Engine Grounding Kit, worth it? or Mostly Cosmetic?
 

I've been reading about engine grounding kits since I purchased my Z last year, and am wondering if the claims are true: Increases HP as well as Torque, Stronger and faster starts, Smoother idle, More responsive acceleration, etc. Are these proven results, or is this a waste of money?

Looks the ish, great for aftermarket electronics...some people have stated helped their stumble on idles....I did it for diff reasons, electrics, N2o, etc....but I wouldn't say it is going to boost your power through the roof...

You can make your own btw easily...

I had one on my accord, I think my windows went up faster, lol. Its hit or miss with this, i really have not seen anything dyno proven, but some people feel a difference some don't. I say do it, its not expensive or difficult.

Seems to help the 5AT guys (crisper shifts).... nothing really proven with the 6MT crowd.

Save your dough, it does nothing... And it makes your engine bay look busy...

Total BS, and biggest waste of money I can think of. Think about how much current your starter draws, especially in cold weather with thick oil. Once the engine is running, the total current drain can't be more than 10 amps, if even that. A/C adds another 6, or so, radiator fans a few more, etc., but nothing like what a starter draws. If your car starts, your engine is grounded more than well enough for everything else.

How cold does it get in FL?! Lol, as I said before, I draw a lot from diff electric accessories, and when considering audio even more so in future, but in the end cosmetics is def over full functionality.....not the case tho w my maxima when replacing/building up poor connections that have been eaten through by salt,grime etc **** ya get places where it is actually COLD lol

We see low 30's a few times a year, and I'm using 5w30 Mobil 1, so my Z starts just as quickly as in the summer, but I do also have 3 cars notorious for weak grounds (Alfa Romeo Spider's - '74, '87, and '92). In the case of the Alfa's I have cleaned all the grounds and power terminals I could get to on the wiring harnesses, installed heavier battery cables and ground straps, as well as larger gauge wiring from the B+ terminal on the alternator. Quicker starts, faster wipers, brighter headlights, etc. but those wonders of Italian engineering are no comparison to a modern Japanese car, in terms of their electrics.

Alfa never did it right at the factory, but even so, I noticed no increase in overall performance of the cars, even though voltage and current were measurably higher at various power connections to the engine, ignition and fuel ECU's, and fuel pumps.

Lol, so ya know they do serve purposes some times....low 30's, its finally 30 here and its a damn heat wave, you gave me my laugh for the day thx :)

fully cosmetic
/thread

Did nothing for my shifting...took it off years ago and just threw it in the garbage.

Glad I never installed mine... every time I see them on a VQ I can't help but think how messy it looks.

It's great for old cars with corroded existing grounds. On newer cars it's not really worth it. If you want you could just a couple of your own from the timing cover (lots of sensors grounded there) to the chassis. Prolly won't notice any gains though.

It was my last resort to my crank angle sensor issue causing tach to jump around. Grounding kit fixed it almost completely.
Ultimate fix was new Geiger wheel on my jwt flywheel after much fighting with jwt, but the grounding cables helped. Looking for power from this however is a bit ridiculous.

^trigger wheel* stupid auto correct on iPhone. Can't edit post on iPhone either.

I wouldn't have thought it would give power gains, but it can't be a bad thing on a car with a lot of electronics.

One of the traders over here done a bit of testing with a scope and discovered that it helped reduce signal noise at the ECU from the AFM and throttle body.

See here. http://www.350z-uk.com/forum/viewtop...?f=161&t=45809

waste of money

don't listen to everyone who says they are a waste of money since majority never installed them...

I have them installed for over a year now and it did smooth out my idle a bit, start up is quicker than normal, and it helped out the smoothness in delivery to my electronics...power wise, yes you will not see any gains but electronically with subwoofers or any other aftermarket electronics, it does help.

if you never have installed them, don't "chime in" with a useless post

Dude, I've had them. Still have one on my 94tt with all its extra gadgets. Total waste of money !
Total waste of space.

In all my defenses on numerous of these threads over the years..Dont think it increased my fire up,lol...the f'n optima prob took care of that!