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Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 6:00 pm
by geolemon
Dr. Bogger wrote:well first i want to point out that my headlights dont dim... just the interier lights do, but only a very little. Like my dome light, and my mirror light dim a little when pushing a lot of bass at high volume levels... But my headlights are fine.
Lights are lights. You just aren't noticing your headlights - that says to me your dimming isn't even close to bad. Someone standing right in front of your car would probably notice a little.
But think about this - Why do lights dim? The answer couldn't be simpler:
ALL lights are brighter on 14.4v than they are on 12v.
When that hand-off from alt to batt happens, the lights are not as bright.
Try this - Turn your engine off, your lights will drop to the same level. Start the car back up - back to full brightness.
You just aren't noticing it with the headlights - that's more of a function of the violence of the dimming - yours isn't terribly dramatic, it's a sign that it's not really an issue. You'd notice if your amp was really SLAMMING your voltage down to the battery level, and further sucking the life out of it every time it did.
Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 6:17 pm
by Ryan from Ohio
Best place for this one happens to be bstuff.com
http://www.bstuff.com/index.php?showtopic=35256
Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 6:21 pm
by Bwcad1
use four gage for your alt to battery ground.
Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 6:47 pm
by Chris from Washington
OK,
One of my next summer projects on the Camaro is upgrading all my wires.
Just wondering how you guys all upgrade the factory wires on a GM? that use side posts? Do you just get a top post battery and run all the car wiring to the top post, and not even deal with the side posts?
Just trying to make this look nice and in my head trying to visualize how it will look.
Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 6:57 pm
by Ryan from Ohio
Get one of them dual post batteries.
That way your factory wiring can goto the side post and you use the top post ofr upgrades.
Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 7:51 pm
by Chris from Washington
Ryan from Ohio wrote:Get one of them dual post batteries.
That way your factory wiring can goto the side post and you use the top post ofr upgrades.
Well that's what I have now, but I want to upgrade the factory wiring too. But those darn side posts make it difficult. I was hoping to just replace the factory wiring with all new larger wire.
I wish somebody made a 'GM' upgrade kit or something. Larger wires that go into the GM side post terminals that could then screw onto the battery. Give it a more OEM look.
Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 2:42 pm
by Ryan from Ohio
My advice is to leave ths stock wiring there and just hook up the new wiring over it.
Im not a fan of cutting up factory wiring at all...
Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 3:33 pm
by Chris from Washington
Ya me either, was just hoping somebody had somehthing that would allow you to just replace the wiring all together.
I just didn't want a bunch of wires all over the place, and was hoping there was a way to swap out the GM stuff with new stuff that had larger wire.
Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 6:34 pm
by geolemon
They sell side post adapters and extenders, so you could run an auxiliary ground (or just replace the one you have) to a ring terminal right at the side post.
Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 6:57 pm
by Chris from Washington
geolemon wrote:They sell side post adapters and extenders, so you could run an auxiliary ground (or just replace the one you have) to a ring terminal right at the side post.
Yep I think I'll do that for that ground, and I guess for the positive I'll just run a whole other cable from the alt to battery.
4 gauge should be fine right?