Replacing negative battery cable

Here’s what happened. Strong newish battery, full green light. Engine wouldn’t turn over. No noise from good working 3 yr. old Denso starter. Aha! Faulty clutch safety switch. Bought new one. While trying to get the frozen nut off of it, it bent the retaining arm a little past the clutch pedal arm. No problem, I’ll just detach clip, attach clip to new safety switch and manually depress it while I crank the engine. Nothing! Must be something else. I loosened the negative battery cable and tweaked around with it and tightened it. Pressed the clutch safety switch, engine came to life. Many cable strands must have broken after years of putting in new batteries. Very relieved as I’m having to reside in my truck. QUESTION: I obviously have to cut the tape holding other cables and rebind them together with my new battery cable. Is there a special wide tape to use that’s heat resistant rather than the cheap store brand electrical tape?

 

You should be fine with Super 33+ or a similar heavy-duty electrical tape - that's what's holding my negative cable together. It's far enough from the engine that it doesn't get all that hot - but if you want to be on the safe side, use a fabric-backed electrical tape like Tesa tape or similar. I think 3M makes a thermosetting one, but that might be a bit stiff for a wiring harness.

 

Can I just cut the old cable and sister the new cable to the bundle or should I cut the existing tape and bundle them all together again?

 

If I’m reading this correctly, I used some of this to do what you’re asking about.

$15 Alex Tech 25ft - 1/2" Cord Protector Wire Loom Tubing Cable Sleeve Split Sleeving For USB Cable Power Cord Audio Video Cable – Protect Cat From Chewing Cords - Black

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FXF12HC

 

I hardly have the time to wait until that arrives, nor would I be inclined to use it, thanks anyways.

 

OP
Make sure to check the ground wire connection from battery to the inner fender too

 

It’s screwed in to the fender nice and tight. I can’t tell its condition inside the harness tho. Grabbing the cable at the post and moving it around is what allows it to finally start. If I turn off the engine for awhile, I have to repeat this and be lucky. Some of the rubber has peeled away at the terminal and I can see some of the wire strands. I’m still not sure how I’m gonna loosen the overly tightened nut holding the safety switch to the support flange arm. The damn flange arm bent a little trying to loosen the nut on the switch, moving it off center to the clutch pedal arm. As of now, I press the new switch by hand (hanging down) to start the engine. The damn mechanic who replaced it years ago over tightened that nut!!!

 

I'm not sure. Most of my experience with small electrical work is 120/240V, where I would cut out the old wire and properly splice in the new, or overhead/UG 7.2kV power lines, where a proper splice is imperative.

If it were my truck, I'd start by (carefully!) peeling back the existing tape to get a look at the condition of the cable underneath before going straight to cutting.

 

Caslon

think u will be fine replacing neg cable

IMO
I’m with SpencerTC
Inspect and determine what u need to replace
Don’t skimp on good quality connectors
ACE hardware or any other old school hardware store will have what you need including heavy gauge wire sold by ft

I tried for 10mins online trying to see if neg battery cable even available from Toyota but no luck

I’m sure others can chime in with prt#/price

 

This is a situation where I can’t dilly daddle around. I’m residing in my truck at the moment. A fix has to happen pronto. I just need a cable to last about 5 more years. I went to an AutoZone and bought a Dorman cable that fits my ‘03 base cab. The one I suspect is 22 years old now.