woolybugger226

I acquired a jeep that had no battery when I picked it up.... Usually I would have no issue hooking up the battery, but I ran into a slight issue. There are about 7 separate wires of various thick gauges that look like they were hooked up to the battery for various electronics (stereo system, power converter, air compressor for front locker etc.).

My problem is that all the wires are jumbled up and I cannot distinguish which wires are grounds and which wires are positive (besides the obvious wires connected to the firewall, fusebox and starter)..... Is there any way to test the wires to distinguish power and ground without having to follow them to the electronic devices that they power?

Thanks,
The electronically handicapped.

Cherockee

simple answer- no.

If they were installed correctly though, according to standard guidelines, all of the power wires should be fused within 18" of their connection to the battery. Just because they are not fused doesn't mean they are ground though. best to trace out the wiring

belvedere

The battery is not connected, right? So, take an ohmmeter and attach one lead to a good ground. Then attach the other lead to each of your wires in question, one at a time, and see if you have continuity.