[tamathumper]

As shown elsewhere, I have the typical decaying starter / alternator cable. My car is in excellent condition with only 50,000 miles, but plastic is plastic.



I ordered the cables without really looking at my originals, but per Robby's instructions, I shone a light behind the alternator once I got started to see what I had to deal with. I was met with bare copper!





Let me just say that the cables are fantastic. Real quality kit. Heavy duty and shielded with braided fiberglass. Maybe the old cables were impressive 20 years ago, too, but they weren't this big.



Let me also say, the instructions for the 968 are not good. There's a 20-page write-up for a 944 Turbo, but the first few pages deal with removing the intake manifold and draining the coolant system, and, and, and... At this point I was thinking holy cow!



Luckily there is another write-up with some 968 comments that mentions you don't have to do that. All you have to do is remove the belly pans and the intake plumbing to be able to get the alternator out of there. It's a squeeze and a frig to get it past the cooling hoses, but you can do it. Actually, you *must* do it.

There is a *third* set of instructions from Robby that also talk about the steps to install the cables. Between these 25+ pages of comments and tips and what-not, I managed to highlight a set of steps I thought would get me there, but it's a chore.



When I managed to finally remove the alternator-to-starter cable, and strip the outer sheath from it (to recycle the two little wires inside it) I found it was BARE. In other words, the insulation that had originally been around it was just a pile of sharp little shards and powder! And to top it off, the insulation on the red wire is also toasted and breaks when I bend it... DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN!

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[tamathumper]

Here is a picture of the main alterator-to-starter cable, with the outer sheath removed. I show it next to the new Robby cable for comparison. Note there is NO insulation left on it, and a good 18 inches of it is green from getting wet.







And here are photos of the red cable, broken already in several places. Now I have to go to Napa to try to find some replacement wire, and hope I can salvage that round connector on the end, because this thing is cracked all the way to the tip.













Although this is a major pain in the ass, and while I'm already contemplating leaving the other (ground and battery-to-starter) cables in place for now because they're in fine shape, I can't imagine the embarrassment that would ensue if someone were to run into my office and tell me that my car had walked across the parking lot all by itself and was pummeling into the side of theirs!

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[banditsc]

Mine were in about the same shape. I would do all the cables, they make a big difference for the electrical system. The wire from the starter to battery is much bigger as well as the grounds. Those are easy to do, just unbolt the cables from both side and pull out and route the new cables like the old and bolt them up. I also put in his supplemental positive from the battery to the fuse box. I worked with Robby on the first 968 kit, guess I should have updated his docs for him also.

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[Cloud9...68]

Wow, great stuff. I need to order these cables and tear into this job before I install my belly pans, and while I have the radiator and hoses out. I plan to install a smaller battery to save weight, so I'm hoping these less resistive cables will help the little battery out a little. Thanks for the tips and observations!

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[tamathumper]

I need to replace that red cable especially - is this special stuff (the insulation) or can I get wire at Napa or AutoZone that will suffice?



Also, are these round pin ends readily available or are they something special?



I also need to go back and check the rest of that red cable - if this part of it is cracked, what condition is the rest of it in (on the other side of that wire connector.

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[Cloud9...68]

[quote name='tamathumper' timestamp='1342183047' post='129288']

I need to replace that red cable especially - is this special stuff (the insulation) or can I get wire at Napa or AutoZone that will suffice?



Also, are these round pin ends readily available or are they something special?



I also need to go back and check the rest of that red cable - if this part of it is cracked, what condition is the rest of it in (on the other side of that wire connector.

[/quote]

So I take it these items aren't included in the kit?

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[tamathumper]

No, the two little wires that run inside the sheath of the alternator-to-starter cable are not included and they must be recycled.



I now have to re-create the red wire as much of the insulation is cracked off *it*. That means procuring suitable wire (easy if I can identify the properties of said wire), affixing a ring to one end (easy), and then disassembling the electrical connector at the other end (hard), removing the bullet connector (very hard) and putting it all back together again.

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[Cloud9...68]

Hmmm... I wonder why these aren't included in the kit, as it seems to be an awful lot of work to "recycle" them <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/sad.png" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[DaveN]

Maybe this can be a suggestion for rev 2 of the kit? Before I need to get one preferably <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.png" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[Lear35A]

I am ticked off. Getting ready to start my again rebuilt engine, I took my starter off and checked this cable. It's toast. It would have been sooooooo easy to change with the engine out. Now I've got to take a whole bunch of stuff off to get to the back of the alternator. (and still do contortions)



I've sent Robby an email asking for ordering info. Just as a heads up, does anybody know the price or lead time for this alternator to starter cable "kit?"



I'll bet there are exactly zero 968s out there with the original cable that aren't on borrowed time.

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[tamathumper]

Lear - this scared me before I even looked at the cable, considering my car sits in front of a $5,000 machine I built myself that would be destroyed by the car if it decided to "walk away" on its own.



Cloud, I spent 45 minutes in the heat tonight remaking the solenoid cable that decayed, and fishing both cables back through the fiberglass jacket and heat-shrinking everything into place... As I'm following the three sets of directions that are non-linear (as in, do step A, then step B, then step C. Oh, and you should have done this between steps A and B...), I found a sentence saying to call Robby if you have a bad exciter or solenoid cable to discuss replacement options.



So he does have options - that's the important part. Unfortunately, the instructions just need a good once-over to make them descriptive and linear so you can follow them without fearing you didn't get something right. They should clearly say "Pull the Red Solenoid Cable through the jacket toward the end with the 175 amp fuse", for instance.



There was no bullet connector even close to the one needed at the local auto parts store, and the cable was deteriorated right up to the very ends, so I had to use some very creative soldering and heat-shrinking to make sure everything is back to being solid and heat-resistant.

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[Lear35A]

I sent Robby an email a couple of hours ago and asked if he'd make a complete Y cable. That means exciter wire, solenoid wire, all connectors, shrouds...a true finished assembly. We'll see.



IMHO there's a market for thousands of these.

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[astroede]

As I demonstrated in my earlier posts on this same subject, this harness can be built relatively easily and inexpensively. I'm sure it can be done better than I did it. But I agree, with so many of these cars still out there, and this harness being poorly designed (IMHO) to start with and not aging well... and the potential for the car to "walk" (or as in my case, starter engage while driving)...and the apparent lack of stock state-side...somebody should be making them.



By the way, regarding the white connector...the terminals come out easily, but I had to use a small awl to open up the crimp. When I re-crimped it, I soldered it to ensure it didn't open back up.

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[Cloud9...68]

I'll be anxious to hear Robby's response to Lear's request. I emailed him last night, but haven't heard back yet. I'm developing a severe case of "fabrication fatigue" - after all the special tools I needed to build to do the rear suspension and engine rebuild, the custom brackets and shrouds I needed to create, largely out of scrap metal, for the dual oil coolers, and now being knee-deep in the fabrication of custom mounting brackets, buckets, and curved lexan covers for my fixed headlight conversion (and how can I forget the month it took me do the highly fabrication-intensive stereo install in my daughter's car), I'm beat. I don't know if I can stomach creating custom wiring like Tama is going through without a long trip to Tahiti (or an extended stay in a padded room) first. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/sad.png" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[tamathumper]

I used a dental pick to reach into the electrical connector and bend the little tabs that held the bullet pin in place. Then I bent them back into place and they hold it in again now that it's reassembled.

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[tamathumper]

I managed to finish the alternator-to-starter cable installation today, re-using the original connectors. I had a bit of a hard time fishing them back into place, but they had enough length to make all the connections with ease.



Reinstalling the alternator? There *will* be blood, and there may be tears. I hammered and pried on that thing for half an hour in 96-degree heat before it begrudginly swung into place.



The car starts and runs fine. It will be some time, if *ever* before I attempt the other cables.

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[Lear35A]

Maybe if we can guarantee Robby a minimum number of units, he'll agree to make up the whole cable. What's the right forum to ask the general 986Forums population "who's in?"



Btw Robby said we could talk this wknd sometime about making he whole cable. So far I've just got VM at his number.

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[tamathumper]

He's been extremely responsive and has taken the time to send me several very lengthy emails, offered to send additional parts and cables, often at his own expense in the interest of testing and prototyping, and has generally been great to deal with.

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[Cloud9...68]

Tama,



lol - I thought I was the only one who had to struggle with the alternator for what seemed like hours to get the bolts to finally line up. Seems to be inherent to the design, unfortunately.



It sounds whether we want to admit or not, our beloved cars have us all in a quandary - we all know we need to replace our cables, and until now, we've probably all hoped (but deep down knew we were all guilty of wishful thinking) it was a straightforward job, but you've now drawn back the curtain to show how difficult and unpleasant of a job it actually is. Ugh.



Question - I still have my front bumper cover, bat wing, radiator, hoses, exhaust, and front suspension (the entire front end, in other words) off the car. How much will this help me with this job? Do I still need to remove the alternator? Thanks.

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[Lear35A]

No, if you have small hands you can reach the back of the alternator from underneath. I got the two wires off that way, and I'm pretty sure I can get new ones back on.

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