I had that problem about a month ago on my car, ended up having to replace the alternator and battery. The alternator was the stock one (about 13 yrs. old) and it just wasn’t putting out nearly as much power as it should’ve been. This was causing the battery to be deep cycled all the time and i had to jump it several times, and the battery just wore out too. It’s possible if you just got that alternator it could be defective. I wouldn’t put in a system until you figure out what this is and fix it.
I’d say before you change your alternator, check ur grounds…
ive had three different alternators in there within the last three months and that didnt seem to be the key. Also tried a new battery as well, and that didnt help. Ive heard in other threads about checking my grounds. Anyone have details on this, i.e. which ones and which location? Thanks
Have the same problem, listen to Lodoss. And again check your grounds.
which ground wires and where are they located at???
how many do g2s have?
i have that problem too…need to upgrade grounds???
there are two main grounds you need to be concerned with.
first is the battery ground which goes from the battery then bolts into the right front inner fender (under the battery tray), then bolts to the transmission.
second is the engine ground which is the one from the valve cover to the front bulkhead.
this info is from page 23-15 in the helms manual.
disconnect your battery then unbolt the cables and jus brush the connection area with a piece of sandpaper or small wire wheel with a dremel.
HTH
From just looking in the engine bay the ground that goes from the nagative terminal to the chassis looks almost impossible to get to. Do i have to take the battery and other stuff off to get to it? I’ve been interested in upgrading my grounds but i’m not sure how to go about reaching those ground points. Especially the one that goes from the + battery to the alt.
well first off the + from the battery to the alternator is not a ground. change it if it looks corroded of damaged. and yes you do need to remove the battery and the tray to get to the fender/trans ground.
When you guys say your lights are dimming, you mean that you have a stereo system and when it hits hard the lights dim, right?
If so, then make sure you have very solid grounds going to your amplifiers. Make sure the wire is large enough, and that it is touching bare, uncorroded metal.
A battery can charge up to 12.6 volts. It is chemically limited to this voltage. The alternator runs at 14.4 volts. If the current demand is larger than what the alternator can supply, the voltage drops, causing that equipment to demand less current. This is the dimming lights you are seeing. The battery does nothing, unless the voltage drops down to it’s charging voltage. If it does this, then you have a problem and either need to replace your alternator with a working (if bad) or larger one, or stop turning up your stereo so loud. But before you do this, make sure you have good connections throughout the circuit so you know that they aren’t the cause of your problems. This is more true when you have amplifiers with more tightly regulated power supplies than usual.
well first off the + from the battery to the alternator is not a ground. change it if it looks corroded of damaged. and yes you do need to remove the battery and the tray to get to the fender/trans ground.
Yeah i know it’s not a ground, but it does have just as much current flowing through it as the grounds. Has anybody upgraded this wire to a larger guage themselves? I’d be interested to know how to get to it.
battery to chassis fixed my problems too
omg im such a tool. i checked my battery to chassis and it was loose. must’ve gotten loose when that thief yanked the terminal off, which in turn ruined my beloved jvc sh99. i guess i never tightened it enough back when i first upgraded the wire, and the crappy soldering job i did back then didnt help either.
lights dimming with brake press/bass turned up/turning lights on/turning a/c on, erratic idle/dropping, gauges dimming, deck shutting off, blinker causes dimming, a/c causing dimming - ALL GONE. i can bump the system pretty loud before i get even a slight dimming. 
i used 4ga wire from the battery to the chassis, then to the tranny. scrubbed each point shiny and clean. valve cover is 4ga. the old valve cover wire i used to ground the the back of the intake manifold to the firewall (i figure with all the vital sensors - MAP, IAT, IACV - it couldnt hurt). all terminals are soldered, since that fat 4ga can get loose with just crimping. battery terminals are brass, which is stronger (doesnt strip) and is less corrosive. better conductor too?
fyi that pesky bolt is a 12mm blocked by what looks like an a/c component, so you’ll need an open ended wrench. other than that you just need to remove the intake and battery/tray to get to it. archivethis
I did the way XDEep said and most of my problems has gone away. I can freely turn on all the lights without them dimming on me. Turn up the bass at night time and my idle use to be rough. It’s smooth now sorta like having the car in Neutral.
Good information to know –
But one question I have – What did you use to connect/crimp the wires onto all the various parts, specifically?
How did you connect a 4ga line to the chassis, AND to the tranny using the same wire?
:shrug:
I know XDeep mentioned the ground terminal and soldering… What type of solder, etc?
Also, I assume you can use performance audio components – such as the battery terminal setups, and use all the nice and fancy connectors.
Originally posted by Xirphoid
[B]Good information to know –
But one question I have – What did you use to connect/crimp the wires onto all the various parts, specifically?
How did you connect a 4ga line to the chassis, AND to the tranny using the same wire?
:shrug:
I know XDeep mentioned the ground terminal and soldering… What type of solder, etc?
Also, I assume you can use performance audio components – such as the battery terminal setups, and use all the nice and fancy connectors. [/B]
i did a pretty ghetto job and tried to follow what honda did with one wire- run one long wire from the battery to the tranny, and in the middle i exposed a short length to attach that bracket to the chassis. i slobbered a whole bunch of solder in there.
i would advise planning it out and triple checking the position of each bracket/terminal you solder/clamp, cuz 4ga is very thick and hard to bend if you dont get it right (even the soft stranded monster audio cable im using). also, that chassis bolt/bracket was pretty hard to get back in. i should just redo the whole thing with a custom bracket someday as the stresses on the cable at each point didnt quite sit well with me when i was done.
use whatever solder you can find, just dont use the one for plumbing as it doesnt conduct as well. theres a name for the two i forget…
ya use whatever old terminals you want to get the job done. probably a good idea to paint/coat/cover them with something. i actually picked up a can of this ‘liquid electrical coating’ stuff for 5bucks at home depot i think.
You could possibly even use one of those dual-wire battery terminal setups for the main ground wire – Maybe using two 8ga lines, one to each part, each using those quick-disconnect things, and use a stinger (gold) grounding terminal to the chassis.
How’s that sound, or have a better idea for wire size?
Personally, I’d plan on using all 8ga wiring, or maybe a 4ga line for the chassis only if you have an amp.
wait so a loose ground could blow the radio? i ask because the other night i slammed on my brakes and my cd player went dead. later when i turned the car on it blinked on for a sec and never came back on… i checked all fuses and connections(to radio, not grounds) and they’re all good.
damn my favorite cd is stuck in there!!!
Originally posted by G2sleeperstyle
wait so a loose ground could blow the radio? i ask because the other night i slammed on my brakes and my cd player went dead. later when i turned the car on it blinked on for a sec and never came back on… i checked all fuses and connections(to radio, not grounds) and they’re all good.
damn my favorite cd is stuck in there!!!
yes many quirky things can happen with bad grounds.
I’m gonna read this thread again when I diagnose my dimming problems. Does anyone know where I can purchase the terminals and wires from cheap?
I need to do the grounds check but im lazy…maybe ill check em out when i change my oil.
Originally posted by superthug
I’m gonna read this thread again when I diagnose my dimming problems. Does anyone know where I can purchase the terminals and wires from cheap?
i picked up those brass terminals from either pep boys/walmart or whatever. they are worth it, they dont gall or strip like steel ones do.
i hear welding cable is pretty cheap and comes in either 4 or 2 gauge… expect 50cents to a dollar+ per foot for audio cable.