87DXHatch
09-03-2002, 09:04 AM
Alright folks, we've got a How-to here.
I ran 1/0 guage in my hatch the other day and I figured I would write a How-to on it.
NOTE: this how-to calls for you to run the cable up through the bottom of the car, NOT through the firewall. Also, I had a second person helping, so I don't know how much harder just one person would be.
I used a Stinger 1/0 guage kit, and I have a hatch... so I don't know if this would work in other body styles (Hatchs are better for sound anyway :p)
First, remove the bottom part of your back seat. The seat is held in place in the front by two hinges, so don't just grab it and start wrenching. To remove the back seat, lay your passenger side back seat down. There is a single bolt holding the back seat down; it is either a 10mm or an 8mm (I am pretty sure 10). Anyways, it is a huge pain to get out. It is wedged between the back of the back seat and the chassis. You have to jam your hand down with a wrench and slowly get it off (I haven't attempted to get it back on... maybe someone could have a tip about this?).
Once that is off, you can lift up on the back seat (on the part nearest to where you just took up the bolt) and pull it up and forward far enough to totally remove it (when you are doing it you will see what I mean by hinges on the front part). Once that is out, you will have clear access to the back carpet.
Next you need to get underneath the car by jacking it up or whatever. Look around by the area underneath where the front passengers feet would go. You should see a black grommet of considerable size. If you pop this out (down) then you should be able to poke your finger up into the carpet. This is the point that the wire is going to enter your car.
Tape up one end of the thick thick 1/0 guage power wire, so that it won't get hung up underneath your carpet. Next, start threading it through the back of your carpet. I started in the middle of the passenger side back seat area and just started jamming the crap down the carpet. Threading it through is tough. I just stuck my hand under carpet and jammed it forward towards the middle of the front passenger seat. At some point in time under the passenger seat it came out of the carpet (I believe at the metal hump). I then grabbed it and shoved it down another hole in the carpet, still concealed by the seat.
Around here you need to remove the trim piece near the door. I was not lucky enough to have the 6-sided star bit you need to totally remove it, so I had to deal with just the phillips screws.
Remove enough of the trim to be able to lift the carpet up. Now brace yourself, you're in for some pain. I just jammed (boy, I sure love to jam :D) my hand under the carpet (in the process scraping my hand and arm on something) and stuff far enough to grab the cable. I then had to tear a hole in the insulation carpet stuff to get to the cable (it was inbetween the top carpet and this insulation crap). After I got ahold of the cable I threaded it down through the hole that I made by taking the grommet out.
If you made it this far, congrats, the worst is behind you.
Next, I took the grommet and dremeled a hole in it. It is pretty doggone thick so it took quite a while to dremel a hole of the proper size and shape. Thread this onto your wire.
Feed enough wire through to make it to the battery. Now you are presented with a new challenge; how to make the wire not hang down. I wrapped the wire around the frame once, and then brought it up to the battery. Mine hangs down a little bit as of right now, but I plan on making a trip to Ace hardware or NAPA and picking up some clamps I can then use to properly secure the wire to my car.
Now you are done with the front and have to move on to getting the wire to the back. I cut a slit in my passenger rear seat back covering material that I then threaded the wire through. I also popped this material loose by pulling on the clips that secure it to the seats.
Then thread it all through into the hatch so that its nice and snug all around (Make sure you can put your seats up and down and there is enough slack to get your back seat back on).
Congratulations, you have power!
Now put the back seat back on by tilting it up at around a 90 degree angle and sliding the hinges back in. The passenger side one will be the more difficult of the two because it has the added thickness of the wire to overcome. Once the hinges go in, you just jam it down. Mine is a little loose right now because I haven't bolted it down yet (still planning on running 3 sets of 17-foot stinger RCA cables), but I don't think it should be a problem.
I think, if you're running 1/0 guage cable, that you probably know how to ground it and all that. I have mine running to a Distribution block for power and for ground. Right now it splits off into one 4-guage.
Other than that... just put the rest of the car back together. The piece of trim by the passenger door, The grommet underneath the car back in place, and tidy up.
NOTES:
There may be other clips here or there that I forgot about. There were a bunch of them.
You WILL have a bulge of wire underneath your front passenger's feet and your back passenger's side passenger's feet.
I'm sure you could put the wire underneath all the carpet in the back to make it even more concealed but I didn't do that. I may try that in the future.
HUMOROUS OBSERVATIONS:
The inline fuse that came with the Stinger kit is a 250 amp fuse. The amp I have right now is a 70X4 watt amp... I think my odds of blowing that one are reeeeaaal slim.
I have 1/0 guage going to my hatch... but the wires going from my chassis to the battery ground, and from the alternator to my battery, are both 8 guage! So the extra thickness for my amp power cable, I cannot effectively use! But I am going to upgrade the cable from my alternator to my battery, and from my battery to the chassis, and from the battery to the electrical systems in the near future. I'll write a How-to on that too.
I just spent 30 minutes of precious study time here in the lab at college, so you punks better be appreciative :D
Also, if there's anything I missed (fundamentals), please let me know about it. Or if anyone has any suggestions.
I ran 1/0 guage in my hatch the other day and I figured I would write a How-to on it.
NOTE: this how-to calls for you to run the cable up through the bottom of the car, NOT through the firewall. Also, I had a second person helping, so I don't know how much harder just one person would be.
I used a Stinger 1/0 guage kit, and I have a hatch... so I don't know if this would work in other body styles (Hatchs are better for sound anyway :p)
First, remove the bottom part of your back seat. The seat is held in place in the front by two hinges, so don't just grab it and start wrenching. To remove the back seat, lay your passenger side back seat down. There is a single bolt holding the back seat down; it is either a 10mm or an 8mm (I am pretty sure 10). Anyways, it is a huge pain to get out. It is wedged between the back of the back seat and the chassis. You have to jam your hand down with a wrench and slowly get it off (I haven't attempted to get it back on... maybe someone could have a tip about this?).
Once that is off, you can lift up on the back seat (on the part nearest to where you just took up the bolt) and pull it up and forward far enough to totally remove it (when you are doing it you will see what I mean by hinges on the front part). Once that is out, you will have clear access to the back carpet.
Next you need to get underneath the car by jacking it up or whatever. Look around by the area underneath where the front passengers feet would go. You should see a black grommet of considerable size. If you pop this out (down) then you should be able to poke your finger up into the carpet. This is the point that the wire is going to enter your car.
Tape up one end of the thick thick 1/0 guage power wire, so that it won't get hung up underneath your carpet. Next, start threading it through the back of your carpet. I started in the middle of the passenger side back seat area and just started jamming the crap down the carpet. Threading it through is tough. I just stuck my hand under carpet and jammed it forward towards the middle of the front passenger seat. At some point in time under the passenger seat it came out of the carpet (I believe at the metal hump). I then grabbed it and shoved it down another hole in the carpet, still concealed by the seat.
Around here you need to remove the trim piece near the door. I was not lucky enough to have the 6-sided star bit you need to totally remove it, so I had to deal with just the phillips screws.
Remove enough of the trim to be able to lift the carpet up. Now brace yourself, you're in for some pain. I just jammed (boy, I sure love to jam :D) my hand under the carpet (in the process scraping my hand and arm on something) and stuff far enough to grab the cable. I then had to tear a hole in the insulation carpet stuff to get to the cable (it was inbetween the top carpet and this insulation crap). After I got ahold of the cable I threaded it down through the hole that I made by taking the grommet out.
If you made it this far, congrats, the worst is behind you.
Next, I took the grommet and dremeled a hole in it. It is pretty doggone thick so it took quite a while to dremel a hole of the proper size and shape. Thread this onto your wire.
Feed enough wire through to make it to the battery. Now you are presented with a new challenge; how to make the wire not hang down. I wrapped the wire around the frame once, and then brought it up to the battery. Mine hangs down a little bit as of right now, but I plan on making a trip to Ace hardware or NAPA and picking up some clamps I can then use to properly secure the wire to my car.
Now you are done with the front and have to move on to getting the wire to the back. I cut a slit in my passenger rear seat back covering material that I then threaded the wire through. I also popped this material loose by pulling on the clips that secure it to the seats.
Then thread it all through into the hatch so that its nice and snug all around (Make sure you can put your seats up and down and there is enough slack to get your back seat back on).
Congratulations, you have power!
Now put the back seat back on by tilting it up at around a 90 degree angle and sliding the hinges back in. The passenger side one will be the more difficult of the two because it has the added thickness of the wire to overcome. Once the hinges go in, you just jam it down. Mine is a little loose right now because I haven't bolted it down yet (still planning on running 3 sets of 17-foot stinger RCA cables), but I don't think it should be a problem.
I think, if you're running 1/0 guage cable, that you probably know how to ground it and all that. I have mine running to a Distribution block for power and for ground. Right now it splits off into one 4-guage.
Other than that... just put the rest of the car back together. The piece of trim by the passenger door, The grommet underneath the car back in place, and tidy up.
NOTES:
There may be other clips here or there that I forgot about. There were a bunch of them.
You WILL have a bulge of wire underneath your front passenger's feet and your back passenger's side passenger's feet.
I'm sure you could put the wire underneath all the carpet in the back to make it even more concealed but I didn't do that. I may try that in the future.
HUMOROUS OBSERVATIONS:
The inline fuse that came with the Stinger kit is a 250 amp fuse. The amp I have right now is a 70X4 watt amp... I think my odds of blowing that one are reeeeaaal slim.
I have 1/0 guage going to my hatch... but the wires going from my chassis to the battery ground, and from the alternator to my battery, are both 8 guage! So the extra thickness for my amp power cable, I cannot effectively use! But I am going to upgrade the cable from my alternator to my battery, and from my battery to the chassis, and from the battery to the electrical systems in the near future. I'll write a How-to on that too.
I just spent 30 minutes of precious study time here in the lab at college, so you punks better be appreciative :D
Also, if there's anything I missed (fundamentals), please let me know about it. Or if anyone has any suggestions.