# lights dimming



## jnyce (Oct 3, 2002)

does anyone have pics of the ground wires that would need to be upgraded to stop dimming? i have heard on several threads that will stop problems with a sound system. i would really like to fix this problem. i bought a nice system and would like to hear it without worry. 

thanks


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## sr20dem0n (Mar 19, 2003)

The quickest, cheapest, and most effective way to help out the dimming lights is to add another ground wire from your battery to the chassis. I don't have any pics of it but basically you just take a 4ga wire and run it right along the stock wire that goes from the - post on the batt to the chassis. This really helps out the grounding system in the car, and on big bass hits the idle on my car would always drop just a tad and then rise back up. Adding this 2nd ground wire completely eliminated that. If that doesn't fix your problem another solution is to get an Optima red top battery, or a capacitor. Both of those are expensive, so I would try the grounding wire first.


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## Bumpin (Feb 18, 2003)

Yeah I agree with sr20demon. Your ground wire helps a lot when you got pounding bass in your ride. The only thing I disgree with him is the battery. I would go with the yellow top optima because I believe those are more for systems than the other 2. Or you could just go with a 1 farad cap which would do the same as the battery but ur adding more to ur battery with that. Not just switching it out. I would go with the cap personally.


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## Psch91 (May 18, 2002)

I would not get a cap. How is it supposed to "really" help the situation with adding more strain to the already straining battery (hence the dimming)!! I would go for a new battery, that would be the best solution to the problem. A cap is just a bandaid, where a battery would be like surgery


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## Token Moron (Mar 28, 2003)

a cap works like a battery in the sense that it holds a charge so when the bass hits, the system has "extra" juice to bump, so since it acts like a battery, it recharges like a battery, and guess where the cap is getting the power to charge from???


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

i read that there are 3 main grounding wires

where are they located?

and

what gauge wire is recommended?

T.I.A.


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## Token Moron (Mar 28, 2003)

McLaren F1 2003 said:


> *i read that there are 3 main grounding wires
> 
> where are they located?
> *


dont know
*



what gauge wire is recommended?

Click to expand...

*" don't have any pics of it but basically you just take a 4ga wire and run it right along the stock wire that goes from the - post on the batt to the chassis"-sr20demon


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

so 4 ga. for all three?


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## sr20dem0n (Mar 19, 2003)

Bumpin240sx said:


> *Yeah I agree with sr20demon. Your ground wire helps a lot when you got pounding bass in your ride. The only thing I disgree with him is the battery. I would go with the yellow top optima because I believe those are more for systems than the other 2. Or you could just go with a 1 farad cap which would do the same as the battery but ur adding more to ur battery with that. Not just switching it out. I would go with the cap personally. *


yeah if you have a completely separate battery for your system then definately go with a yellow, I was suggesting replacing the stock battery with a red simply because they're better for daily driving, starting the car in cold weather, etc. (atleast from what I've heard)


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## sr20dem0n (Mar 19, 2003)

one weird thing I noticed today that I never noticed before, my interior lights dim with the bass hits but not the headlights. Anyone know why, because I would think it would be the other way around? I still have the stock battery with an extra 4ga ground wire.


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## jnyce (Oct 3, 2002)

It looks like from the post, the wire runs down and an exposed part of the wire is screwed to the chassis. Then the wire continues down to the alternator. Thats what it looks like anyway.


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## sr20dem0n (Mar 19, 2003)

jnyce said:


> *It looks like from the post, the wire runs down and an exposed part of the wire is screwed to the chassis. Then the wire continues down to the alternator. Thats what it looks like anyway. *


yep, so run another wire right alongside that one from the post to the chassis. You could run another one up the alternator too if you wanted, but I didn't and everything is fine. The alternator doesn't put out huge spikes of power either like the battery does, so it doesn't really need a second ground.


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## Bumpin (Feb 18, 2003)

sr20dem0n said:


> *yeah if you have a completely separate battery for your system then definately go with a yellow, I was suggesting replacing the stock battery with a red simply because they're better for daily driving, starting the car in cold weather, etc. (atleast from what I've heard) *


Gotcha man. Didnt know exactly whatcha meant.


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## xt_out (Jun 23, 2003)

cosmetics wise, id rather have a red top. im running a 800.1 amp to a JL12W7 and 500/4 to my 61/2s. ive also got a cap. should i go red, or get yellow. if red is indeed better for daily driving, cold starts, and yellow just for system, im going red.
sorry to hijack.


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## Bumpin (Feb 18, 2003)

Yeah from what sr20demon said red top is better for under the hood. It holds up better against wear and tear of all weather conditions. If you need a second battery though for your system definately go with the yellow top.


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## akk51 (Aug 21, 2002)

how much are we talking about for these batteries?


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## xt_out (Jun 23, 2003)

like $150 or less. if im wrong, sue me.


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## Bumpin (Feb 18, 2003)

Yeah around that price. Depends on where you get it from. I've gotten some for $80 but i've seen people who have bought them for $180. So $150 give or take some sounds right.


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## mercer_diamond (Aug 1, 2003)

Or you can just check this out

http://www.nissanperformancemag.com/july01/groundcable.shtml


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

so adding a wire to the chassis and one to the engine block would help alot?


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## mercer_diamond (Aug 1, 2003)

the atricle said it gave him better mileage and better sound when he was putting in his componets and some other little improvements i havent done it yet but when i get some free time i plan on doing it


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

is the stock power wire 8ga. too?

i might as well upgrade both battery terminals


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## sr20dem0n (Mar 19, 2003)

no need to upgrade the positive terminal, it doesn't do much anyway...and it's 4ga


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

i know, but why mismatch when i can change both at the same time


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## mercer_diamond (Aug 1, 2003)

i would go with 4 gauge for both terminals but thats just me


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

wtf is this? is it 4 awg? can i cut the thing the wire is attachted to and remove the red thing? its like a socket, the wire comes out of the red thing and has a "plug" on it, can i cut it off, to put it on the new battery terminal im going to buy?


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## mercer_diamond (Aug 1, 2003)

from what i saw in my car it goes to the fuse box thats right beside the battery. i read that article like 5 times and i couldnt figure out what to do with it. what battery are u going to get???


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

McLaren F1 2003 said:


> *
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 ok, the big wire coming from your battery goes to the starter, and I think the coil. The little plug (as you labeled "?") goes to the main fuse box and it powers all the rest of the accessories (lighting, sensors, power devices, and the rest of the package).


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

i was going to get this battery terminal, but as you can clearly see the plug wont fit in that, so i was wondering if i could just cut the plug off so i can stick the wire in the terminal


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

yes, that terminal will work just fine. You just get rid of the plug and strip the 8awg accessory wire.

you can have the 1 4awg wire going to the starter, the one 8awg one going to the accessory wire, and the other 8awg could go to an amp.


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## jnyce (Oct 3, 2002)

since the popular opinion seems to be that adding a ground wire will help the dimming lights. what about that ground wire set that are selling now. i forget what they call it but isnt it a bigger gauge wire than stock. i havent had any experience with it, so any opinions and experiences shared would help.


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

there are grounding kits out there (I know of one called hyper grounding kit). Basically, it's a set of wres (4AWG I beileve) all cut to size and ready for install. It comes with instructions telling you where to route the wires. The advantages are a result of getting more power circulated to all the necessary parts of the car with lower resistance than stock. You get more spark, you get better signals from the sensors, and you get more juice where it's needed. As a result, you gain some horsepower, gas mileage, lighting, car starts faster, idle is more steady, and just an all around better feel.

You can buy the kitrs for around $50 and they do work. I installed a kit into my mom's maxima to take care of some dim lights, I also happen to know electronics pretty well myself, so instead of buying the kit, I made one of my own. You can do this on your own if you'd like, here's what I did:

Went to a car audio store and bought 10feet of 4AWG low resistance power cable. Got a bunch of 4AWG eyeloops (the ending piece that allows you to attach the end of the wire with a screw, you can find them at the Home Depot). And finally a bunch of heat shrink (just big enough to go over the cable without much slack).

now, leaving the stock negative cable in place size up and cut a piece of cable long enough to go from the negative terminal to a suitable location on the chassis. Crimp on the eyeloops to each end and run a wire from the battery to this point. Do the same with another wire going from the battery to the rear of the engine block, then a wire from the rear to the front of the block, then a wire from the front to another point on the chassis. Pretty much, the mounting points are up to you, just make sure to distribute the power evenly.

I have a bunch of pics of the job I did on the maxima, if you want some, email me: [email protected]


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## jnyce (Oct 3, 2002)

i have run a 4 ga wire from the negative post to the chassis alongside the factory wire. it has helped alot. when i turn it up now, there is only a very slight dim. should still install a capacitor since i have one already? will it help even more?


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## scrappy (Jun 30, 2002)

I have a yellow top optima and use it for my daily driver no problems the only difference my car stereo shop said was that the yellow is a deep cycle and the red is not


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