# Ground wires



## Gsolo (Sep 11, 2003)

This is a little more engine performance than anything else but i figure someone here can give me an answer. I've noticed that a lot of aftermarket companies have performance ground wire kits. The idea makes sense to me of making bigger ground wires with more grounding points, but does it really make the engine run any better? I've heard of claims of gaining noticeable gas mileage and 5hp. I don't believe it but if someone has any experience with it then do tell. If better and more ground wires do help then i might just make up some myself for my cars.


----------



## Crazy-Mart (Jul 14, 2002)

A lot of people i know use it. It is right that if you use an volt meter and check for voltage from the engine and chassis rather than at the neg post of the batterie youll see loss from 1 to 2 volt with engine running... in that case, the ground kit will increase voltage at the engine itself : getting better spark, getting better reading from all sensors grounded to the engine. but buying one is overkill if its not for show ... i would go buy some good quality speeker wires (maybe a few feet) and some gold plated crimp connector and make one myself. make you use the best cable you can afford and you will still save $$ and get results.


----------



## Nismo1997 (Dec 26, 2003)

5Hp you will not feel/notice


----------



## Gsolo (Sep 11, 2003)

i was thinking if it made a difference i would just slap together wires myself, prolly 4 guage. on my chevy, well theres not much in the way of ground wires, theres the wire from engien to neg post, thats about a 4 gauge, and then wire from neg to body, about a 10 gauge. My wifes prizm i'm not sure, but when i replace her battery i might do it. 

And i believe 5hp you will notice. lets do some math. 
ET= 5.825*(weight/hp)^1/3 

so...lets take my chevy for example. ET=5.825*(4000/300)^1/3

we get 13.81

if we put in 305 hp...we get 13.73

maybe a little difference, but that little difference can be the difference between winning and losing. 

And granted its not the most accurate way to determine ET's but it works. 

if you need more math...we can do another equation. 
Change in et/ Change in HP= -1.942*((weight^1/3)/(HP^4/3))

so... Change in et/Change in HP= -1.942*((4000^1/3)/(300^4/3))

Change in et/Change in hp=-.015

which means, whatever change in hp multiplied by -.015 will tell me how much time would be shaved in the 1/4mi.....5*-.015=-.076

so, how much is .076 worth to you?? a few wires i suppose can be worth it, if it truly can release 5hp.

And for nissans here (since this is nissan forum) 5 hp is worth a lot more...almost a half second for a B12


----------



## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

chances of getting 5hp out of a ground wire are slim but you will get better performance and longer electrical life most sentras are grounded from the neg post to the chassis then to the block and the more grounds the better. A ground to the head or intake manifold will help with temp sensor operation. Bottom line if you can get better more juice to the ignition and EC components then you will run better and more efficient


----------



## 87SENTRASE (May 16, 2002)

Crazy-Mart said:


> but buying one is overkill if its not for show ... i would go buy some good quality speeker wire



Mart is right, I would check with a few B15U guys to see where the kit says they should be placed, get some 8 gauge wire, the distro block to bring them together, and all the needed small parts to do it and make my own. The one B15U owner I know that has the wire kit, was kind of smug and did not want to share the ground points with me. Though all I would do is make my own and place them where the kit instructions say them should go (if you can find a person willing to share this info from their purchased kit) and do it!


----------



## astreamk1 (Apr 16, 2004)

Make sure you don't forget about the one on the front of the engine that goes from the exhaust manifold to the frame below. Seems like the rot of on most of these cars. I bought a heavy flat braided ground cable to replace that one on my car and it worked fine. 

I noticed on this car, there is also a ground wire at the catalytic convertor that goes from it's mounting bracket to the chassis. My other car did not have this that I ever seen ?


----------



## 87SENTRASE (May 16, 2002)

astreamk1 said:


> Make sure you don't forget about the one on the front of the engine that goes from the exhaust manifold to the frame below


Thank you for the plug on this one spot, mine is gone, do you really need that one? When they installed the Pace Setter header they never installed hte cable back, should I make a cable and put it there?


----------



## 87SENTRASE (May 16, 2002)

There should be a ground in these three places. . . 

#1 from the exhaust manifold at the block to the frame/unibody.
#2 at the catalytic converter to the body metal.
#3 at the end of the rear pipe or the muffler to the metal body.

These are the only exhaust ground points I ever knew of, though these are OEM, is it a big-deel to replace these actually all of mine are gone and I have had running problems though what can I say?


----------



## BII (May 13, 2004)

Most of us with older cars will notice a difference (5 Hp, probably not). But your lights will run brighter, your stereo will sound cleaner, and your starter will crank faster. The idea is to allow current to flow more freely. Is it worth a hundred bucks? That's up to you. If you make your own, you'll need REALLY good cable (the quality of copper in these kits is typical over-the-top Japanese for all the kits, except the eBay one of course  ). A properly sized crimper and some gold terminals. Pretty much what you'd need to professionally install an amp in a car.

Sun Auto's. This is the one we sell where I work. The JGTC cars run them and a guy at work had one on his S13 and he said it worked really well. We sell an A'pexi and an HKS one too, but IIRC those are more expensive.


----------



## Gsolo (Sep 11, 2003)

cool, i'm starting to think of going this route when i have the money to buy the suplies. And those exhaust grounding points, are those wires or just normal mounts? cause my pulsar didn't have any grounding wires on the exhaust, neither does my wifes prizm. and of course my chev doesn't


----------



## astreamk1 (Apr 16, 2004)

The cables on the exhaust manifold and at the convertor are both un-insulated flat braided cables. All of the grounds on the engine are regular insulated wires from what I have seen.


----------



## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

but you can use either insulated or braided wires for grounds. I have no knowledge of grounding your exhaust system and I do not think it will make your car run better if anything it is a preserver for the exhaust to ward off rust or something.


----------



## muccman (Aug 24, 2003)

astreamk1 said:


> Make sure you don't forget about the one on the front of the engine that goes from the exhaust manifold to the frame below. Seems like the rot of on most of these cars. I bought a heavy flat braided ground cable to replace that one on my car and it worked fine.




hmm.... so that's what that wire is for... mine's gone completely through!


----------



## astreamk1 (Apr 16, 2004)

mille-16i said:


> but you can use either insulated or braided wires for grounds. I have no knowledge of grounding your exhaust system and I do not think it will make your car run better if anything it is a preserver for the exhaust to ward off rust or something.


That's what I figured too, had something to do with rust, But being the oxygen sensor is on the manifold itself, I made sure I at least kept that one in tact. I am sure Nissan put it there for a reason.


----------



## BII (May 13, 2004)

I made my own, cost me 25 dollars (that doesn't include a heavy gauge wire cutter I had to buy at harbor freight for 8 bucks, I'll end up using it again, so its not a part of the cost of the kit per se), fancy wires, fancy gold terminals, etc. It works just great, my motor cranks right up (sounds awesome when I start the motor, instant start), my sub hits harder and my stereo sounds cleaner, my lights are brighter too. If you're lazy, buy a kit like Sun Auto's (which are VERY nice, nicier looking than mine, albeit just as functional), or if you don't mind taking an hour out of your day, make your own.


----------



## Galimba1 (Aug 16, 2002)

Talk to sethwas. I think he was the grounding freak. Better grounding equates to better electrical = better spark = better ignition = more gas burnt = more power. So if you have to reground your wires, you are already losing like 5-10 Hp due to bad grounds. Better grounds mean you get back the lost Hp, not that you get a performance increase from stock.


----------



## Galimba1 (Aug 16, 2002)

also i think there's also a ground strap from the starter to the chassis


----------

