99 Ranger Battery Ground Issue

[IhaveAranger99]

Truck wouldn’t start, starter and alternator recently replaced. Battery about a year and a half old.

Went to jump it, no luck. Then connected negative terminal to the body ground and it started. Is there something wrong with the ground wire connection pictured here? There is one wire coming off the radiator it looks like to the frame then the negative wire ground sits on top of that bolt.

New to this so unsure if that was someone’s poor judgement

I took the bolt off that seperated the two wires and put the terminal ground directly on the body under the other wire. Didn’t seem to help. Could it be the battery negative terminal is already bad?



Thanks in advance

 

[RobbieD]

Has that replacement cable end been painted? If you haven't already, you need to take that cable end apart, and clean both the inside that touches the battery post, and the groove where the copper cable strands go, both places down to clean shiny metal. I can see the tips of the cable copper strands but it looks like there's black paint under them.

Welcome to TRS.

 

[Josh B]

Grounding can be a tricky game

 

[IhaveAranger99]

Has that replacement cable end been painted? If you haven't already, you need to take that cable end apart, and clean both the inside that touches the battery post, and the groove where the copper cable strands go, both places down to clean shiny metal. I can see the tips of the cable copper strands but it looks like there's black paint under them.

Welcome to TRS.

Thanks I appreciate it. It’s a new ground wire. I think I need to clean the bolt holding it to the truck body. It was green but seemed like it could have been a coating not rust. There’s definitely some rust around the battery. There’s also some blue plastic around the end connecting to the truck body