Would it be possible to remove the whole negative cable, hopefully pull that crimped thing off, put it on a new cable+6", and replace?
Of course I can't even begin to guess where the other end of that thing terminates- probably a nightmare to get to, going around to the back of the motor like it appears to be.
-Formerly Stabulator
What is that? That might be what Justin is talking about. Can that be removed? You're not allowed to re-route cables in STX??
Yep, that's what I was talking about.
I was going to suggest using a cutoff wheel to remove the battery side of that cable, then running a new battery cable from the battery terminal to the bolt that holds that bracket. The bracket remains in place, as you'll need that unless you want to re-run a cable to the other side (which I suspect is the motor). No idea if something like that would be legal, but it would certainly be safer than what's going on now!
That thing circled in red is the chassis ground, is it not? Seems kind of important. There's also a transmission ground I think.
I could relocate the chassis ground if I knew I wouldn't drill into anything if I drilled for that bolt about 3" lower... guessing the firewall is something tricky to tap into though. Slightly longer cable seems more ideal, or maybe *two* blocks of 2x4 under the battery to make it taller.
No, don't relocate the ground. Just cut off the side of the cable that runs from the chassis ground to the battery, then run a new cable from the battery back to the chassis ground. It looks like that ground is just bolted onto the firewall, so all you need is an eyelet of the appropriate size.
300zxbattery.jpg
That's a huge wire to splice though. I don't think I have the tools for that.
I have a plan that's slightly less hokey than what I had before. I'll cut that block of wood in half, stack them to make the battery higher, and that should get the neg terminal close enough to the post where I don't have to use the janky double terminal setup. My post is still too small, but I have a sheet of copper I can cut and bend around the post to take up the dead space for now. I have a set of Odyssey posts on order (nobody in town carries them), which *should* fit my terminals, and I know they fit my battery. Summit gives the measurements of the Odyssey posts. My negative post is slightly smaller than those measurements. So in theory this will work...
I think we are still not communicating.
You need a Dremel with a cutoff wheel or a hacksaw. Cut along the line indicated. That leaves the engine->chassis ground intact.
Then, go to Autozone and buy a battery ground cable. It will have a battery lug on one side, and an eyelet on the other. Make sure the eyelet is big enough to fit around the bolt that is holding the existing engine->chassis ground bracket to the chassis. Bolt the eyelet to the chassis using the bolt that is holding the other ground on.
No splicing anything...
Edit:
Like so...
300zxbattery2.jpg
Last edited by thesameguy; March 7th, 2014 at 02:39 PM.
I have an easier idea. It would have been done tomorrow but I'm struggling epically with the drivers side PCV hose (doing the catch can before the battery). Hardest hose ever. After two hours, six pieces came out. And the other half of the hose is still in there. Yeah, it's very difficult to see let alone reach. I spritzed some PB Blaster on there for overnight. Can't hurt...
On a brighter note, the Odyssey terminal post kit arrived today (hooray for Summit having a warehouse close by) and it solves my problem with the terminal/post incompatibility. The supplier of my old posts made the negative extra small and extra tapered, for some reason.
I have come to be quite fond of Summit. Stuff gets from Sparks to Sacramento in one day and no tax.