VS v6 owners check this out

[justbad4you]

A FRIEND PULLS INTO HOME,WENT INTO EAT, SMELT SMOKE,WENT OUT TO THE FIRE BALL CALLED (HIS CAR) THE WIRE HAS STARTED A SMALL FIRE IN THE THE ENG BAY(when he hopped out he didnt smell the small fire)only to return to a big fire)THE FIRE BRIGADE TOOK THE CAR FOR FOR INSPECTION AND THAT RED WIRE WAS FOUND TO BE AT FAULT

[darcycammo]

ok it hasn't happen'd to mine yet but i wan't to rewire it all what would be the best wire to use (0 gauge)? and were can i get a roll of it for cheap?

[justy]

Hi, bought my vs II executive in desperation about a month and a bit ago, happy to find this forum/threads. Have checked my red wire connection and its all good from what I can see/feel.
The fixit list is growing, guess thats what I get for buying the unknown in the pouring rain hey The suspension guys are telling me a $1000 story, the odometer is dead so after 196k's who knows lol! Ive named it turtle.

[justbad4you]

when all the probs are fixed she willl run like a dream,fix list realy never end lol,,,,name it lion not turtle lol

Hi, bought my vs II executive in desperation about a month and a bit ago, happy to find this forum/threads. Have checked my red wire connection and its all good from what I can see/feel.
The fixit list is growing, guess thats what I get for buying the unknown in the pouring rain hey The suspension guys are telling me a $1000 story, the odometer is dead so after 196k's who knows lol! Ive named it turtle.

[fireballv8]

I've checked this on my Vs s2, it looks to have been repaired already, thanks for the tip....

[justbad4you]

thats good at least your will be ok for years to come....cheeeeers

I've checked this on my Vs s2, it looks to have been repaired already, thanks for the tip....

[robol]

ok i've read this thread a thousand times but there are conflicting answers

my alternator cable is burnt near the terminal (it broke when i touched it)

i need a solution that will last me 4000ks until i can fix the problem permanently

advice in the thread is 2 answers;

1. cutback the wire to a point it's good and redo the connection

some posts say that shortening the wire will increase resistance and i can expect even more heat on the wire, but will it last me 4000ks?

also, i'm worried about electrical safety, when the broken cable touched the body of the alternator it sparked. do i have to disconnect the battery before working with this cable? don't want to have large amps running through my body when trying to cut and reconnect this damn cable

disconnect battery is always neg first and then pos right?

2. run a thick cable direct to battery

i guess the earth cable that runs parallel with the main cable still works so i can just cut the main cable near the battery and run a separate main cable direct to the battery
but i also read that the main cable is forked to the circuit breakers?
do i need to run a separate cable to the breakers? and from where? the alt or the battery?
or can i just skip it as it only has to last 4000ks?

any thoughts much appreciated

[bluegti]

This happened to me also

[hsv_manta]

Thank You Thank You.....

I was struggling to find a solution to issue surrounding my old man's VS ute.. The cable was buggered I have repaired it and all seems to be well it was a fire in the making..

[Like a Boss]

thanks heaps for the heads up gee.

[azzaholic]

Are the alternator faults also common in the VR series 1

[Aussies2011]

Well... Now I cannot wait for the morning to go and have a look.

I bought a 1996 VS Ecotec Wagon Acclaim in February 2011 with 273Km on it.
I only had it for two weeks, when it almost refused to crank up and I immediately suspected the battery.
I went to the garage and got a new battery.
Went to the corner shop after that, and when I came out, it was dead as a dodo.
I went back to the garage, and since the car was only 100 metres away, we pushed it.
The guy put a new starter motor in it, and it was still dead as a dodo.
So he traced an electrical fault to the battery terminal.
He just tightened the clamp around the red cable and it started.

This morning, 4 months later, car was dead again.
It turned out that the battery was flat and I have no idea what drained it.
Nothing was left "ON".

Also, a stupid question
Where is the switch to turn the ceiling light on/off
The light has not worked since I bought the car. When I changed the bulb today, the light came on and I cannot find the switch to turn it off.

[frogsta]

If only I signed up earlier, I woulda known. Got an entire new alternator, oh well, might be good in the long run.
Oh, and the light for that (I had this problem too, for a day or two) is next to where you turn your headlights on. Like right on the left of it. It also adjust the brightness of the dash lights if turned all the way down.

[stateside]

just bought a vs statesman with 166k on the clock D: thanks for the heads up mate will be checking it this weekend!

[Aussies2011]

Interestingly... my alarm would also go off everytime I was putting it on.
So for 5 months I would leave the car open.

It turned out that the alarm went off, because the switch for the ceiling light was in the "on" position.
But I did not know because the bulb of the ceiling light was burnt out.

[Dum*P*ster]

Hahhaa... dammit, I JUST Read this thread today..and the SAME problem had occurred on monday !! HAHAHAH...
Thought the alternator had died, was draining batteries so quick.. So we went to take the alternator off.. to see the Red Power wire had 'broken' ..
Thank god I had great help thanks to an Auto-lecy bud !

But the thing, my wagon has only done 107-XXXk's .. But, I guess its a crappy wire lol.. So instead of fixin the same wire , he just replaced the whole wire.. Now the wagon is happy and is not eating its batteries

[MuzVS]

Thanks for the heads up. I had no idea about that and mine was very burnt out.

[BuckeTs]

Just checked mine, insulations knackered. :/ might get some 0 gauge this weekend then

[DR34MZ]

Far that happened twice too my commy in the first two weeks of having the car and fix the problem my self all sweet as now ay

[frogsta]

This happened to me in a Red Rooster drive-thru lol. Had 189k on the clock, unfortunately bought a new alternator then saw this thread. As my mate was replacing the alternator, he saw that the wire was the problem. :|

[TheMissVs]

Been There Done That, Luckily i knew about it before hand, then the stupid thing decided to fry from the other end! dam cars some times!

[1997vs9c1]

FML!!

If I seen this 5 weeks ago I would of been right. Mine was this problem. I'n not all up there with mechanical stuff. My battery light had been on and off for a few months and then I noticed my sound system cutting out in portions and within half hour my car stopped. My VS has 189xxx kms on the clock and I just thought my alternator had just packed it in. Went and got a second hand one and off I went. Within a few days same problem again. I left it and thought maybe I had bad luck with the alternator I got and borrowed one off a friend and then same issue again. First thing to think is obviously the wire coming from the alternator. Mine was black and stuffed and pretty much snapped off with barely any force. $3 for cable lugs to fix. Good to see its a common problem and people are made aware of it cause I would be absolutely pissed off if I forked out $200+ for a brand new alternator.

Good work!

[robbo91]

hey ive just brought a second hand 1995 vr commodore v6 , converted to a manual.. i went to start it this mornin n it wouldnt start , i put the battery on charge till it hit full put it back in but it didnt turn over . only the oil,park,and battery light came up on the dash . i checked all the fuses replaced a few of them even replaced the battery but it wont turn over , any tips on how to get it runnin

[robbo91]

hey ive just brought a second hand 1995 vr commodore converted to a manual. i went to start it this mornin but it didnt kick over . i checked the fuses . replaced the battery n it still wont start . any tips on how to get it goin

[VS-S-PACK]

Thanks mate! i will check this because its done it 3 times and i replaced the battery and its been great since ! ( replaced it the day after it wouldnt start a 3 weeks ago )