[body9599]

Thanks. I was looking for that post over at A-L and couldn't find it. That's going to be a my project for weekend after next. This weekend is TRYING to put my console back together and deciding what to do with the interior.

Before you reinstall your console...have you installed an aftermarket headunit? If so...consider doing the cupholder mod...

 

[body9599]

Maybe I haven't been paying attention .....but, what are you trying to fix / improve by adding extra grounding wires??

First off this is a quote from zoom zoom on the A-L forum...

it makes for a better ground.. i plan on doing what you did too.. grounding kits on ebay are rediculous

better grounds are supposed to mean better responsiveness (from electrical components in the engine), and supposedly a tad bit more power (and gas mileage), etc.

run a search, there is a lotta info on the benefits (it wont do wonders though of course)

Which pretty much sums up why I did it.


For those wondering about grounding wires...I found this site using them on a Volvo.Click Here One thing I didn't do that they did was ground the tranny. Mine is a manual so I can't imagine what sort of gains I would get from that...maybe I'll add one later for kicks.

After driving to and from work a few times I can say the car feels smoother, especially in the upper RPMs. It also pulls a little harder on the freeway, but this could be one of those great placebo effects. Either way it was worth the effort. If you try this and have any questions...feel free.

 

[body9599]

No, I haven't put in an aftermarket head unit yet. I saw that on the post in A-L. I can't find it now, which bugs me, there were a few ideas in there that I wanted to steal from you
I have about 6 of those cupholder thingies in my trunk, lol. I'd given thought to putting a touch screen in the car as well, below the head unit. So, that's the hold up on that idea. Also thinking about relocating my battery to the trunk. I LOVED the power inverter idea on that A-L post.

First off...thanks for the comments....here is the link to the thread you're talking about...

http://www.acura-legend.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=62648

A touch screen in that area would be so tight...I'd like to see it done. Good luck with it.

It looks like you basically ran multiple ground points to a central location on the firewall. Like, from the front valve cover, to the point behind the water transfer housing pipe, then to the firewall. And from the same spot in the valve cover to the far right of the engine and back to the another spot on the firewall. Is that correct? I see only about 2 ground wires in my whole engine bay (rather disturbing). Could that account for some power fluctuations I've noticed? Like...dimming lights when the car downshifts.

If what I'm seeing is correct, more's the better. Looks like it will much easier than planned. If not, please let me know what I'm missing. Thanks. jessie

Basically all the ground points are daisy chained to provide a "freeway" for random electrical current looking for a ground. the links are from battery negative > distributor > front side valve cover (where there is a factory ground) > rear fuel rail > rear side valve cover > firewall.

The best route for grounding is, as of yet, undefined. You could certainly find a better one than what I've descirbed. Some of the systems that you see on ebay do not use a daisy chain layout...they have multiple wires to various engine components all returning ground to the battery post which is usually fitted with a circular disc with holes for each wire. I'm really not sure what the best arrangement would be so feel free to experiment and share what you come up with.

 

[body9599]

I got ahold of some 6 AWG ground wire, but it's bare copper. Do you guys think it would be alright for me to use it, or do you think I should go ahead and find some covered cable?

The concern with bare copper wire would be that any wires that it crossed could be worn through over time and ultimately create an unwanted ground...this could be disasterous it it grounded out your alternator. For small grounds like the stock ones which use bare wire...it would be fine.