Question about upgarding wires, (many pics)

[Hamsterman]

Note* i have the 1mzfe 6cyl.
OK so i have seen the light on the big 3 and i want to finish up this project and make sure things are correct, i have already done the following
+ battery to starter 4G
- battery to chassis under battery 4G
- battery to engine 4G

i left the fuse + from battery the same since it was already around 8 gauge and i could not fit a 4G wire back there, here is the pic


ok so now i need to move onto the engine to chasis and alternator to + battery, which i am going to do in 8 gauge, but i have some questions...

here we see this engine ground on the front right of the engine


and another ground i might not be able to get to with tools i have now so i will leave it, but it is on the lower back right side of engine


these two go to this post, which is ok,



QUESTION? think it will be ok to only upgrade one wire and not the other?

now onto the left side of the engine, front part by the rad. cap


and then the upper back left of the engine


these go to a fine post, but have thse black connectors in the middle, QUESTION? What do they do and is it ok to leave them out with new 8G wire?


last but not least the alternator, i know you are gonna think i am a dumbass, but i want to ask to learn, i just do not know where to hook up a positive wire to the alternator to go to the battery, here are 2 pics, maybe someone could cirlce one in paint ot show me



any comments back are greatly appreciated, since a lot of you guys know more than me and i prefer to be instructed correctly so i can pass knowledge onto others
nate

[eddiem67]

There is a little dust cap on the alternator, remove it this is your + hot. Add another 8awg wire and just tie wrap it to the existing one to the battery. (make sure battery is disconnected before you start)

Also leave the ground wire, just add the additional wire where you can mount it on both ends.

[Hamsterman]

so do not remove the wires that have those plastic connectors in the center, but instead just add wire to go along with them? sounds good... also will it be bad to upgrade all the wires, accept the one that i cannot get to the bolt- will that leave an uneven distribution of charge?
nate

[2wickedtoyz]

nate your doing it right
that grey cap in your last pic is the alternator + that will go straight to your batt +. as for grounds your doing great

[Hamsterman]

sweet, just checking up, i just still wanna know what those black caps are, see in this pic,

i will post it in the camry forum cuz someone will respond there if you guys are not sure, thanks for the help i really appreciate it
nate

[2wickedtoyz]

they are just there to make swapping out for a new motor easier

i had a second set lying around so i added it on for now

[Hamsterman]

right on, right on, so it would be fine to completely remove them then? I know you can just add extra wire, but cosmetically it would look better with just the single 8G wire. And as far as only upgrading some wires and not all, that will not mess with charge distribution?

The work involved in this process is not hard, it is just making sure that i understand why i am doing what, and not taking off vital parts

[2wickedtoyz]

it will not what so ever it'll just make it harder when doing an engine swap but honestly you'll be good if you just want to replace the wire but make sure to follow the same path

[Hamsterman]

Originally posted by 2wickedtoyz
it will not what so ever it'll just make it harder when doing an engine swap

well i do not ever plan on doing one, when this car dies it is on to a porshce 911 or sorts

but i apprecite the advice man, meant to tell you off the subject that your wagon is really nice - i especially like the gauges you made,

also eddie thanks for your posts to, help me get through this stuff

[Tercel GTS]

Personally I'd leave all the factory grounds in place. If the car EVER needs to go to a shop and the factory ground system has been altered the shop may turn you away.
Currently I'm wiring the underhood of an 85 mustang 5.0 that had been 'altered'. Not a single wire matches the schematics. That's going to hurt the owner @$65 per hour while I have to trace out each wire, see what I mean?
For the stereo purposes add a healthy ground from battery to block and to body, as short a wire as possible. The wire from the alternator does *not* go straight to the battery, but rather the fusebox and to a large fuse. This was setup so that if someone connects jumpers backwards it may blow a $5 fuse instead of a $100 or higher alternator. If you must replace the wire with something prettier, use at least a 6g wire and make sure it's fused at the battery end. If you want to upgrade go 4g. Some of my customers have 4/0 from alternator to battery.
Also, see that little bolt next to the middle nut on the back of your alternator? Far right low in the picture. That's the direct ground location to the alternator. take the nut off and add an 8g ground from there to the spot where you add the block ground. Don't tighten the little bolt because it's threaded into copperand strips EASY.

[Hamsterman]

very true Tercel mate, that would mess things up if the grounds were goofy, but i plan on running them the same exact route they were originally, but leaving the old is probably a safe bet incase things go wrong and removal is key. I really forgot about that extra fuse i needed to fun with the alternator to battery... how big is "big" to keep that proper, like an 80A, or 100A or is that too large?

nate

[Tercel GTS]

I think the factory fuse is a 120a

[Hamsterman]

cool cool and i take it for the ground bolt, you mean

the bolt circled in green right, not red or blue?

nate

[2wickedtoyz]

Originally posted by theamazingnate
well i do not ever plan on doing one, when this car dies it is on to a porshce 911 or sorts

but i apprecite the advice man, meant to tell you off the subject that your wagon is really nice - i especially like the gauges you made,

also eddie thanks for your posts to, help me get through this stuff

hey the porshce suv would be nice too

thanks for the compliments on the gauges i was going to build 2 sets but i decided against it and now rapeacivic has them and still hasn't mounted them

as for everything else your doing i wish i could help more but i work better when i'm doing it at the time

[Tercel GTS]

yeah, don't take the green one out, but use the red nut, there's a strap between them