I did the big 3 upgrade a month or two ago and ever since i've done it when i try to start the car it doesnt start so good. I baught an Optima Red Top aswell and voltage reads 12.5V with the car off and 14.6V with the car running thats seems pretty normal but seems to be a tad lower then my stocker? Im not even sure if i did the big 3 right? I replaced 3 wires. Battery to ground, engine block to ground... this is where i think i messed up i think i only replaced the power wire to the starter and not to the alternator. but this shouldn't of messed anything up? Any ideas on what the problem could be? heres a pic of what i did
try taking the power to the alternator, that is where the power comes from, your battery just stores it.
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Im going to upgrade that wire tomorrow hopefully but i wouldnt think that not replacing that wire would affect starting the car at all?
yea, the big three consists of running a battery straight to your alt, not your starter.
did you leave the other factory wiring all hooked up? (if there was any)
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and fuse the power wire please .
i thought you could leave the factory wiring connected since the power will go thru the lower resistance which would be the new wiring?
also what gauge wire do you all recommend?
i was thinkin at least 4ga if not maybe 0
you should leave it connected.
ok this may sound like a dumb question but i see the alternator but where do i connect the wire to? and how do u get to it? and yes i know i could of kept the stock wiring but i replaced them
could be that walmart battery connector you have.
no those are $30 each from stinger
duy tang wrote:ok this may sound like a dumb question but i see the alternator but where do i connect the wire to? and how do u get to it? and yes i know i could of kept the stock wiring but i replaced them
the alternator has a wire on the back of it..should be about 8awg that is attached to a bolt. that's the power wire. It runs to the starter, and from the starter to the battery. You want to add your larger gauge wire straight from the alt to the battery (with a fuse on the battery end). leave your starter wires alone.
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ok ill give it another go when i have a chance... how do u get to it? from underneath the car? or can i get to it from the top?
here are some pics of my alt on my 03...you have an 04' right? i dunno how different they might be.
I found it easier to access it from the bottom. on the 02's it's easily reached from the top though.
This is a shot from below the car looking up. the big wire is connected to the alternator, the one dangling is the stock wire.
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lol follow thered wire. oops you removed it? why? You should have ADDED to it
i tried to wiggle it and it seems to be solid but ill give it another look when i can get outside before its pitch black.
you'd be surprised at how problematic that connection can be, clean it with a wire brush and hook it back up. if you already have the battery to starter wire in place leave it alone also. a bigger wire there shouldnt hurt . as far as with your alternator. you can manage getting to the nut on the back of it with a wrench. but be careful not to drop the nut. small hands are really helpful at ths point. get the nut close to the end and ease it off with yoru finger tips. after getting your wire close again have the small hands (if there not yorus) put the wire in place then put the nut back on (i had to have my wife help, although i'm only 5'6" i wear a size 14 ring)
ok i went out to my car today and i noticed that my battery voltage is sitting at 10.3 volts. I have no idea whats going on becausei have nothing in my car right now. What could be causing this?
well i got the chance to upgrade teh alternator to battery wire a couple weeks ago and the problem still continued so i brought the battery back, they checked it and gave me a new one. Everythings been fine since.
