Great find and diagnosis- you showed both sides the positive and negative way to validate voltage drops. And so correct when you say most only check the positive side. Thanks for the great video!
Pretty poor design. The connection needs to be much more substantial. I also blame the mechanics who worked on the same issue 2nd, 3rd or 4th time more. How do they plan on feeding their families when EV cars become more prevalent in next decade or two? They can’t even diagnose a simple 12v circuit.
Love it! The thermal imager is probably one of my favorite tools for weird electrical issues. When you find that massive hot spot it’s ridiculous how exciting it feels lol!!!! Nice one :)
If it was only necessary to have a good connection between the 2 cables, there would be no need to fasten them to any other metal. There is other circuitry that depends on that ground connection to the body of the car. There's no telling how many other problems you have fixed, or performance problems you have solved. You did a great job for this customer, and have taught us all a lesson !!! ❤ 😅
Great video and repair, only thing rust never sleeps, and you gave it a place to start. I get the idea of clean metal, but you need, oil or grease to combat the rust in the near future. You may have done it off camera.
@@OzMechanics Up north-east the rust creeps in 2 minutes after cleaning up, we have to preserve everything oil grease and every rust preventive known to man. You are lucky.
@@carmo9693 yea it’s crazy when I watch RUclips videos from cars that are from up north. I think I’ve only worked on a handful of cars that have had rust.
I'm not going to fault you, as you FOUND and FIXED the problem. That said, sometimes OEM'S run the ground like this one to the body. I've found many times they should run the ground like they did to this vehicle, THEN run a (4 Gauge) cable from that sheet metal body ground to the engine block, preferably to a starter mounting bolt. Also I would have drilled out the captured nuts under that ground strap and installed 2 new NUTCERTS and I would use lock washers between the bolt head and the ground cable terminals. Now I'd know that "Ground Is Ground!" You'd be surprised at how that can eliminate other not-known-yet problems. " But it has an engine to body ground" you say. Where? Maybe, maybe not. My way has never let me down. Good one Oz, I am surprised others missed that problem. Thank GOD you found it!
The voltage drop test proved there was a good connection from chassis to engine ground. Be careful when "re-engineering" powers and grounds on a vehicle. You can magnetize the crankshaft and cause a permanent no start.
Nice work. Pro tip: Always roll the drivers window down on every vehicle so you can't lock the keys in it. I've been burned for not doing voltage drop tests before. Mostly when I'm in a hurry and then it takes even more time to get it right. Nice to see the high resistance connection on thermal cam.
As soon as I saw the condition I said "I bet it's a bad ground..." Oh look, it was a bad ground. Thanks to Ivan at PHAD for the drilling in of "Powers and Grounds" If something electric doesn't operate properly, good chance there's a faulty ground, or a green crusty somewhere..
@@OzMechanics hahah! See, and I could see it in your face when you found that grounding strap to be loose What an abysmal set of events that put the car into your hands. Works for you, as now you look like a Rockstar! Congrats.. But the previous tech that was working on that car that stripped the living hell out of those bolts, or the ones that replaced the alternator 4 times.. seriously? When you call an alternator, you need to make sure it IS the alternator.. just blows my mind. I may not personally be a mechanic working on cars, but it is the same thing for my field of work.. make sure it's actually broken, and solve the problem, don't just throw things at it and hope it fixes itself.. You nailed the repair perfectly, good job. Amazing how something so simple, can cause so much chaos. Onto the next
Good job finding the bad ground! The only thing I would add to this repair is applying dielectric grease to all the bare metal to prevent a recurrence of this problem. The Houston area gets high humidity and that alone will create rust in time.
Careful of the washer reservoir just below those holes! Rivet nuts or nutserts would have been a good option also. Good video on checking voltage drop.
If your DIY and trying to test the ground path, run a jumper cable from a clean spot on the engine to the battery negative post. If your problem goes away you verified you have an issue somewhere in the ground path.
Great video and enthusiasm! One thing that you did but didn't emphasize was for voltage drop to be an effective test, the circuit needs to loaded. I wish I could give the amount of enthusiasm you give on my videos!
I believe the voltage drop is one of the most missed problems of this type. Just helped a kid fix a stater problem on a Ford. A bad connection on the starter. he was ready to replace it. You showing the math of output voltage must equal voltage drops was right on.
Whenever removing paint to make a better connection, two issues: Unlike metals will create rust ( early Toyota pickup beds) and if metals are.similar cover with some sort of rust protectant. Prevents this issue from recurring due to rust.
I hope that you’ll add dialectic compound on the ground strap and new bolts, particularly underneath. If not,corrosion over time will create a similar issue.
Nice work. But it's only half fixed. Yes, you have the correct charging voltage at the battery. However, if that body connection was that bad, you should also inspect and clean/tighten the body-to-block ground connection as well (both ends). Just to provide the best service and help prevent a call back. Now that you have full voltage/current in that wire, the body-to-block wire/braided strap may fail from the current. I've seen it probably a dozen times in my 40 year career. Finally, I would have put a small dab of grease between that terminal and the body.
The voltage drop test proved it had a good chassis to engine ground under load. Grease is not a conductor and can inhibit the connection. Applying a little grease over the connection to prevent rust would have been ok.
Had a 2010 Honda Odyssey, similar situation, I think they were up to 6 alternators, it was a smoked B+ cable from the alternator to the fuse/junction box.
Only 4 alternators? No batteries or starter motors? I usually get these jobs in when all 3 have been changed but symptoms persist. Most French vehicles it's the body to block ground that fails, about 20% at the body end and 80% at the block end, especially if fitted to the aluminium transmission housing
rare 2 year truck. I have one with the 4.6. Very nice rigs. BTW that ground cable design is dumb. There should be one going directly to the block as well.
@@OzMechanics I watched the whole video, but after 4 alternator maybe the first mechanic should have went down another direction to fix the electrical issue, just something to consider
Negative main connection battery to body using female thread at body is kinda stupid. Female thread its hard to clean and keeps water. I find mercedes w212 and w204 male negative stud welded to body metal with wide base flange for lug connection a much better design. Easy to clean and above water level and located in dry location, near front suspension strut. It also acts as negative jump start or charging point with the extra brass ferrule. Simple brilliant design and super easy access.
Head into settings and change the temperature readings to fahrenheit. No conversion needed. The States are different from the rest of the world unless you are a scientist. 😉
the parts cannon has no mercy! after replacing one, then two, they just kept on going! or the shops did "well ya know the alternators these days" you did that in a simplistic diagnostic troubleshooting manner as good as schrodinger and i watched the whole 20 minutes. what was with the oil? something about oil in the alternator in the notes in the beginning, wtf? lol
Bro I ALWAYS run the negative cable to a good spot on the engine. A separate ground to the body, AND I run a good ground cable from the body to the engine on my, and my families and friends cars. NEVER any problems 🙄
![2010 Sonata No Start [What are we missing?]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/2n1kQBSHb7A/mqdefault.jpg)
When you enjoy your job as much as Oz , you never work a day in your life Great video and never stop being you. 😊
I hope the excitement never stops
Nice work! Definitely shows how important voltage drop testing is! Wow, 4 Alternators!
Heck yes. First test I perform when I have a voltage problem
Great find and diagnosis- you showed both sides the positive and negative way to validate voltage drops. And so correct when you say most only check the positive side. Thanks for the great video!
Yea and I was a part of that. But I got burned once
Brilliant! Thanks for showing the voltage drop on the negative side.
Guess: classic Hyundai Kia bad ground connection to body? 🤔
👀
Pretty poor design. The connection needs to be much more substantial.
I also blame the mechanics who worked on the same issue 2nd, 3rd or 4th time more.
How do they plan on feeding their families when EV cars become more prevalent in next decade or two? They can’t even diagnose a simple 12v circuit.
@@znogaragego3421feed families? Are we assuming every person on the planet has wife and kids now?
WELL SAID IVAN.LOL
Love it! The thermal imager is probably one of my favorite tools for weird electrical issues. When you find that massive hot spot it’s ridiculous how exciting it feels lol!!!! Nice one :)
The visuals with the thermal camera sure help to understand the importance of a good connection. Nice work!
I love that thermal camera
His excitement made me smile!
I find diagnosing so fun. It’s an adventure finding these issues
Another great diag, love the enthusiasm.
Thanks Eric. Got to say, I love my job
@@OzMechanics It shows in your video's
Very well done! I really enjoyed this video, Oz. Never underestimate the value of "back to basics."
Or like me teacher thought me KISS keep it simple stupid
i can still remember when i learned about ground side testing opened up a whole new world of testing.
For sure. I learned the hard way
If it was only necessary to have a good connection between the 2 cables, there would be no need to fasten them to any other metal. There is other circuitry that depends on that ground connection to the body of the car. There's no telling how many other problems you have fixed, or performance problems you have solved.
You did a great job for this customer, and have taught us all a lesson !!! ❤ 😅
Thanks for stopping by and watching Paul
Simple diagnostics really any mechanic should know and be able to do, nice one OZ 👍
Hopefully after this video they will know
Hey, buddy! Congratulations! Your generosity in sharing with us the problem fixed. A huge from Querétaro, México. My name is Arturo Núñez.
Everyone can afford a basic multimeter. Nice to see the solution being implemented in real time, Good reference video.
At a pawn shop you can get a fairly good meter at a cheap price
I'd spray that area with some Fluid Film for corrosion prevention.
Good work finding that lost voltage!
@@gregreitan3634 luckily we are in Texas and we rarely see rust here.
Great job, process and explanation.
Thanks for stopping by Michael
Great video and repair, only thing rust never sleeps, and you gave it a place to start. I get the idea of clean metal, but you need, oil or grease to combat the rust in the near future. You may have done it off camera.
What is rust word you speak of ? Jk here in Texas we don’t get rust. That’s why we still have 30-40 yr old cars still out on the streets
@@OzMechanics Up north-east the rust creeps in 2 minutes after cleaning up, we have to preserve everything oil grease and every rust preventive known to man. You are lucky.
@@carmo9693 yea it’s crazy when I watch RUclips videos from cars that are from up north. I think I’ve only worked on a handful of cars that have had rust.
Keep up the videos, man I really love watching them!
Will do Robert. And thanks for watching
Great find and Bless you for saving this customer sanity. 🤘🏼🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Thank you for stopping by
Great job! Very thorough and solid teaching!!
I'm not going to fault you, as you FOUND and FIXED the problem.
That said, sometimes OEM'S run the ground like this one to the body. I've found many times they should run the ground like they did to this vehicle, THEN run a (4 Gauge) cable from that sheet metal body ground to the engine block, preferably to a starter mounting bolt. Also I would have drilled out the captured nuts under that ground strap and installed 2 new NUTCERTS and I would use lock washers between the bolt head and the ground cable terminals. Now I'd know that "Ground Is Ground!" You'd be surprised at how that can eliminate other not-known-yet problems.
" But it has an engine to body ground" you say. Where? Maybe, maybe not. My way has never let me down.
Good one Oz, I am surprised others missed that problem. Thank GOD you found it!
Woooooohooooooo
The voltage drop test proved there was a good connection from chassis to engine ground. Be careful when "re-engineering" powers and grounds on a vehicle. You can magnetize the crankshaft and cause a permanent no start.
Neat! Great diag skills. Who would have guessed what would have been the issue!
This one was a fun one for sure
Pinehollow would)
@@КовальОлександр-к6ь And Eric O!
Great Diag Oz thanks for sharing.
@@ganeshnarayan5505 thanks for stopping by
Great find..! Very informative video. Thanks again.
Thanks for watching Arthur
Love your enthusiasm I was just as happy as you.
Nice work. Pro tip: Always roll the drivers window down on every vehicle so you can't lock the keys in it. I've been burned for not doing voltage drop tests before. Mostly when I'm in a hurry and then it takes even more time to get it right. Nice to see the high resistance connection on thermal cam.
Oooooh yea I’ve had my fair share of locked keys lmao 🤣
As soon as I saw the condition I said "I bet it's a bad ground..." Oh look, it was a bad ground.
Thanks to Ivan at PHAD for the drilling in of "Powers and Grounds"
If something electric doesn't operate properly, good chance there's a faulty ground, or a green crusty somewhere..
Phad called it out in a comment
@@OzMechanics hahah! See, and I could see it in your face when you found that grounding strap to be loose
What an abysmal set of events that put the car into your hands. Works for you, as now you look like a Rockstar! Congrats..
But the previous tech that was working on that car that stripped the living hell out of those bolts, or the ones that replaced the alternator 4 times.. seriously? When you call an alternator, you need to make sure it IS the alternator.. just blows my mind.
I may not personally be a mechanic working on cars, but it is the same thing for my field of work.. make sure it's actually broken, and solve the problem, don't just throw things at it and hope it fixes itself..
You nailed the repair perfectly, good job. Amazing how something so simple, can cause so much chaos.
Onto the next
very clear tutorial man. Voltage Drop Test.
Thank you very much
Good job finding the bad ground! The only thing I would add to this repair is applying dielectric grease to all the bare metal to prevent a recurrence of this problem. The Houston area gets high humidity and that alone will create rust in time.
Surprisingly we don’t get rust in Houston
OZ, BROTHER YOU ROCK GREAT JOBE FINDING THE PROBLEM BY DOING THRE VOLTAGE DROP THANKS FOR SHARING CHEEEEERS.
Appreciate it. Thanks for watching
Careful of the washer reservoir just below those holes! Rivet nuts or nutserts would have been a good option also. Good video on checking voltage drop.
Oooo that’s the reason the customer called back and said he was out of washer fluid lol
Thanks for sharing! Good diagnosis.
@@bartscave thanks for watching
If your DIY and trying to test the ground path, run a jumper cable from a clean spot on the engine to the battery negative post. If your problem goes away you verified you have an issue somewhere in the ground path.
Different ways to skin a cat. Thanks for watching
Great job.
Lube those connections to prevent rust or corrosion.
We don’t see rust in Texas
@@OzMechanics all along the coast.
@@craigescapeddetroit5198 same with LA they’re close to the coast and they vintage cars that don’t rust
Great video and enthusiasm!
One thing that you did but didn't emphasize was for voltage drop to be an effective test, the circuit needs to loaded.
I wish I could give the amount of enthusiasm you give on my videos!
I did explain that I put a lot of loads to get the circuit working. But thanks for pointing that out. Thanks for watching
I believe the voltage drop is one of the most missed problems of this type. Just helped a kid fix a stater problem on a Ford. A bad connection on the starter. he was ready to replace it. You showing the math of output voltage must equal voltage drops was right on.
It’s always replace first and if it doesn’t work then…. diagnose lol
Nice job, Thanks for sharing!
Great diagnosis. Nice out of box thinking.
@@pingpong9656 an easy and effective test
I struggled with my camera in Celsius ... main screen top left center is an octagon tap that to change to Fahrenheit 👀
Thanks for the tip
Whenever removing paint to make a better connection, two issues: Unlike metals will create rust ( early Toyota pickup beds) and if metals are.similar cover with some sort of rust protectant. Prevents this issue from recurring due to rust.
Luckily here in Texas we don’t get that much rust. I always mess with my northern friends and ask what is this word rust I’ve never heard of
Good diagnosis and use of voltage drop. To prevent body rust, would you paint or coat the cleaned connection?
In Texas we don’t see rust so I’m not too sure about that.
@@OzMechanics he he - of course! I am up in the rain forest, so we get worried about those things.
Experience diagnosis master my respeto para vos master
Gracias. Que tengas un buen día
Grasia ygual master
I wish I had you when I had to replace the alternator on my old Toyota pickup SEVEN times.
7 times! Holy smokes imagine how the thumbnail would look holding 7 boxes
Great video Oz 😁👍
@@edgarmojica6145 thanks for stopping by Edgar
@@edgarmojica6145 thanks for stopping by Edgar
@@OzMechanics you welcome Oz 😁👍
Great job, voltage drop for the win 👍
@@shaunblakemore7150 heck yea. One of my favorite test
I hope that you’ll add dialectic compound on the ground strap and new bolts, particularly underneath. If not,corrosion over time will create a similar issue.
Luckily here in Texas we really don’t get rust
Nice work. But it's only half fixed. Yes, you have the correct charging voltage at the battery. However, if that body connection was that bad, you should also inspect and clean/tighten the body-to-block ground connection as well (both ends). Just to provide the best service and help prevent a call back. Now that you have full voltage/current in that wire, the body-to-block wire/braided strap may fail from the current. I've seen it probably a dozen times in my 40 year career. Finally, I would have put a small dab of grease between that terminal and the body.
The voltage drop test proved it had a good chassis to engine ground under load. Grease is not a conductor and can inhibit the connection. Applying a little grease over the connection to prevent rust would have been ok.
Had a 2010 Honda Odyssey, similar situation, I think they were up to 6 alternators, it was a smoked B+ cable from the alternator to the fuse/junction box.
@@daverichards190 6 alternators !!!! Holy smokes that’s nuts 🥜
nice repair
Thanks for stopping by
You did everything the way it was supposed to be done and that’s what matters
Thanks.
Nice find!!!
Appreciate it Cory. Thanks for stopping by
Nice work buddy
Thanks for watching David
Awesome job
Thanks for stopping by Manuel
Great one as usual keep on
@@kiln2100 thanks for stopping by
Very interesting, but I'm a little bit concerned about rust building up where you stripped the paint. What do you think?
Whats rust ? lol never heard of such thing
thanks
Thanks for stopping by Dan
Nice find 👍👍
Good find
Thanks Andrew. Thanks for watching
Very nice 💯
Appreciate it
Nice find.
Thanks Keith. Hope you have a wonderful day
Good job 👍
Thanks for watching
What model of the topdon camera are you using? Good picture.
TC003
great job.
Appreciate it Tony
Soy El 100 thumbs up. Freaking awesome.
Heck yea
Wow. Make a short with some keywords and hopefully more people will see this and your channel! How many others are having the same problem?
Only 4 alternators?
No batteries or starter motors?
I usually get these jobs in when all 3 have been changed but symptoms persist.
Most French vehicles it's the body to block ground that fails, about 20% at the body end and 80% at the block end, especially if fitted to the aluminium transmission housing
@@simonparkinson1053 not sure how many batteries they replaced in the 4 yrs
Personally I prefer to use bolts with a serrated head for connections like this. That way it never vibrate loose.
@@85rx7se 👀
spray that new connection with high tack gasket sealer it'll never corrode. rust belt here.
Whats rust lol 🤣
@@OzMechanics stop it !!!
@@richardcranium5839 lmao 🤣
rare 2 year truck. I have one with the 4.6. Very nice rigs.
BTW that ground cable design is dumb. There should be one going directly to the block as well.
Nice clean kill there. Current flows through both sides of the battery of course. Owner armed with too little knowledge. 😱
@@Doug.... most forget about that
Very good
Te aventaste oz quien iba pensar que eso seria el problema
No este coche si estába divertido
Voltage drop the starter motor was the first thing I would do, starter motor was lazy when you started the car
Did you look after the repair was done
@@OzMechanics I watched the whole video, but after 4 alternator maybe the first mechanic should have went down another direction to fix the electrical issue, just something to consider
@@aaronkoivu well on the video after the repair it didn’t have the lazy start anymore
Fix the oil leaks, the oil melts the soft carbon brushes inside the alternator and starter!
Dam good job oz.charge him good
Thanks for watching.
Negative main connection battery to body using female thread at body is kinda stupid. Female thread its hard to clean and keeps water. I find mercedes w212 and w204 male negative stud welded to body metal with wide base flange for lug connection a much better design. Easy to clean and above water level and located in dry location, near front suspension strut. It also acts as negative jump start or charging point with the extra brass ferrule. Simple brilliant design and super easy access.
Totally agree. 👍
super
@@joachimjohan1215 thanks for watching
Is topdon a sponsor
I work with them
All the great info and data on the internet and the parts changer still strikes , and you have a Presedential; election coming 🤣🤣🤣🤣
❤it
Head into settings and change the temperature readings to fahrenheit. No conversion needed. The States are different from the rest of the world unless you are a scientist. 😉
the parts cannon has no mercy! after replacing one, then two, they just kept on going! or the shops did "well ya know the alternators these days"
you did that in a simplistic diagnostic troubleshooting manner as good as schrodinger and i watched the whole 20 minutes.
what was with the oil? something about oil in the alternator in the notes in the beginning, wtf? lol
not change battery and cables + and ground
Yes
Hand talkers... 🤦
Hand talkers ?
@@OzMechanics you talk with your hands. It's annoying. Watch your videos and pay attention to them.
A great diagnostic by 4 mechanics !!!….not !!…after the 1st minute of watching this I said it’s a VD issue !!
VD for the win 🏆
Weak sauce in gone
@@MartinM04 👀
Bro I ALWAYS run the negative cable to a good spot on the engine. A separate ground to the body, AND I run a good ground cable from the body to the engine on my, and my families and friends cars. NEVER any problems 🙄
Awesome job
Thanks for watching