Amp. hotwire to battery

[jlsumme]

I have always ran my amp. power wire through the firewall to the battery.My taurus has a column shifter so the rubber groument that most people use for this wire routing is taken by the shifter linkage (I think).Anyone know of another idea besides drilling a new hole? Has anyone tried wiring to a hotwire in the trunk without starting a fire??? I was noticing the guage of wire and the load it can carry safety. I guess thats why the powerwires I have used in the past are so thick due to the distance it travels from (trunk to battery) and lets not forget the in-line fuse within 14 inches of the battery.How dangerous is splicing to a main hotwire in the trunk with a 200watt amp pushing a 10 or 12 inch sub at 4 ohms?

[TomV]

There is no 'danger' to connecting your amp to a main wire in the trunk. High power draws from your amp will blow the fuse, thus keeping things 'safe' . The large diameter wire for these power amps are used to minimize the voltage drops from the battery to the amp when high current levels are demanded for loud sound levels. The current levels can be very high (200 watts into a 4 ohm speaker would demand at least 7 amps for the speaker alone, then there is the inefficiency of the amp that boosts up the number even more). If you have a 0.3 ohms resistance from your power cable that would translate to a 2.1 volt drop to you amp. That is a good 15% drop when compared to a 13.5 volt battery voltage while the car is running. Thus a larger diameter wire will have a reduced resistance and a lower voltage drop too.

[Psychopete]

Originally Posted by jlsumme

I have always ran my amp. power wire through the firewall to the battery.My taurus has a column shifter so the rubber groument that most people use for this wire routing is taken by the shifter linkage (I think).Anyone know of another idea besides drilling a new hole? Has anyone tried wiring to a hotwire in the trunk without starting a fire??? I was noticing the guage of wire and the load it can carry safety. I guess thats why the powerwires I have used in the past are so thick due to the distance it travels from (trunk to battery) and lets not forget the in-line fuse within 14 inches of the battery.How dangerous is splicing to a main hotwire in the trunk with a 200watt amp pushing a 10 or 12 inch sub at 4 ohms?

I had to drill a hole on my 93. I found the best spot was on the drivers side. You need to start from the bottom and drill the hole as high up the firewall as possible. Tie strap the wire away from the steering components. Put a grommet and some sealant on bare metal. Run the wire under the plastic pieces under the door. You can kind of run it along the back seat making it not visible. I remember having to put a hole in that cloth stuff in my trunk that seperates the back seat and the trunk. Big enough to reach back for that wire.

Or I imagine there's a way to just run the wire under the car and right into the trunk. Use your imagination. I ran a 4 gauge through my wirewall, I imagine the power wire for that little 200 watter is pretty small. I'm used to running at least 1,000 watts.

I got a new set up for my Ranger and it didn't fit behind my seat! 1,200 RMS mono-block digital amp w/ 1 10" AudioBahn Immortal 1,500 watt RMS speaker. Thinking about getting 5 point racing seats and using the box as an arm rest...

[jlsumme]

Thanks for the responses!