Battery Cables

[fiveologyjay]

I need new battery cables for my 91 Ranger 4.0L. The dealership wants abot 150 dollars for both of them but they look like specific cables with certian connections coming off of them. Is there any way to get them cheaper? Thanks

 

[Nhaz]

Good battery cable is actually not all that cheap. but you can buy the cable by the foot.

and then buy the connectors separate if you know how to put them on.

One of my former jobs when I was 20 years younger was to maintain a fleet of 45 electric golf carts. battery cable replacement was something I did fairly often.

I used to order the cable by the roll. And make my own instead of buying it from ez-go buttloads cheaper then ez-go sold them.

 

[LittleHorse]

I just bought 4 gauge cables with terminals from autozone. Just make sure you get them long enough. The terminals have a smaller, second wire coming out of them for other connections. Mine didn't have any off of the positive but the negative connected to the harness ground and to the fender for a body ground. It was less than $20 all said and done, and I replaced the ground cable that went from the block to the frame as well. The stock negative cable was one piece that went from the battery to the block, with a lug about halfway down that bolts to the frame. I used two separate cables and bolted them together at the frame.

Mine is a 2.9L so there might be some differences, but the idea is the same.

 

[koolmilds]

im with making your own, but i prefer 2/0 cable. also, youll need the proper compression plier to put the lugs on the cable ends. im also a fan of marine terminals. heres a pic of my terminals at the battery, and also a pic of my compression pliers.

 

[daniel3507]

LMC has them pretty cheap i think.

 

[Nhaz]

I didn't use any special tools to crimp the ends on .. just a bench vise. I DID eventually buy a tool but it really wasn't all that better.

the best thing i did do was buy bottles of battery terminal corrosion protection.

spray grease worked ok for that as well.

 

[Donnie strickland]

Silverstatefordparts.com has them, $18.23 or $9.20 for the positive cable (depends on your truck's build date), $31.83 for the negative. Here's the link:

http://www.trademotion.com/partloca...nger&year=1991&catalogid=1&displayCatalogid=0


They're a Ford dealer from Nevada, and these are genuine Ford parts. No muss, no fuss. I recommend them.

 

[mjonesjr]

Get a hold of Copperhead. He is a member here and runs a battery/cable shop in TN. See what he can get you a custom set made for.

 

[Defective]

Fan of the Marine terminals here too.

For the cable ends, I was taught to fill 'em up with solder. Strip your wire ends a half inch or so, so the exposed wire fits into the connector just right and the insulation ends up just at the rim of the connector, or even a tad deeper into the connector. You can use a torch to heat up the terminal in a vice and melt some solder into it. Take your already stripped wire and heat it up at the same time. Touch some solder to the wire to ensure good penetration then stick it into the solder bath in the terminal and let it harden.

A this point, you can tape, spray protectant sealant, wipe dielectric grease or vasaline/pretroleum jelly on the terminals. Or leave 'em dry.

If corrosion is a problem, I've heard taping pennies close to your terminals will help keep it minimal.