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2G What type of wire to replace alternator wire

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JGL122

10+ Year Contributor
105
29
Aug 8, 2012
Houston, Texas
Hi all. What type of wire should I run from the alternator to the fuse box?

I moved the fuse box inside the car and needed to extend the wire that runs from the alt to the fuse box so I saw somewhere on here someone recommend using amplifier wire. So I went and bought some amplifier wire 8 gauge and used that.

My problem is that that wire runs super hot. At one point I had to cut a portion off that connects to the alternator. It got hot internally and hardend the wire and stopped charging the battery. The good thing is the insulation has kept the from melting but I don't want to rely on that.

I bought some 8awg 600v wire from Home Depot. It matches the oem alt size and look. Its standed and copper. Its just stiffer. Will this work?
The harness didn't have a fuse but what kind should I add if any?

Thanks all!
 
Go to a welding store and get some welding cable, best stuff to use. Preferably 4 gauge for that long of a run, and add a couple extra grounds/upgrade what's there. I'd add a braided ground strap right off the alternator case or bracket, then an intake manifold ground, and upgrade the factory block and battery ground to 4 gauge minimum.

Did you get an OFC amp kit, or a CCA? Copper Clad Aluminum knits are garbage and generally suitable for about 40% of their advertised rms rating, so if it was an 8ga coca kit, about 100watts.
 
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You NEED fuseable link wire period, dont say you werent warned. Grab some from another Dsm or Mitsubishi from a junk yard if need be, you need to run double wires also rather than one big wire, more amperage can flow through two smaller wires than one large wire.
 
You NEED fuseable link wire period, dont say you werent warned. Grab some from another Dsm or Mitsubishi from a junk yard if need be, you need to run double wires also rather than one big wire, more amperage can flow through two smaller wires than one large wire.

Quick question and sorry to HJ your thread. So you’re saying not to use this? Had a 4g cable that came off a used car. Pretty sure it was for an amp.

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No, for safety and for enough amperage to flow you need what the factory used (fuseable link wire) and at least that same gauge and heat rating and preferably two wires in parallel.
 
No, for safety and for enough amperage to flow you need what the factory used (fuseable link wire) and at least that same gauge and heat rating and preferably two wires in parallel.

Even if it's running to fuse? I was planning on leaving the stock cable from alt to fuse box and running this in addition. But, replace wires from fuse box to battery, and both grounds.
 
You NEED fuseable link wire period, dont say you werent warned. Grab some from another Dsm or Mitsubishi from a junk yard if need be, you need to run double wires also rather than one big wire, more amperage can flow through two smaller wires than one large wire.

No, for safety and for enough amperage to flow you need what the factory used (fuseable link wire) and at least that same gauge and heat rating and preferably two wires in parallel.

Care to expand on that notion? Just that I see hundreds of cars per month with no fusible link on the charge wire, in fact its not a very common practice.

Personally I run a protection fuse on my charge wire due to the distance the wire runs, which is much more practical than a fusible link, but I don't think its 100% necessary depending on the situation.

Multiple smaller wires is debatable too, since any quality wire is multi-strand anyway (high or low count depending on your flavor), and every aftermarket alternator company, as well as all the rebuilders I formerly to use for equipment, all recommend a large single charge wire.

Just curious about the info behind the choices recommended?
 
4 gauage wire is fine and is rate for 100-150a depending upon length. With a fuse you are good. Our cars don't use "fusible link wires" at all. What Mitsubishi means when they say fusible link is an actual standard fuse itself.

Also it's strand count that makes the most difference as electricity flows on the outside of the wire. Best bet is welding wire. Very high strand count, very flexible, and very good shielding against heat.
 
4 gauage wire is fine and is rate for 100-150a depending upon length. With a fuse you are good. Our cars don't use "fusible link wires" at all. What Mitsubishi means when they say fusible link is an actual standard fuse itself.

Also it's strand count that makes the most difference as electricity flows on the outside of the wire. Best bet is welding wire. Very high strand count, very flexible, and very good shielding against heat.

Precisely what I used in my batt relocation and all other power wiring. Welding cable is the shiz.
 
Our cars absolutely DO use fuseable link wire from the factory, its the white wires from the box to the alt, grab 7 or 8 feet from a Galant harness from your local junk yard, grab both strands and use them as the factory did, they are longer but the same.
 
I searched around this morning and found that fusible link wire is....wire? I couldn't find any evidence that fusible link wire is any different than the wire being mentioned in this thread.
 
Fusible link wire is standard wire with a non-flammable jacket that's 4 gauge sizes smaller then the wire it's protecting. It must not be any longer than 9 inches and is attached to the ends of the cable/wire it's protecting. You don't have to worry about it because we use standard charging wires with a proper 80-100a fuse.

Our charging cables are the same gauge size from the alternator to the fuse box. No step down and no fusible links crimped on. And if you say the entire cable is a fusible link please stop and think about it for a second. Those charging cables are bundled together with other wires in the stock harness. If the entire length was a fusible link the entire harness would melt and short out. Hense, why they are usually at the ends in open air.
 
They are the same gauge and its made of fuseable link wire, Im not going to sit here and argue with anyone, I worked at the dealership and we replaced it from time to time and its link wire, whether you choose to believe it or not is up to you, its also doubled up as in two pieces, care to argue that? I have the piece sitting here in my toolbox. Fuseable link wire is used to protect a circuit from too much amperage/heat, in our cars its used to protect the car from burning down, its designed to melt before the car burns in the case of a short from either an accident where the wires get pinched or an alternator that completely shorts.



http://knowhow.napaonline.com/fusible-link-repair-one-car/

"A fusible link acts much like a fuse, only it’s designed to handle a different type of potentially hazardous scenario. These links are actually strands of wire wrapped in a fireproof covering, and are thinner than the wiring harnesses they’re connected to. They are placed in-line between delicate harnesses and large sources of electrical current in your car—between the battery and alternator, for example. These links must transmit high-voltage electricity, but also protect the rest of the electrical system from dangerous spikes that could cause a fire. If there’s a surge, the link actually melts, as its resistance to heat is lower than that of the circuits it’s protecting. This cuts off power while protecting the engine bay from a conflagration, thanks to its fireproof wrapping."
 
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That's what the stock alternator fuse is for genuis. It has a much faster reaction than the wires melting and will prevent a short from happening.
 
Bottom line is this: Even if I was 1000% incorrect, using fuseable link wire cant HURT anything if its not needed, on the other hand if it IS needed and its not used it can burn your car to the ground. You should always use what the factory used on the car, which is why I suggest going to a yard and pulling the white dual wires from a Galant or similar Mitsubishi product as they are longer and allow your to relocate your fuse box (as I have done) suggesting the use of speaker wire, house wire, welding cable or anything else is giving very bad advice, those types of wire are made for a specific purpose, and automotive wire is made for its purpose. Fuses are made to protect individual components such as the alternators regulator and rectifier circuits from batteries being connected backwards, or someone jumping a car or running a car with a dead battery causing a high draw on the charging circuit, fuseable link wire is made to protect the harness itself.
 
Bottom line is this: Even if I was 1000% incorrect, using fuseable link wire cant HURT anything if its not needed, on the other hand if it IS needed and its not used it can burn your car to the ground. You should always use what the factory used on the car, which is why I suggest going to a yard and pulling the white dual wires from a Galant or similar Mitsubishi product as they are longer and allow your to relocate your fuse box (as I have done) suggesting the use of speaker wire, house wire, welding cable or anything else is giving very bad advice, those types of wire are made for a specific purpose, and automotive wire is made for its purpose. Fuses are made to protect individual components such as the alternators regulator and rectifier circuits from batteries being connected backwards, or someone jumping a car or running a car with a dead battery causing a high draw on the charging circuit, fuseable link wire is made to protect the harness itself.


I'm not calling you out on it, the dealership told you whatever they told you, they want it original because it was designed to be original

I've been driving a Camaro with a 160amp alternator with zero gauge wire directly to the battery, across the engine back to the fuse box for 12 years

I've had to replace a fusible link on a taurus, fusible link is an old term for a master fuse from the alternator. Typically these were used on cars where ignition systems were wired directly off of the alternator power wire to prevent the ignition system from burning the car down. Ever ran an msd ignition box directly off of the alternator mounted directly behind the carburator. Melt the coil on carb and you're going to have a bad time

The wires are wires. They can melt at a certain amperage just like any other wire, they are not a fusible link themselves. The wires from the alternator run to the fuse box to the alternator fuse then to the battery. I prefer it the other way around, battery first, but then again if you've ever seen a smoking battery you can usually smell them pulling into the parking lot first.

So yeah you can run it without a fusible link, the only difference is how much you melt the wrench you drop on the alternator power wire LOL you want an alternator fuse to protect everything running off of the battery.

Typically when the alternator power wire is run directly to the battery the fuse box receives a more stable current, and the battery acts as a buffer for a more stable voltage reading. That's the way I prefer it but it really makes very little difference


TLDR fusible link itself is a term for the master fuse on the alternator, when an accessory is driven directly off of the alternator power wire without a fuse box. Essentially created because ignition coils use to be fed power right off of the alternator wire before the fuse box. Most modern cars are not fed power directly to an accessory, they are fed to a battery or fuse box first. I prefer battery fed power directly from alt, than alt to fuse to battery, but it's not a huge difference.
I.feel the battery is a more stable amperage feed from the stable battery source instead of the regulator dependent alternator first.

You also get less alternator kick from turning on stuff like headlights and the blower fans when the battery feeds power first from the alternator. You'll notice the dsm idle kick when you turn the headlights on, where as my Camaro its unnoticeable
 
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Once again, a fuse for the alt wire is more than sufficient, since if it shorts out between the fuse and the alt it will protect the vehicle by blowing the fuse itself.
and when running a relocated battery or fusebox, a larger gauge wire is needed for the longer run.
 
Look at the ampacity and cross sectional area of a single 8gauge wire in a 12v system. Then multiply it by two and figure out that ampacity rating. I'll give you a hint. The two stock wires are similar/equal to a single 5 gauge wire in cross sectional area.

Interpolating data between 4-6 gauge because they don't make 5 gauge wire, for such a short length, current carrying capacity to me looks to be well over 100+ amps. With that said, the fuse will pop long before the wire melts/burns.

http://blog.delcity.net/whats-the-difference-between-battery-cable-and-welding-cable
 
There are two types of fuses. Fusible links (& the fusible link fuse) are slow blow fuses. Our normal blade fuses are fast blow fuses. You do not want to switch the fuse type on the different types of circuits they are designed to protect. You can buy special wire designed to function as a slow blow fuse or use a slow blow fuse like Mitsubishi did on our cars, as both the fuse or the fuse wire achieve the same end result.
 
MotoMattx is correct. Wire it however you want to. Take the risk its not my car. What's going to happen if the welding wire that you're planning on using some how shorts to ground in between the alternator and fuse block? Especially with the oil/power steering soaked engine bay that 98% of these vehicles have. Just put a properly sized fusible link for the amprage and length of run at the beginning of the run.
 
I'm bringing this back from the dead because it feels unresolved. From the digging that I did because of this very thread, I came across some answers. Motomattx is correct that our harness uses fusible link wire from the alternator, I think his attachment to it is a bit much. Here is some more information for those that are interested:

"Fusible links and fuses aren't the same thing, and both need to be installed with some care. The key to understanding them is knowing how they work; and remember that any fuse/overcurrent device is there to protect the wire.

A fuse is designed to blow once current through it reaches 100% of it's rating. And when it blows, it blows quickly (within a few seconds if not faster). A fusible link can withstand maximum current for a longer period before blowing (minutes rather than seconds; think of it as a sort of slow-blow fuse). So why the difference? Fusible links became popular because the manufacturers could scrimp on harness wire sizes in circuits where anticipated overloads were relatively short enough in time that damage to the wire could be prevented by a fusible link. In other words, the link would blow before the wire melted. So a wire that could normally take 20 amps but might see 40 amps briefly (but would become damaged if you tried to run it at 40 amps for an extended period) could be protected by a link.

Fuses don't offer that type of protection. They'll pass all current up to their rating, then blow. You also have to size them at 125% of the anticipated load to prevent nuisance tripping; once you go over 80% of their rating, a transient current spike can blow them. So in the above example if you substituted a fuse for a link, you would need a fuse rated at 50 amps (not 40) and that 20 amp wire would get the full 40 amps (and melt) if the 'temporary' overload went on too long.

As I said above, a fusible link is basically a means by which the harness designer can use undersized wire for the circuit (and save money) and hopefully prevent the harness from catching fire. Not a good substitute for a properly-designed harness....

For more on harness design, wire ampacity, and overcurrent sizing, look here.... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/wiring-101.843579/" https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/fusible-links.963195/

https://www.dragzine.com/tech-stories/ignition-electronics-efi/top-ten-wiring-tips-with-ron-francis-wiring/
The last website, you'll see how a fusible link really protects.

TL;DR: Fusible links are used on our vehicle because the manufacturer used smaller wire, but most folks who wire their own cars in favor of bigger wire and maxi fuses in order to achieve the same level of safety.
 
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