Are there any reasons not to add a new grounding point for various accessory electrical components?

I've added to the ground point next to the fuse box: ground wiring for relocated fuel pump, aux. fog lights, intermittent wipers and electric antenna .. I'm probably gonna add some wiring for future items there while I'm at it (temp, electrical fans wiring for a future build).

I don't know if a ground point can necessarily become over crowded, I suspect that would not really become an issue. But I still need to add some grounding for three extra gauges and a switch.

So I was wondering - Can I just drill out and enlarge one of the mysterious sheet-metal screw holes that are under the dash area at the firewall (I have no idea why those are there but there are at least 3-4 tiny drilled holes in various spots).. clear off some paint on the inside and secure a small bolt thru it from the air box area, to act as a grounding point? Any issues with having that work?

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Should work fine.

I'll add a star washer if I can and make sure it bites deep into clean sheet metal and the cable terminator.

I once added 20+ grounds to a 79 Fiat X19. This might be the very worst car ever built regarding electrical BS.

It went 85K without a single electrical issue...

I will normally add at least two chassis (different locations) to battery negative as well as a big ground to the engine.

On a 914 I'd probably run an extra ground cable form the negative terminal to the forward firewall (somewhere meaty).

Oh naive man.....

Let me introduce you to 1950s -1960s English cars and Lucas, the prince of darkness (because the electric headlights are always failing).

The Lucas motto: "Get home before dark."
Lucas is the patent holder for the short circuit.
Lucas - Inventor of the first intermittent wiper.
Lucas - Inventor of the self-dimming headlamp.
The three position Lucas switch - Dim, Flicker and Off.
The three position Lucas switch, alternate version - Off, Smoulder, Burn.
The Original Anti-Theft Device - Lucas Electrics.
>Lucas is an acronym for Loose Unsoldered Connections and Splices
Lucas systems actually uses AC current; it just has a random frequency.
"I have had a Lucas pacemaker for years and have never had any trou..."
If Lucas made guns, wars would not start.
A friend of mine told everybody he never had any electric problems with his Lucas equipment. Today he lives in the countryside, in a large manor with lots of friendly servants around him an an occasional ice cold shower...
Back in the 70's, Lucas decided to diversify its product line and began manufacturing vacuum cleaners. It was the only product they offered which did not suck.
Q: Why do the British drink warm beer? A: Because Lucas makes their refrigerators
Alexander Graham Bell invented the Telephone.Thomas Edison invented the Light Bulb. Joseph Lucas invented the Short Circuit.
Recommended procedure before taking on a repair of Lucas equipment: Check the position of the stars,kill a chicken and walk three times clockwise around your car chanting:" Oh mighty Prince of Darkness protect your unworthy servant.."


My experience with English cars was that they never figured out oil was a liquid, and they never figured out how to keep the smoke in the electrical components.


ELECTRICAL THEORY BY JOSEPH LUCAS - AKA Smoke Theory

Positive ground depends on proper circuit functioning, which is the transmission of negative ions by retention of the visible spectral manifestation known as "smoke".

Smoke is the thing that makes electrical circuits work. We know this to be true because every time one lets the smoke out of an electrical circuit, it stops working. This can be verified repeatedly through empirical testing.

For example, if one places a copper bar across the terminals of a battery, prodigious quantities of smoke are liberated and the battery shortly ceases to function. In addition, if one observes smoke escaping from an electrical component such as a Lucas voltage regulator, it will also be observed that the component no longer functions. The logic is elementary and inescapable!

The function of the wiring harness is to conduct the smoke from one device to another. When the wiring springs a leak and lets all the smoke out of the system, nothing works afterward.

Starter motors were considered unsuitable for British motorcycles for some time largely because they consumed large quantities of smoke, requiring very unsightly large wires.

It has been reported that Lucas electrical components are possibly more prone to electrical leakage than their Bosch, Japanese or American counterparts. Experts point out that this is because Lucas is British, and all things British leak. British engines leak oil, British shock absorbers, hydraulic forks and disk brake systems leak fluid, British tires leak air and British Intelligence leaks national defense secrets.

Therefore, it follows that British electrical systems must leak smoke. Once again, the logic is clear and inescapable.

In conclusion, the basic concept of transmission of electrical energy in the form of smoke provides a logical explanation of the mysteries of electrical components especially British units manufactured by Joseph Lucas, Ltd.

And remember: "A gentleman does not motor about after dark!"

Joseph Lucas: The Prince of Darkness" 1842-1903

Thanks, I appreciate the advice. Not sure if I'll go the route of a "star washer" but google don't know what I'm even talking about. Do those have a more specific name or you got a link? I tried 'quick disconnect multi flag terminal' with no luck either.


I'm gonna need to remember this procedure - I have that '71 Volvo P1800E that's full of Lucas' dark magic !

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As a highly experienced P1800 mechanic, I will be happy to help you defeat the prince of darkness....

But you are going to need this:

I am very familiar with the Price of Darkness...

The English car wiring diagram is in ENGLISH not Italian!

The wiring color wasn't directly dependent on how much wine Luigi drank the night before...

Car parts are NOT included in an Italian to English translation dictionary!

I don't speak or read Italian.

Count Valeo is an inbreed cousin of Price Lucas.

Both are demons of the electrical world...

The X19 by 79 was graced with a progressive Weber carb (just like a single for a 914) and shitloads of emissions. It had enough relays to kill a cat and it was, more often than not, mis-wired at production.

Believe it or not, British wiring is of higher quality than Italian.

Japanese wiring (and the support documentation) are the very best IMO.

I have been an import specialist for most of my life.

Early on I BANNISHED all French cars from my shops. I've never missed Peugeots or Renaults at all...

Those "Smart Cars" that Mercedes sold at one time are made in France. I actually did two repairs before banishing them as well.

Spark plugs are bad about cross threading and to get reasonable access to repair this you remove the drive train...

Beyond Stupid IMO.

So I was comparing my project to a parts car and saw that someone had added a ground at the underside mount for the dash.. gave me an idea, maybe I’ll sandwich this group of ground wires (scavenged from an old half-harness) between that mount and the firewall behind it (after stripping paint on those small sections). Mounting externally under the hex head seems like poor form, no?

Gotta include Ferrari's on this. I spent a week translating a hand drawn Ferrari 308 wiring diagram from Italian to English only to find out the diagram didn't match the car.

I hate Ferraris, poorly built overpriced Fiats.

There’s also this spot, which is a capture nut for a vertical support bracket under the cowl. It might need to be cut off though, to create maximum contact w/ a ring connector.

So maybe I’ll just go w/ plan A and use what is currently a random tiny drilled screw hole.

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I have the Prince of Darkness t shirt, but hesitate to wear it lest someone confuse my old cars with satanism. Hard enough as it is. Am reluctant to motor after darkness in any fifty year old car. One has to light the acetylene lamps.

Small update.. the ring terminal that’s on that group of brown ground wires does not play nice under the arm of the dash mount. There is a small sheet metal screw hole right next to it though, so I think I may just use that.

I've found, regarding Italian wiring, you need ALL of the diagrams that that marque has used for a 10-year span around your car's year.
You will find the correct colors and parts but they will NOT be in your years diagrams.
That circuit will be in a totally unrelated model and when you look at the same circuit in that car it's wiring will not match its diagram.

They did actually send all the correct diagrams.
Not the slightest bit organized...

Lots of Fiat parts in a Ferrari
Fiat 124 starter = $120.00
308 starter = $850 AND IS THE EXACT SAME PART NUMBER AS THE FIAT!
Late Spider door handle=80 246 Dino door handle=1200.00 same puppy!

I, too, am not impressed with the prancing horse...

The BIGGEST problem with Italian cars is the owners.
Italian car SHOULD be driven HARD!
Baby them around and you'll have nothing but problems.
Drive them "like you stole them" and they will be fine...

You forgot. Look Under Car After Starting... it's probably on fire.

Adding a grounding point cannot hurt, from what I can tell Porsche brazed a flat washer to the body with a stud for additional surface area.

date Italian, marry German

I have had a few doosies from the Italian camp

That reminds me of another old joke:

Heaven is where the police are British, the lovers French, the mechanics German, the chefs Italian, and it is all organized by the Swiss. Hell is where the police are German, the lovers Swiss, the mechanics French, the chefs British, and it is all organized by the Italians.

Star washer or internal / external toothed lock washer...

Click to view attachment

Thanks for the heads up VitaminK.

I'd normally choose the one you have highlighted purple.

I wasn't aware of the "tight-grip" versions however.

I LIKE TEETH!

Lots of Teeth with that selection.

Gonna have to order some of them from McMasters.

You're costing me money...

ok. well in all honesty when 'star washer' was mentioned I was thinking the multi-spade quick terminals like the grounding points for our headlights, etc - hey they kind of look like a star, right!?

Yea I know what an actual star washer is.. I have some and will use! Thanks y'all!

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have to agree, shepards pie

More gauge wiring advice please (?)

So I’m adding a/f gauge, cht gauge and voltmeter … I need to review the paper work that came with them but assuming that they take a switched 12v (pretty sure they do) - can I continue the stock thick red/white wire for those? That wire is off the #9 fuse and goes to the back of the stock gauges (it’s switched power for fuel, then temp combo, then terminates at the tach @ the 4-spade area). Can I simply add a double male spade connector where it ends at the tack input [see arrow in the picture] and continue it on down to my a/f gauge which will be just below this area on the dash face, then cht and so on? Essentially asking if the switched that’s already in used, can be continued further without problems (don’t want to overload the circuit). I’m still learning the electrical do’s and dont’s and appreciate the help, and patience

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Using the stock Red/white striped wire for the gauges won't be an issue. There is enough capacity in them to run the full 911 gauge set.

But do it right, and use the proper wire color with traces. One of my pet peeves is wiring that changes color in the middle of a run.

Oh naive man....

Just wait till you get into the wiring on a 50 ft long Diesel pusher coach.

All the wiring is WHITE!

ALL OF IT!

There are no wiring diagrams.

Some of it is 110 and some of it is 12/24 volts.

Nothing is marked in any way at all.

There can be 2 miles of wiring...

tip for the OP.

Those gauges you want to add should not overload that circuit but the corrosion/tarnish on the connectors may jack with you.

I've had luck cleaning that stuff up with jewelry cleaner. The little vat your wife has for her rings, steal that and really put it to use. (get another one for her!)

I also every so lightly recrimp/adjust the push-on spades so they "cut in" just a bit and I'll usually coat them with di-electric grease so they will last another 20 years.

Woman's nail files can be very useful for this type of work as well.

FWIW, dielectric grease is non-conductive. Happy 9-14 day!

Have a look at some of the 1960's Citroen wiring. It is all the same colour but just little different coloured rings on the end (which always fall off after a few years!!!)

Yep, seems counter-intuitive.
You'd think that a conductive grease would be more appropriate.
I tighten all connectors I can adjust, and I think the grease forms an oxygen barrier that stops further oxidation.

Windforfun, do you have a better terminal grease in mind?

The dielectric goo lasts decades and I normally don't have to re-visit connections I have cleaned/tightened/greased again ever...

10 years down the road the grease will be caked and nasty with debris, but the terminal will be mint inside the old "silly" grease.

Banned Citroens early on due to exactly those types of reasons...
I've not missed French cars at all!

If you want a conductive grease, you might want to try the stuff for connecting aluminum to copper wiring for the home. BTDT.

BTW, I put new tires on the car today. Very appropriate for 9-14 day.