Grounding problems
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 48
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Grounding problems So i have a 1970 chevelle that i just traded a guy my 2002 z28 for, the car is great, i got a killer deal new 350, bored out and stuff worth alot more than the camaro i traded, but heres the problem the guy that he had do the engine/trans swap didnt hook all the grounding wires back up, when it is running it about 11 volts/11.5, and as you would of guessed I have had to replace the alternator, battery, and started all once. So my question is what all needs to be grounded on the car??? Ive tried finding a diagraham or somehting but NSL. Please help me out this beautiful car is just sittin in my driveway and I really dont want some shop to fix it.
Go to your local area parts store and find the Help! section. Buy a set or two of grounding straps. Your battery already should be grounded to the engine block using a large cable. Take a good size ground strap and attach it from your distributor hold down bolt (or back of cylinder head) and attach it securely to your firewall using a star washer. Also, down under the frame pocket, ground the body to the frame. I like to do this down around the rubber body mount on the driver side, but you can find a convenient spot. Also, I would add a ground strap from the body where the fuel sender is grounded by the gas tank strap over to the frame rail. It isn't a bad idea to also ground the core support to the frame as well. You should already have a small wire from your battery negative treminal over to the fender. This will do a good job of grounding everything. I like to use the braided ground straps with star washers instead of the insulated cables, they flex better, and it is easy to inspect them.
edit:
While you are at it, now is a good time to really inspect the wire harness, and repair/replace as required. If the guy didn't bother to worry about the grounds, how did he treat the harness? It is critical that the wiresplice be in good shape (the soldered bus connection in the harness where power is distributed). Also, clean the contacts at the horn relay and whatnot. Inspect all fusible links, and go ahead and replace all the fuses for good measure. With electrical issues, it is better to replace anything that looks marginal.
edit:
While you are at it, now is a good time to really inspect the wire harness, and repair/replace as required. If the guy didn't bother to worry about the grounds, how did he treat the harness? It is critical that the wiresplice be in good shape (the soldered bus connection in the harness where power is distributed). Also, clean the contacts at the horn relay and whatnot. Inspect all fusible links, and go ahead and replace all the fuses for good measure. With electrical issues, it is better to replace anything that looks marginal.
