Grounding Kit (pics)

[Checkered-Member]

So I got this grounding kit off eBay, cost: less then 40 bucks, 7: 4 gauge copper wires, aluminum battery adapter, copper center grounding point, the works.

I was seeking to stabilize idle, and smooth high RPM, it did that, but also eliminated alternator wine completely.So if you have alternator wine, or just looking to enhance the look of the engine bay, try this.

so far I only noticed that its much smother at higher RPMs, idle and normal driving conditions are about the same.

I Got a bunch of pics. (for higher resolution go to my gallery)

First the aluminum adapter and copper ground center.

second, the grounded alternator, there are two grounding wires connected here, the top one goes to the middle of the valve cover, and with another wire connected to the intake manifold.The bottom wire, goes directly to the grounding point.

Here there are two grounding wires, left one goes to the middle of the valve cover then with another wire to the alternator. The right one goes to the valve cover (next pic) then with another wire to grounding point.

Left wire goes to grounding point, right to intake manifold.

[Thee 240sx Owner]

Looks nice... when i did my second motor swap.. i ground 4 times... on on the altenator.. Intake mani... chasis. and transmission.. noticed a big difference on idle and on my stereo

[12er]

nice finding.. a customer of mine swore his 350z with AT shifted and revved smoother as well. Seems Nissan's a tad timid on the grounding end..

[silkk]

so 2 wires goes to the alt, 1 goes to the valve cover, and the last one goes to the manifold?

man.. do it for me!

[Checkered-Member]

so 2 wires goes to the alt, 1 goes to the valve cover, and the last one goes to the manifold?

man.. do it for me!

It’s a little more complicated, I’m sorry if in my first post it’s not very clear.

There are 4 wires coming out of the main battery ground.

1 replaced the stock grounding wire

1 goes to chassis

1 goes to alternator from there, there is another wire going to the left side of the valve cover and from there to the left side of the manifold.

Last wire goes to the right side of the value cover and from there to the right side of the intake manifold.

I had an interesting discussion about this with my father who is a hardware/electronics designer, and he said that the most ideal grounding, is when you have one ground wire and each electrical component is connected to that wire, with an automotive engine that is impossible to do, so the next best thing will be multiple grounding points. I consulted with him before installing this, he said it will be best to reinforce existing grounding points and not so much create new once, so i did, I only crated 2 new grounding points, while reinforcing 5 others. I also saw that I needed to ground my transmission, but since I run out of wires, I’ll try to do that when I get a chance.

[Checkered-Member]

nice finding.. a customer of mine swore his 350z with AT shifted and revved smoother as well. Seems Nissan's a tad timid on the grounding end..

I believe all engine are build the same with one grounding wire, just because it is cheaper to do so, all cars will benefit from this.

UPDATE:

I drove more today, and noticed that the biggest difference was at higher RPMs, I also noticed that when I start the car, the idle will drop and stabilize much faster then before. I am still somewhat disappointed that there is no difference in the smoothness of the idle and no difference under normal driving conditions.

[ricebike]

hey hey, thanx for posting something like this... i was wondering if using ebay stuff (or i recalled some members making their own grounding kits) would actually work...

should be moved to general chat to confirm your findings w/ other members...

[180fan]

I made my own for my SR. I used monster cable 8 gauge though. Grounded everything in a long daisy chain. Started from the battery to the intake manifold to the block. From there it splits to the alternator, head, and transmission. From the head it grounds to the firewall, the mafs grounds directly to the battery. Basically most things with sensors have been grounded directly to the battery post. I think that's the part that matters since it equates all the impedances across all those sensors regardless of what motor you've got.

[ricebike]

ahh, C! this shouldn't been in just the KA forums... it applies to any engine...

[gumby]

still a good post. I'll be sure to add an extra ground wire. got some left over 4 gauge from my camaro stater meltdown.

:ylsuper ghetto power

[sil8tdrifter]

Yes, a Great LowBuck DIY'er! Two good questions though...What gauge wire does the kit come with, and...What gauge's would be considered too small and too big?? You guys be careful with that electrical ****e! Ask your dad...seriously.

O yeh, What would be the Total length of wire needed?(4)wires:1)Tran.2)Block3)Alternator4)Ignition

[Checkered-Member]

Yes, a Great LowBuck DIY'er! Two good questions though...What gauge wire does the kit come with, and...What gauge's would be considered too small and too big?? You guys be careful with that electrical ****e!

My kit came with 4 gauge wire, I saw other kits (on eBay) that come with an 8 gauge

There wont be that much of a noticeable difference between a 4 gauge and an 8 gauge wire.

I would go with 4 gauge to ground the alternator, engine and chassis, everything else can go with an 8 will do the job just as good.

For those of you that wont to make your own kit.If you make your own kit, be careful because the cost of wires and terminals can exceed the cost of a grounding kit really fast…unless you have a hook up then that’s cool…make sure you use high quality wire, and good terminals.

[chandler]

pimp, sounds like a plan