2004 Volkswagen Beetle, Battery Goes Dead

This 2004 VW Beetle came in with the complaint that the battery would go dead while driving the vehicle. Especially when the a/c and lights were on. A quick visual inspection found the problem. Note the rusted nut in the center of the picture below. Rust on a steel nut that is part of n electrical connection indicates a loose connection. The more rust the longer the connection has been loose.

From the looks of this one it has been causing a problem for quite a while now. The reason the battery has been going dead is that this is the wire that connects between the output stud of the alternator and the battery positive terminal.

The heat that was generated from the loose connection melted the insulation away from the cable about an inch away from the terminal. The insulation was melted into the cable about four inches away from the connection.

All I had to work with on this repair was a Mega fuse holder assembly. I cut the cable back to a good clean location and spliced in a new lead that I attached to the fuse holder assembly.

I tied my new fuse holder assembly into the battery positive terminal connection and tucked the fuse holder into a stable position between the battery and the air filter box.

After installing this in line fuse holder, I got together with The Electric Connection and helped them put together a repair kit that has all of the needed parts to replace the damaged fuse box and the burnt wire that I had to replace in this repair. After R&R of the fuse box assembly, all you will need is the ability to crimp and solder the one splice terminal. Note; the battery must be removed from the vehicle if an open flame or inductive soldering tool is used to solder the connection or shrink the heat shrink tubing. The gases from the battery can explode violently causing injury or death when exposed to an open flame or spark. 

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