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Old Nov 30, 2010 | 11:22 PM
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Default Grounding Kit

Anyone know of a grounding kit for the tC2?

I have heard they drastically improve automatic transmission response, along with virtually everything that is driven by electricity.
Old Dec 1, 2010 | 12:38 AM
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nope... and don't believe the hype...

grounding kits don't really do much.
Old Dec 1, 2010 | 05:56 AM
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+100whp add a turbonator and your looking at a 300whp monster!
jk jk
but import tuner did do a power pages thing on this once it did show some gains. ill try and find it again and link you.
Old Dec 1, 2010 | 06:29 PM
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gains that wouldn't warrant you spending the money on some pre-built grounding kit..

if anything, it'd be cheaper to make your own. just don't go psychotic over it.
Old Dec 1, 2010 | 10:07 PM
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Hey I mean I was just curious. Infiniti owners are crazy over them...was just curious if anyone with tC's tried it.

That Import Tuner article would be great.
Old Dec 1, 2010 | 10:11 PM
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Import tuner has done lots of "informative" articles

I could dyno the same car on the same dyno 10 times and get results that fluctuated as much as the "gains" from most of these mods show. There are "proven gains" for all sorts of bs mods all over the place. Doesnt make them all legit.

If a ground kit helps something performance wise, it is because one of your factory grounds is bad. Fix the bad ground and save yourself some money.
Old Dec 1, 2010 | 10:19 PM
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The last thing I would expect from a grounding kit would be anything noticeable on a dyno. I don't have a bad ground. I just hear that they can improve automatic transmission shifting responsiveness and I was just curious as to if anyone implemented one on a tC.
Old Dec 1, 2010 | 10:41 PM
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If it helps , then the stock ground is bad, period. The stock grounds are more than enough (I can go into ohms/foot of the ground cable, etc if you like) to make the system operate like it should. So if someone slapping a mess of extra ground wires on the car "fixes" or "imrpoves" anything then it is due simply to there being a bad ground connection to begin with. Unless of course you think kids with no electrical engineering background building ground kits are smarter than the toyota engineers that designed your car.

And people will buy them and swear (since they have no measures to show either way) that the car "Felt" better idled better, shifted better... because they are now paying closer attention and believe that the money they spent would do something. In other words, its a placebo if they didnt already have a bad ground to begin with.
Old Dec 2, 2010 | 08:21 AM
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while we're on the subject, engifineer, whats your take on the big 3 wire mod?
1 powerline directly from amp to + terminal
1 line from - terminal to transmission
1 line from transmission to chassis

I did this with extra wire I had from installing my amps, and I can report I saw a bit of an increase in voltage when driving. So I suppose that the line from the alt to the battery might help a bit, but are those two short neg lines still a waste of space? (as little space as it is lol)
Old Dec 2, 2010 | 01:48 PM
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You want the shortest ground wire from amp to ground you can get. So typically you want to ensure the stock chasis ground is tight, good and clean and then run the shortest ground from the amp to the chasis (to a good connection point) that you can to reduce noise on the line. The concern with audio is that you are amplifying with a good amount of gain through the amp, so any noise that does make it through the filter circuitry on the rail (power) can show up as audible noise in the output, especially with a large amp. On medium power systems I honestly dont think you will see much in the way of improvement with this as long as your stock grounds are all tight and clean (with higher mileage it sometimes pays to check these). As power goes up, I would expect this to become more important since the stock system is not designed to run high powered audio systems without introducing some noise. A dedicated power line from the battery to the amp is not a bad idea at all, especially with the added draw of a large amp.
Old Dec 3, 2010 | 03:08 PM
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Thanks for all the info, very helpful as always :-)
Old Dec 3, 2010 | 05:36 PM
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i would also like to advocate on the efficiency and effectiveness of the "big 3" as well.
it's not needed on a normal basis... but when dealing with higher powered audio systems, then by all means.. go ahead and do it... it should help a bit.
Old Dec 17, 2010 | 03:42 PM
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Sure, add the extra grounds. It could/should slightly improve anything electrical. It's all about flow of the electrons. Just like the exhaust, better the flow, the better off you are. Just make on yourself placing them in strategic areas. Toyota or any manufacturer puts the minimum amount of grounds to save money and make the system run the way it should be it is probably just good enough. Most of the time, it can always be better
Old Dec 18, 2010 | 07:53 PM
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Current flow is not even close to resembling exhaust flow Exhaust flow is all about keeping proper velocity (not necesarrily just the biggest pipe you can find) and scavenging.

The current flow in your electrical system is all about the lowest resistance you can get. However the system is designed to work around a given amount of voltage drop on the ground side... improving past that is going to the point of diminishing returns.

So like I said, just because you improve the conductance of your ground path a tiny bit does not mean you can expect the system to actually perform noticeably better. Will the ground system be better? Sure. Will you net any improvement? More times than not on a newer car, no.
Old Dec 19, 2010 | 02:10 AM
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The grounds are bolted to the chassis or wherever to complete the electrical path. Since the last load in the circuit should use the rest of the voltage if the circuit is operating correctly, there should be no drop between the last load and the ground. All voltage drops from the loads in the circuit will equal the amount of source voltage, series or parallel. As far as resistance, there should be none going from the last load in the circuit to the ground. If there is, then there is probably an issue with the ground.

Anyway, someone stated, maybe engifineer, a newer car, you might not want to waste your time but if you want to, I still say go for it.
Old Dec 19, 2010 | 04:38 PM
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There is no ground connection that will provide for zero voltage drop across it. There is voltage drop across every section of wire in a circuit. The point is that the system is designed to basically "ignore" to put it very simply, a certain level and operate around it. In other words, the system simply is built sensitive enough to care about the tiny drops in the system. So as long as those limits are not exceeded, you really dont have an issue that a ground kit will fix.

The zero resistance ground is part of what is considered "nominal" or in other words "low enough to consider it zero for the particular needs". The actual values and operation of an electrical circuit varies to a good degree from this. For example, there IS current in an open circuit (not what you normally think of when you talk about steady state current flow, but there is a move of potential) when you apply power, but the duration of that current, or movement of potential, is extremely short and for most systems can be ignored in design. But if you are designing a highly sensitive communication system, for example, you HAVE to include this in design (and current in an open circuit is part of how an antenna operates).

Distilled and de-ionized water also does conduct to some degree, but for most intents and purposes it is considered an insulator. Again, it depends on just how sensitive the system you are designing is. In this case, although a complex system, in the world of instrumentation and control the automotive ecu is a bit hamfisted and can handle more noise and drop on the line than many other systems.

Like we stated above, you may see some improvement in audio quality however by improving grounds. But this is because you are making that part of the system much more sensitive to noise by increasing gain by a large amount.
Old Dec 19, 2010 | 09:08 PM
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Originally Posted by engifineer
There is no ground connection that will provide for zero voltage drop across it. There is voltage drop across every section of wire in a circuit. The point is that the system is designed to basically "ignore" to put it very simply, a certain level and operate around it. In other words, the system simply is built sensitive enough to care about the tiny drops in the system. So as long as those limits are not exceeded, you really dont have an issue that a ground kit will fix.

The zero resistance ground is part of what is considered "nominal" or in other words "low enough to consider it zero for the particular needs". The actual values and operation of an electrical circuit varies to a good degree from this. For example, there IS current in an open circuit (not what you normally think of when you talk about steady state current flow, but there is a move of potential) when you apply power, but the duration of that current, or movement of potential, is extremely short and for most systems can be ignored in design. But if you are designing a highly sensitive communication system, for example, you HAVE to include this in design (and current in an open circuit is part of how an antenna operates).

Distilled and de-ionized water also does conduct to some degree, but for most intents and purposes it is considered an insulator. Again, it depends on just how sensitive the system you are designing is. In this case, although a complex system, in the world of instrumentation and control the automotive ecu is a bit hamfisted and can handle more noise and drop on the line than many other systems.

Like we stated above, you may see some improvement in audio quality however by improving grounds. But this is because you are making that part of the system much more sensitive to noise by increasing gain by a large amount.
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Old Dec 19, 2010 | 11:11 PM
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^^lol.

sometimes it's a good idea to keep your mouth shut if you don't know what you're talking about..

otherwise, you'll look more stupid when the guys that do know what they are talking about start to say things. rofl.
Old Dec 20, 2010 | 01:06 PM
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Originally Posted by unsungfate
Originally Posted by engifineer
There is no ground connection that will provide for zero voltage drop across it. There is voltage drop across every section of wire in a circuit. The point is that the system is designed to basically "ignore" to put it very simply, a certain level and operate around it. In other words, the system simply is built sensitive enough to care about the tiny drops in the system. So as long as those limits are not exceeded, you really dont have an issue that a ground kit will fix.

The zero resistance ground is part of what is considered "nominal" or in other words "low enough to consider it zero for the particular needs". The actual values and operation of an electrical circuit varies to a good degree from this. For example, there IS current in an open circuit (not what you normally think of when you talk about steady state current flow, but there is a move of potential) when you apply power, but the duration of that current, or movement of potential, is extremely short and for most systems can be ignored in design. But if you are designing a highly sensitive communication system, for example, you HAVE to include this in design (and current in an open circuit is part of how an antenna operates).

Distilled and de-ionized water also does conduct to some degree, but for most intents and purposes it is considered an insulator. Again, it depends on just how sensitive the system you are designing is. In this case, although a complex system, in the world of instrumentation and control the automotive ecu is a bit hamfisted and can handle more noise and drop on the line than many other systems.

Like we stated above, you may see some improvement in audio quality however by improving grounds. But this is because you are making that part of the system much more sensitive to noise by increasing gain by a large amount.

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Old Dec 20, 2010 | 04:12 PM
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well, i see where this is going so whatever.....OP, just do what you want. At the end of the day, its your car and do what you want with it.



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