grounding through shifter cable

[viperhauler]

almost had a disaster today...
while sorting through some things on the truck it started running a little rough - just started this morning... volts were dropping intermittently and gauges were going haywire... at times the truck would just shut off going down the road...
i assumed the voltage regulator was going bad so i was gonna pick up an alternator on the way home - went to lunch... then smelled burning... shut the truck down immediately... brought it home and the ground wire on the back of the engine burned in half... and it appears the shifter cable burned... my buddy said he's seen that happen, especially since the grounds were not sufficient (it appears) when the battery relocate was done...
the truck is locked in D at the moment... no P, R, N... and the shifter glides from D to P...

first off: thoughts on the plausibility of grounding through shifter cable?
second: are shifter cables easy to source? do i need a detent cable too?

my plan: add #6 ground wire from manifold to frame; replace rear ground wire from block to cab...

any advise or insight?
am i missing something blatantly obvious?

 

[RenzFab]

Re: grounding through shifter cable

we sell heavy duty shifter cables for $150. I've never had anyone break one yet...but i've never had anyone use it as a ground either. :lol:

 

[SY-1193]

Re: grounding through shifter cable

For battery relocates I like to see a ground to the frame at the battery and a ground all the way to the back of the head. Everyone does the battery with a cable from the positive all the way to the front but they never run a full ground and that single ground to the frame corrodes over time and you see problems like this. Check for a rubber grommet on the positive cable where it passes thru any body metal as that will wear on a metal edge and short and burn your truck right to ashes.

 

[dgoodhue]

Re: grounding through shifter cable

How is the relocated battery grounded? What happened to the original battery - connection to the passenger cylinder head.

 

[viperhauler]

Re: grounding through shifter cable

current setup: battery in aluminum box in bed...
#2 or #4 wire positive - appears to be properly grommeted and secured
#2 or #4 wire ground from negative through bed - appears to be properly grommeted and secured to frame just below the battery - maybe a couple feet long.

i don't know where the original ground went - where should i look?
appears they left the factory mesh ground on the back of the block on the driver's side tied to the firewall...

 

[viperhauler]

Re: grounding through shifter cable

we sell heavy duty shifter cables for $150. I've never had anyone break one yet...but i've never had anyone use it as a ground either. :lol:

i haven't got under the truck yet to see how bad it is... is it just the cable, or have the mounting points and clips and whatever i need?

assuming the whole thing is trashed at this point...

 

[viperhauler]

Re: grounding through shifter cable

we sell heavy duty shifter cables for $150. I've never had anyone break one yet...but i've never had anyone use it as a ground either. :lol:

PM sent...
please send one.

thanks,
dan

 

[dgoodhue]

Re: grounding through shifter cable

current setup: battery in aluminum box in bed...
#2 or #4 wire positive - appears to be properly grommeted and secured
#2 or #4 wire ground from negative through bed - appears to be properly grommeted and secured to frame just below the battery - maybe a couple feet long.

i don't know where the original ground went - where should i look?
appears they left the factory mesh ground on the back of the block on the driver's side tied to the firewall...

The factory ground is uses the engine as the main ground point. The frame is only grounded by a small wire coming off the battery cable. (The ground point is in on the passenger side approx where the turbo it). The frame only carries ground current of the tail lights and fuel pump.

I am guessing that either the battery cable has been removed or damaged from overloading the ground wire. I would replace the damaged ground braid to cab and add a ground wire from the back of the passenger head to the frame rail.