Crimmy

Hey guys. I went out to go start my jeep and it made 1 click and then NOTHING. The dummy buzzer wasnt working as i had the door open and the key in. No cranking, no headlights,no interior lights, no power to anything. I put my multimeter to the battery and it read 13 volts even. The wiring off the battery looked ok. Is there a specific fuse that could cause this? The jeep had been driven earlier today and it was running fine. I cursed at my jeep a little...

Crimmy

OK!!! I found it. Eeeee!! Got my jeep to start.

I found this wire. Its the main negative wire coming off the battery. It looks like it has been rubbing up against the oil filter. I adjusted it a bit and the jeep started up but it sounded rougher than usual.

Also cruiser. Is this the dipstick tube stud?

So its very obvious i need to replace at least this one negative wire and get some new split loom on there but i think what id rather do is replace all the wires with 4 gauge. Ive seen a link several times in my time here but im not remembering it right now. Its whitney or kelly they sell wiring kits by the exact length needed in variously sized kits? Does anyone know or have that link?

DFlintstone

I'm pretty sure Cruiser has Kelly's link.

>>> Battery gasses have a nasty habit of helping a thin, hard crust form on the bat post's and clamps. They can look pretty good, but that micro-thin layer is a surprisingly good insulator. SHINNY! Lead is what you want. I use a pocket knife, (gently), for the insides of the clamps. For the posts I might use one of those post cleaner wire brushes, but still scrape it with a blade. If you have a condition where you have power, (dash lights ect.), then when you hit it power goes out altogether, that's a common result of a layer of oxidization there. Btw, a half *** connection could be expected to get hot during cranking, or while it's trying. Cleaning those is something to do now and then anyway, so if you are having starting problems, you might want to make sure you have bare lead on lead. Might save you some grief!

Crimmy

Thanks Dflintstone. This was a bit strange to me at first. I had no power to anything. After i turned the key the jeep clicked and there was no power to anything at all until i found this wire. The terminals i have are brand new although getting some rust already. The posts and even the new terminals were cleaned and scuffed up to make a better connection and given a light layer of dialectric grease to prevent any corrosion to the terminals. I had huge issues with terminal corrosion on my ford taurus so i wanted to make sure i avoided that.

Im wondering though if this bad wire could cause my idle surging and intermittent stalling. Hopefully cruiser stops by soon and can share that kellys link. Ive got a job interview this friday so hopefully i can feed my jeep some more of those delicious green backs it loves so much.

Pelican

Jon Kelley is 5-90. www.kelleyswip.com

He will work with you to get you exactly what you need and his stuff is first class.

Edit: Well I messed that up. Anyway if you are in a hurry you can look up 5-90 in the user list or with a search. The link is there.

Edit No. 2: Now the link is working. Don't know what I did.

cruiser54

Yes, that's the dipstick tube stud and it's disgusting!!!

CompleteCherokee

a good cleaning may be in order

For the neg cable, make sure after replacing it to wrap it in a good loom to protect it, and use zip ties when possible to keep it from rubbing against other parts. Shorting it out is a good way to fry an ECM

DFlintstone

I'd still clean the terminals again!, and this time use Oxy Guard. It's about $1 in a little foil pouch. I'm not saying dyelectric is a problem, but Oxy conducts, and that doesn't.

I wouldn't "scuff" anything. The smoother the surface the more contact you will have, and the chance for air/gasses getting in there goes down.

Crimmy

It sure is. Thats what it looked like inside my valve cover, the rocker arms, the oil pan. There was some pretty heavy oil leakage going on. Someday this engine needs to come out and get a good bath and paint job! =)

Still though could this bad ground wire have been causing my stalling and idle issues?

CCKen

I don't think so, but a filthy ground connection will. Any chafed wire needs to be addressed.

Scrub all the ground connection ring terminals with 3M #2 Scotch-Brite pads (lowe's/Home Depot) and use Ox-Gard on the ring terminals at assembly. Ox-Gard can be found at Lowe's or Home Depot.

The ring terminals don't need to be "Shiny", just free from corrosion.

Do not use Ox-gard in pin connectors, only on ground terminals.

NEVER USE DIELECTRIC GREASE.

Don't waste time and money installing those huge welding cables. OEM cable size is good enough. You gain absolutely nothing by going with massive cable gauge. Another VooDoo XJ mod.

Crimmy

Thanks for the input ccken. Im not going huge yet but there is a reason i will be. I have the intention of installing a high output alternator at some point. And if i stick with the factory wire size at that point it would be like trying to shove a bowling ball through a garden hose. While at the moment bigger cables may not give me any benefit it certainly wont hurt anything and ensures the maximum amount of current can flow through unhindered and safely. For now im going to be using 4 gauge wire which isnt huge by any means. Im not even sure what the factory size is. 8 im guessing?

CCKen

Not familiar with an '89, but the '99 has 6 ga. positive feed cables and 8 ga. ground cables.

The '99 has a 124 Rated SAE Amps/90 minimum test Amps generator.

CompleteCherokee

on the terminals, make sure they are clean and use a battery cleaner tool to remove any corrosion / glaze before installing the Ox-Gard. Also, check the condition of the cables to make sure you don't have any corrosion going down into the cable itself.

DFlintstone

Battery gasses have a nasty habit of helping a thin, hard crust form on the bat post's and clamps. They can look pretty good, but that micro-thin layer is a surprisingly good insulator. SHINNY! Lead is what you want.


Any progress?

cruiser54

Shiney.