Battery cable too short

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HenryJ
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Battery cable too short

Post by HenryJ »

After a body lift the battery cables can be pretty tight. Mine wasn't too bad with the Optima since the ground was closer to the engine. Now with a battery where the posts are closer to the corners, the ground was pretty tight. I decided that under harsh conditions, I might stress it to the point of failure.
So I relocated the attachment point.

I used a 3/8" drive ratchet, 6" extension and 14 mm socket to remove the bolt that attaches the ground cable to the engine block. From the front between the belt and crank pulley there is room to do this pretty easily.
I moved the cable to the bolt on the side of the alternator bracket. I did replace that bolt , and tightened it, as I am unsure if it is needed or not.

I see a steel clamp on the top of my frame rail that may have held the positive cable at some point. Mine has plenty of slack for the positive cable, so I may have removed a clamp or cut some nylon ties at some point. Maybe someone else will have some good tips for gaining some slack in that one.

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