ELECTRICAL SYSTEM – Battery terminals
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM – Battery terminals
PURPOSE
The purpose of the battery terminal is to hold all the cables either on the negative or positive battery poles. The battery terminal needs to be in fixed position. A sure connection is a connection that will not move. The best battery terminal is a brass battery terminal as it is not workable or malleable. There are many different types of battery terminals on the market. Most of these terminals do require replacing over 10 years and should be replaced with a brass terminal. Some battery terminals may be eaten away by the battery acid.
THINGS TO LOOK FOR
The plastic terminal may look clean and perfect but the problem is that if you need to jump start the vehicle, the connection inside the red or black terminal might be isolating the connection or causing a bad connection to the battery pole. The best way to eliminate this possibility is to cut off the red and black terminal and replace it with a brass battery terminal. This way you can see the connection and it is a sure connection. A hard to start engine or a non cranking engine may be due to a faulty battery terminal. The only way to successfully check this is by removing the terminals and cleaning both poles and terminals with a wire brush and replacing them. This might get the car started.
IS IT EXPENSIVE TO REPAIR?
A good brass battery terminal costs around $5.00. There are lead and steel terminals on the market but the best ones are the brass terminals that enable the cables to be mounted on the top. There are clones of the brass terminal that hold the cable on with thin plates. This plate has to have a thickness of 1 mm to hold the cable secure when the cables contract and expand.
TEMPORARY REPAIR AND LONG TERM REPLACEMENT
You can only really replace a battery terminal.
