Not sure if this belongs in this forum, but since all the companies claim better torque and throttle response, i thought i'd ask here. Ground Wire Kit... Anyone using one of these, or have used one of these? Are there any gains in any area? Just wanted to get input before buying one then kicking myself in the butt. Thanks!

 

You can make your own, here's a tutorial from Gen 1 xB.
https://www.scionlife.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=29261

 

I have had one on my xB since day one. I had it on my tC and when I sold it I kept the kit. I don't think it dose anything at all performance wise.

 

Old 04 xB (kinda hard to see, but it's the red wires)


New 08 xB (the purple wires)



As for performance gains, no, but you'll def notice a difference in idle. Runs a lot smoother.

 

My set-up:
before

after



But I did this right before winter, so it's really hard to say if my MPG changed. Outside is below 32F so I have to keep it running for 5-10 min. About Idle -not sure if I feel the difference. I bought it brand new, so it was fine before and it's fine now. The only difference I noticed -no static electricity shock after I get out of the car.

 

From what I've read the theory behind a ground wire kit is that supposedly the electrical system will run better and that means the car will have a more accurate air/fuel mix and therefore increase hp, by like 1-2.

I had a kit in my old 92 Dodge Stealth, I didn't really notice anything in throttle response. What I did notice was that my lights stopped dimming slightly when my stereo was turned up and there was a bass hit.

So yea, I hope that helps.

 

You can acheive this by doing what us audiophiles call the "big 3". It consists of batt - to chassis, chassis to block, and alternator + to batt +. It stabilizes the voltage. Use a 4gauge or higher. I have 1/0 in my xB2. Lights hardly dim with 1400watts.

 

hey im getting into this racing stuff now and i am just seeing whats good to get and i was wondering if these TRD ground wiring kit is good thanks heres the link

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SCION...QQcmdZViewItem

 

So are you gonna start racing after you get those?

 

OK. I'm going to add my two cents in here. This relates to the xB2's only. In looking at the negative lead from the battery I find this to be a poor ground. The ground wire looks to be about a #4 and is attached to the sheet metal over the left wheel. Then about 8" away there is another ~#4 ground wire that is connected to sheet metal, a part of the unibody frame. This wire goes to the back of the transmission. Where the two wires attach to the sheet metal, they are attached over the paint onto a nut that is spot welded to the underside. There are no lock washers used in attaching these wires. Normally the wires from the negative post are, large ground wire to engine block or where transmission attaches to engine and about a #10 or #8 wire to frame or sheet metal. While the factory ground wiring may be adequate, it certainly is not what I would call a good automotive ground. I would never think of attaching the main ground wire over a painted surface using only the threaded part of the welded on nut for a ground.

I've had my car a little over two weeks and the first mod I did was to add two #4 ground wires from the top of the negative battery clamp to the back of the transmission and to the cylinder head. I did this the first week I owned the car. Did I feel more power after the mod or did it idle better, no. That is why I said the factory ground is adequate, it does work. The mod took me about an hour to do and that included going and getting the wire ends, a metric bolt and some lock washers.

Al