yet, this was just to beef up the grounding in the suv, next week im doing all the power wire in the it, including replacing the factory 8awg power wire to the alternator and starter with 4wg, then sometime in march I'll hook up the equipment Thanks all ------------- 2004 Honda Civic Ex 4Dr
Kenwood DDX-7015/W Nav
4 Fosgate T152C
Hifonics Brutus BX1500D
RE XXX 12 in a 4 Cube Snail Shell
Posted By: Drewt
Date Posted: February 14, 2005 at 8:52 PM
If your gonna upgrade, I'd go all the way to 1/0 gauge wire. I have 4 gauge wire for my amp alone, and having your amps + the rest of your car running off of those 4 gauge wires, it may be better to go bigger. Sorry if I'm not to coherent, just read my post and it is somewhat confusing..... -Drew
Posted By: skoldspuppy
Date Posted: February 14, 2005 at 9:28 PM
Its a kia.. its not worth 1/0 AWG its our crap back up , the only reason Im putting in a small very small system is so when we go out to the everglades and relax Now our civic in my sig line has 1/0 running through it, the dealer hates it when I come in for anything.. Hell I got kicked out of the Honda dealership when I first had it wired up with the 1/0.. they wouldnt even change my oil.. oh that was a fun time with lawyers and courts.. whew.. Later
Skold ------------- 2004 Honda Civic Ex 4Dr
Kenwood DDX-7015/W Nav
4 Fosgate T152C
Hifonics Brutus BX1500D
RE XXX 12 in a 4 Cube Snail Shell
Posted By: Drewt
Date Posted: February 14, 2005 at 10:55 PM
yeah, I think there is some law that prevents manf. from voiding the warranty for adding aftermarket stuff..... Since it is a kia, it doesn't diserve 1/0 wiring....lol...athough the engineer that put 8 gauge wiring in there needs to be shot. Hope he didn't go to North Carolina State University! -Drew
Posted By: skoldspuppy
Date Posted: February 15, 2005 at 9:28 AM
Drewt] wrote:
p>yeah, I think there is some law that prevents manf. from voiding the warranty for adding aftermarket stuff.....Since it is a kia, it doesn't diserve 1/0 wiring....lol...athough the engineer that put 8 gauge wiring in there needs to be shot. Hope he didn't go to North Carolina State University! -Drew
Actually When the last payment is made on it august were going to get rid of it...so it wont matter :)
but I still cant believe that they would desing a car with only 8awg wiring.. that seems wrong
Heck in the old days my 1985 Ponitac Grand Prix was 1/0 from the factory with a stock 140 amp alternator and sepreate voltage regulator, that car was a dream to instll stuff in.. I didnt have to do anything to it
I guess today its all about cramming as much crap as you can under the hood and do it the cheapest
oh well
Later
Skold ------------- 2004 Honda Civic Ex 4Dr
Kenwood DDX-7015/W Nav
4 Fosgate T152C
Hifonics Brutus BX1500D
RE XXX 12 in a 4 Cube Snail Shell
Posted By: DYohn
Date Posted: February 15, 2005 at 4:18 PM
8AWG is good for 60-80 amps depending on the insulation, so it is sufficient for the loads in the vehicle and for the capacity of the 50 or 60-amp alternator. This kind of vehicle is a prime candidate for an alternator upgrade with ANY added amplification, IMO. ------------- Support the12volt.com
Posted By: 5150azn
Date Posted: February 15, 2005 at 6:52 PM
I was going to post on this subject myself. After doing a motor swap (integra type-r into ls) we were stumped when the car would start but idle would slowly drain down and kill the engine when the headlights were on. Engine would also die when rolling windows up or down.
So anytime there is abnormal power loss in your car... lowering idle when lights on or rolling windows maybe even when subs hitting.... you have insufficiant ground or power.
-------------
Tell the Snap-On guy I'm not here!
|