Installing the high torque starter

[Kroggers]

This is probably a quick and easy question, but i am not 100% sure what to do so thought I would see what others have done.

On my SC there are two smaller wires with the spade terminals going to the factory starter. One comes from the ignition switch, and the other is for the cold start. On the new high torque starter, there is no connection for the cold start. I am inclined to wire both the ignition and cold start wire to the terminal on the starter motor, so that voltage is also supplied to the cold start circuit when the starter is engaged.

Looking at the diagrams for the starter circuit, this is in effect what happens within the factory starter motor anyway.

What did others do with the cold start wire when they installed the high torque starter?

[brads911sc]

They are wired together on my 83 SC for my high torque starter...

[rsrfan]

I went with a "piggy back" terminal I obtained at the local auto parts store. It basically connects to the spade on the starter then branches off to two (2) other spades which connect to the factory wires.

[brads911sc]

Thats what I did as well JP...

[Kroggers]

Cool, then I am happy with what I did

Thank you....

[cashflyer]

I changed mine in 2005, and did as all these owners advise: tabbed the wires together.



Big difference.





Starter problem

[bcheney]

I am finishing up the engine install on my 89 3.2 after it's complete rebuild. Most everything connected...now I have what looks to be a ground wire needing a home. I believe it is for the starter...although I can't seem to find a reference pic from when I removed the engine about 8 months ago...I have a high torque starter and currently have 3 wires going to it...big red + and the two other smaller ones. Is the black wire in the pic (just above the trans output flange) the wire that comes from the battery and thus it attaches around the same stud/terminal on top on the starter as the red wire leading to the alternator? Let me know if you can help! Here is a pic of the wire looking for a home.

[JJ 911SC]

Yes, that big black wire is the 12 Volts coming from the battery.

*$%k knows why Porsche went with black???

Before installing it, do a continuity check to the battery to remove any doubt you may have but more importantly, either slip on some Red heat shrink on it or wrap some Red tape around it.

[The cap'n]

"*&^% knows why Porsche went with black???"

Because it's the German standard, followed by every German automaker. Unlike the US, the Germans have agreed on standards for non-proprietary stuff found across the board. All circuits and electrical components have standard terminal designations, as well. Simplification!

The Cap'n

[JJ 911SC]

Aye Aye Cap'n,

I knew there will be some kind of explanation

[bcheney]

Thanks guys!

[JJ 911SC]

Originally Posted by The cap'n

... All circuits and electrical components have standard terminal designations, as well. Simplification!

The Cap'n

I did find the Terminal Standard but can not find why the 12 V from the battery to the starter is black but all others are red as per the wiring diagram.

DIN 72552 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[The cap'n]

Well, I can't answer that question. IIRC, the battery/starter cable has been black on every German car I've worked on over the 40+ years of my career as a wrench. I agree, most every other "30" circuit wire in the car is red. In some German cars, the battery ground cable is black, too (i.e. that of a 914). Most are brown, though, or a braided strap. All things considered, searching for the answer to this conundrum is a bit of a time waster, and the answer of no importance in the overall meaning of life.

The Cap'n

[JJ 911SC]

Originally Posted by The cap'n

... All things considered, searching for the answer to this conundrum is a bit of a time waster, and the answer of no importance in the overall meaning of life.

The Cap'n

True but when I Goggle it I came across a few posts on Pelican that some fried their battery because they "assume "that black was ground.

I guess the same as why the Oil Pressure will peg up when the circuit open as opposed to go to 0.

They probably ran out of red wire

[The cap'n]

Thanks for bringing that up! Think about that assumption those folks made for a minute. You have the battery out and you're gonna install it. You look at the wires. You have a 6"-8" wire (often a braided strap) going DIRECTLY to a stud on the body, and a small assortment of wires connected to a terminal, one large one disappearing somewhere into the body, and some smaller ones going up to the fuse box. The battery itself has a (+) and a (-) embossed next to the terminals. If you can't identify the negative terminal/cable connection, you have issues that require more attention than we, as members of this forum, can ever give you. As Ron White famously said, "You can't fix stupid". Furthermore, while there a lot of good things about being an American, or other English speaking person from the West, we ARE NOT the arbiters of electrical and mechanical convention. Italian cars are filled with pink wires. Does that make them wrong? Just because Ford, GM, and Chrysler chose red for (+) and black for (-), doesn't mean the rest of the world has to do so. They weren't the first to build cars, so they don't get to say what the rest of the world does. FWIW, our arrogance here in the USA has made us one of only three countries (along with the industrial powerhouses of Liberia and Myanmar) that haven't adopted the metric system as the official system of measurement.

Please note this is not a rant aimed at YOU, rather a general poke at both absurdity and stupidity (and there's a LOT of that on the internet!).

The Cap'n

[Kremer#2]

New install. If the large black wire goes on the blue covered stud ok. I have the loose red wire but it was not installed on my old starter and the alt was working. Any He;p?

[85eurocarrera]

Originally Posted by bcheney

I am finishing up the engine install on my 89 3.2 after it's complete rebuild. Most everything connected...now I have what looks to be a ground wire needing a home. I believe it is for the starter...although I can't seem to find a reference pic from when I removed the engine about 8 months ago...I have a high torque starter and currently have 3 wires going to it...big red + and the two other smaller ones. Is the black wire in the pic (just above the trans output flange) the wire that comes from the battery and thus it attaches around the same stud/terminal on top on the starter as the red wire leading to the alternator? Let me know if you can help! Here is a pic of the wire looking for a home.

Where does the black wire in post above (the one connected to battery) go?
Thx.

[Tippy]

Originally Posted by The cap'n

They weren't the first to build cars, so they don't get to say what the rest of the world does. FWIW, our arrogance here in the USA has made us one of only three countries (along with the industrial powerhouses of Liberia and Myanmar) that haven't adopted the metric system as the official system of measurement.

Why do you think we haven't converted to metric?

I'd say it has to do with aviation. We DO rule the world in aviation. The US made it mandatory for all aircraft around the world to use our tail number identification and to speak English if you're a pilot.

Can you imagine trying to retool all the machining equipment in the world to metric when all the gradations are in imperial? There's many machines that were built around WWII that are still spitting out parts.

Second, you can't convert all of the airplanes that are currently flying to metric. It would be silly and uneconomical IMO.

[Pazuzu]

Originally Posted by 85eurocarrera

Where does the black wire in post above (the one connected to battery) go?
Thx.

It's piggybacked with the big red one. The black cable feeds power to both the starter and then the red cable, which goes and feeds all of the various things in the engine bay.

[KTL]

This picture just makes me cringe. It's *this* close to touching the transmission case and starting an unintended welding job!!!!!