how does battery wire hold up while starting?

[calico]

I was at Lowe's looking for wire to relocate a battery. They have amp ratings for their wire, one of them I remember being 150 amps (I think it was for 2 gauge wire). Batteries have a cranking amp rating of much more than that (something like 300-600). Does the starter draw that much current from the battery while it's starting up? And if so, how does the wire handle that much current if it's only rated at something like 150 amps max?

[vancouverbc]

Interesting question. The wires are pretty thick going to starter. I wonder if there is some safety built in because that much amps would be killing a lot of people.The solenoid isolates the ignition from the high amps but that is about all I know.

[180fan]

If your battery is up front, use 4ga minimum for both ground and starter.

If your battery is in the back, use 2 gauge.

[2projects2many]

The average starter in fair condition draws around 120 amps, the newer the starter the lower the amps (usually) down to about 110amps. The more worn the brushes inside, the higher the amperage draw.