Battery Terminals - adjustment question
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 1,189
Likes: 0
From: Northwest Arkansas
Battery Terminals - adjustment question
I changed my OEM battery this weekend to an Optima.
I am not able to get the battery terminal connections as tight as I feel they should be - while they don't feel like they will come off the terminal posts, they do swivel slightly from left to right (no matter how much I tighten the adjustment nut).
Has anyone else encountered this? Should I crimp the connection leads to a smaller diameter to get more of a friction fit? Am I just stupid? :o
I am not able to get the battery terminal connections as tight as I feel they should be - while they don't feel like they will come off the terminal posts, they do swivel slightly from left to right (no matter how much I tighten the adjustment nut).
Has anyone else encountered this? Should I crimp the connection leads to a smaller diameter to get more of a friction fit? Am I just stupid? :o
Safety Car
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 4,347
Likes: 25
From: Apache Junction AZ
I changed my OEM battery this weekend to an Optima.
I am not able to get the battery terminal connections as tight as I feel they should be - while they don't feel like they will come off the terminal posts, they do swivel slightly from left to right (no matter how much I tighten the adjustment nut).
Has anyone else encountered this? Should I crimp the connection leads to a smaller diameter to get more of a friction fit? Am I just stupid? :o
I am not able to get the battery terminal connections as tight as I feel they should be - while they don't feel like they will come off the terminal posts, they do swivel slightly from left to right (no matter how much I tighten the adjustment nut).
Has anyone else encountered this? Should I crimp the connection leads to a smaller diameter to get more of a friction fit? Am I just stupid? :o
BJK
Safety Car
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 4,347
Likes: 25
From: Apache Junction AZ
I changed my OEM battery this weekend to an Optima.
I am not able to get the battery terminal connections as tight as I feel they should be - while they don't feel like they will come off the terminal posts, they do swivel slightly from left to right (no matter how much I tighten the adjustment nut).
Has anyone else encountered this? Should I crimp the connection leads to a smaller diameter to get more of a friction fit? Am I just stupid? :o
I am not able to get the battery terminal connections as tight as I feel they should be - while they don't feel like they will come off the terminal posts, they do swivel slightly from left to right (no matter how much I tighten the adjustment nut).
Has anyone else encountered this? Should I crimp the connection leads to a smaller diameter to get more of a friction fit? Am I just stupid? :o
BJK
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 6,450
Likes: 371
From: Maryville TN
St. Jude Donor '06-13,'16-'17, '19
Loose connections WILL cause you strange problems. Sounds like you have the wrong battery for your car. The last time I checked Optima did not list a battery for a C6.
Tom
Tom
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 11,762
Likes: 2
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 1,189
Likes: 0
From: Northwest Arkansas
Advanced
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 87
Likes: 0
I didn't replace my battery but have had my negative battery cable terminal off a dozen times. Due to the design of the battery cable terminal the tightening specification is critical (71 inch lbs). Over tightening of the nut makes terminal useless, as in won't tighten up properly. I went to a local parts store and purchased a repair terminal. Spliced (soldered) it to my stock cable, works great! The proper repair would be to replace the (complete) ground/negative cable.
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Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 1,189
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From: Northwest Arkansas
Intermediate
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 32
Likes: 0
my car is 2 days old and i took both nuts off of the battery terminals to hookup a battery tender. i put on the tender eyes and tightened the nuts and one of the terminals twisted sideways. i checked the other one and it would turn too with a little pressure. so i tighten the **** out of them and they seemed to be all right. it is a bad design and goofy looking also. kind of like my 1700$ nav with no line in. or my goofy pos car 2 u home link wantab . btw the battery terminals look like they come off of some mid 80ies pos datson or toyota.
Racer
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 467
Likes: 1
From: LI New York
St. Jude Donor '08-'09
my car is 2 days old and i took both nuts off of the battery terminals to hookup a battery tender. i put on the tender eyes and tightened the nuts and one of the terminals twisted sideways. i checked the other one and it would turn too with a little pressure. so i tighten the **** out of them and they seemed to be all right. it is a bad design and goofy looking also. kind of like my 1700$ nav with no line in. or my goofy pos car 2 u home link wantab . btw the battery terminals look like they come off of some mid 80ies pos datson or toyota.
