Date: Mon, 14 Apr 2003 21:16:09 -0700
Reply-To: Shawn Wright <swright@ZUIKO.SLS.BC.CA>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Shawn Wright <swright@ZUIKO.SLS.BC.CA>
Subject: Re: corroded connections
In-Reply-To: <71.2fabe309.2bcc4a4e@aol.com>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
On 14 Apr 2003 at 13:30, Sidney White wrote:
> I recently read with great interest adding a ground wire between the
> alternator and body and the writer said use a #2 wire and connector. I bought
> them without looking at the alternator studs and they are tiny compared to
> the #2 connectors. Has anyone done this fix and what size did they use and
> what nuts fit the alternator exposed studs?
>
I just did this tonight also, and found the same thing, except I got #4 wire. I used the
large hole in the casting just about the upper mount bolt. I put a bolt and several
washers through the hole after cleaning the corrosion off the casting, then clamped
the lead down. The bigger problem was finding a suitable ground in the engine
compartment - is it just me or is there a total lack of substantial fasteners within
reach of the engine? I've looked at various mounting points to the frame, but all of
these would require running the wire quite near the exhaust. I keep looking for
tapped hole that is not used but have not found any. In haste I decided to use a hole
in the exhaust middle front of the engine bay, just above the bellhousing. It was
already rusty, so I didn't mind scraping the paint off around it, then stuck a bolt,
washers and the other end of the ground cable on it for now. I also connected the
capacitor from the smaller positive stud (where the blue alt light wire connects) to the
ground bolt on the alternator case. Either my hasty grounding at the body did not
work, or I have a different variant of the Vanagon syndrome, because it made *no*
difference. The van bucked less than 200ft past my driveway, and did it again before
the end of my street... :-(
I also noticed that I can smell gas in the engine compartment after starting the
engine from cold - I assume this is a default rich condition - I just don't recall smelling
it before.Shawn Wright
http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright
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