While trying to find out why my decklid will not stay up in windy weather (Rear Compartment Torque Rod & Retaining Pin), I noticed a braided ground strap dangling between the engine and firewall. Where should this strap have been connected? I'm guessing under the hinge to body nut?? If so, does removing that nut entail any special procedures (given the torque rod being under tension)?

Can the strap be repaired (a new ring terminal crimped or soldered onto it), or do I need to get another strap (and if so, how difficult is it going to be to attach the new strap onto the engine--I'm not looking forward to that)? I posted some photos below. Thanks in advance.

See your deck lid question.
Your ground strap is supposed to be on the lower bolt on your hinge.
You can actually see the electrical connector under the bolt.
Get a good ground. Take it from everyone with a Fiero that alot of wierd electical problems occur because of a bad ground.
jetman

Is that a bare copper colored wire coming out of your battery box or is that a reddish covering. Looks like the outer covering has worn away.
jetman

[This message has been edited by jetman (edited 01-04-2003).]

Install a new ground strap. You can get a new strap at almost any parts store. They usually cost less than $5.

Unless you show cars in a factory class... Route the new strap to someplace else solid and direct to the body. The factory used the hinge stud because it is convienent but it's not a very good spot for it electrically.

A good spot would be the side of the bracket the hinge is bolted to. Clean the mounting spot to bare metal before attaching the wire. To prevent corrosion, coat the area with dielectric grease. It's silicone and won't wash out easy.

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11-Sept-01, The day the world as we knew it ended.

i get a good braided replacement at autozone. about an inch wide but still flat like the old one. haven't brought one in a while but i think they're under $10.

Pep Boys carries several lenghts and widths. All under $10, like the man said.

Any of you guys used stuff called Contax?
I had some left over from my house wiring days and it is supposed help with corrosion and may be conductive. I haven't seen it in a while but I still use it some.

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There are a number of things that could probably be used to protect the joint. GB, a brand of electrical supplies/tools common at many home stores, offers an anitoxidant grease that would probably work as well. The main thing is you want something that is hard to wash out. Silicon grease fit that bill. I'm not sure about the GB ot other stuff.

If I keep the ground as the factory had it (i.e., on the hinge stud), can I remove the hinge to body nut in order to replace the ground without having to follow any special procedure to accomodate the torque rod's tension since the top body nut will still be present?

Thanks.

quote Originally posted by ct: If I keep the ground as the factory had it (i.e., on the hinge stud), can I remove the hinge to body nut in order to replace the ground without having to follow any special procedure to accomodate the torque rod's tension since the top body nut will still be present? Thanks.

I did not have a problem when I replaced my grounding strap on my car. I just got the lower body nut in place before driving it.
jetman

I finally got around to replacing the braided ground strap. The only one I could find locally was from Autozone, but it’s 14 inches long (the original is ~ 10 inches) and lies against the firewall insulation and the silver tape insulated wire harness. Is this going to cause problems? Also, while the original strap had essentially built-in star washers at each end, the replacement strap does not. Do I need to put star washers at each end?

Thanks in advance.

bump.

It would be a good idea to put star washers on, it is more likely to make good contact. You might even want to scrape where the eye connects to the hinge, they are usually cruddy from acid corosion. The length being a little oonger is no big deal.

Aaron

Mainly an FYI to show the replacement ground strap installed. It’s a LYNX 14 IN 4 GA Bonding Ground Strap (part number LCS14E)--$3.49 + tax from AutoZone. Trying to get the nut off the stud on the engine was a real pain--I used a 15mm socket. I think I used a 13mm socket on the hinge to body nut.

<edited to include part number>

[This message has been edited by ct (edited 02-03-2003).]