Hello guys,

Iv got a ford focus 1.8tdci and the alternator went.

So under warranty I got a new 150amp alternator which is brill.

Problem is, I had to break abit of the plastic housing to get my big 3 done. The garage couldnt reconnect it as it will mean braking the housing again but it will void the warranty on the new unit.

I was going to use a steel L braket but thought the conductivity wouldnt be great and need a direct placement on the alternator.

The ring terminal is too big.

Please see the attached picture below.

Could do with some ideas. Trying to find a small thick piece of copper strip in nearly impossible.

Cheers guys.

If the cable eyelet doesn't fit into the housing correctly then surely it's not the right alternator for your car?

You'll get a hefty amount of current going through that connection, you really shouldn't be having to cobble together a link so you can connect it to your wiring.

But, if necessary maybe a threaded post tall enough to clear the housing which screwed down onto the terminal then you bolted your harness wire to the other end of it could be a neater and more robust work-around? But you'd have to insulate/shroud everything very heavily, which is the purpose of the original housing.

Hello there matey,

Thankyou for getting back to me. Im actually doing the big 3 cable upgrade due to audio equipment. Currently it looks like a 4awg 25mm cable. I was going to run 50mm2 0awg cable along side this so it improves current flow to my amplifier setup. The crimp terminal on my 0awg is too big.

Maybe I could run another 4awg cable but since iv alread got this cabling, iv trying to save cost.

Kind regards.

I understand better now, I though the Big 3 you mentioned was some wacky auto-spelling error

A piece of copper busbar might be an option for you to make up a link plate, or look into the threaded terminal post I mentioned above?

Thankyou for your reply again mate. Its just trying to find a piece of copper long, width and thickness which would work.

You wouldnt have a link to the extra threaded terminal your talking about? Cant picture it in my head... Regards. Joe

Here's a link which helps explain better Joe

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/A2-Stainless-Steel-Threaded-Rod-Bar-Stud-Hexagon-Connector-M5-6-8-10-12-16-20mm/181039160592?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D27677%26meid%3D4fea32a62850445ab31b65128b16a589%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D10%26mehot%3Dpp%26sd%3D300711237863

You could screw this down onto the alternator stud plus original connector, then you've got a raised connection point for your larger terminal. Stainless steel may not he the best conductive material, quick google shows copper versions having male and female threads at either end which just means you'd secure your new cable with a nut instead of a bolt.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Length-Hollow-Cylinder-Copper-Column/dp/B00GYR0WUG

Both would obviously need to clear any nearby hoses/belts etc and need well insulating.

Troy45

Thankyou ever so much! I know exactly what you mean now.

Which or what size do you think I would need for it to fit?

Iv enclosed the exact alternator which has been fitted to my car.

P.s copper is obviously the best conductor.

Troy45

Thankyou ever so much! I know exactly what you mean now.

Which or what size do you think I would need for it to fit?

Iv enclosed the exact alternator which has been fitted to my car.

P.s copper is obviously the best conductor.

While copper is the best conductor it's not as strong for bolting up nice and tight - you'll probably find the stud you're connecting to on the alternator is a steel fixing with copper coating.

Possible compromise would be to have helicoil thread insert for the female threads in the copper part, or use nyloc nut on male end if you use the combo type with male and female threads.

Think you'd need the M6 type - was the nut on the alternator 10mm size? either that or M8 if nut was 13mm, then the hex section needs to be at least 20mm I would say so it clears the hard plastic housing.

Then for insulating it you could find some thick rubber pipe/tubing which is a snug fit over the stud - slide a length of this onto your battery cable first, tighten everything up then slide tubing over the connection and down to the bottom of the stud. If the bore has to be a lot larger than the alternator cable maybe also find a piece of thinner material to go reduce the gap at the cable end.

Hopefully this would do the trick without being too complex, would still have a dig around to see how other people have done similar installation as you're working on.