Source for positive battery terminals

[YellowDieselGolf]

Hey guys,

I just got back from a road-trip and noticed that my battery mounted fusebox has melted - For the second time since new.




This time, the positive wiring seems to have been damaged. Note the burnt insulation and dull copper. I'm thinking I'll have to chop them off and reterminate the ends.




The positive terminals are part of the harness and the dealership can't source them. I guess I could clean the terminals, but I'd rather replace them if possible.

Has anyone tried this before? Who sells compatible terminals?

[Idle]

More importantly, you need to find the cause of the obvious overload -- before it does some real damage (if it hasn't already.)

To overheat a cable that size would take a pretty massive current draw somewhere.

I'd also be wondering about the signs of overheating in the thickest cable.

[Hillbilly]

As said you should be lookng at why its getting hot before cleaning them up Is that cable in front left standard or have you added something to the wiring in the vehicle.
That thick cable shouldnt be distorted either Is it shorting against something.
Get someone knowledgeable to look at it as next time it might go on fire

[YellowDieselGolf]

More importantly, you need to find the cause of the obvious overload -- before it does some real damage (if it hasn't already.)

To overheat a cable that size would take a pretty massive current draw somewhere.

I'd also be wondering about the signs of overheating in the thickest cable.

Yeah, great point which I didn't cover in the first message.

I've sanded, cleaned and greased the grounding points under the battery. I've checked other locations for heat damage, but can't find anything. I've measured the resistance of the alternator cable and it looks ok.

I had to move the car out of the way yesterday so I put the original parts back in and then drove it into the back shed. It only took 3-4 minutes, but the main positive battery to fusebox cable got too hot to touch in that time.

I picked up a new fusebox today (I haven't reterminated those cables yet). I greased all the terminals and let the car idle for 15-20 minutes. With the AC off and all lights on - the temperature of the fuses/connectors only got about 5 degrees above ambient and it seemed to be stable. With the AC on, it got to the mid 50s on some of the fuses. It seemed stable, but maybe I didn't wait long enough.

The outside temperature at the time was 37. The hottest that the main cable reached was 42 degrees. So 42** after 15-20 minutes is better than ~65 (too hot to touch?) in less than 5 minutes. I'm not sure it's fixed, but there seems to be some improvement.

As said you should be lookng at why its getting hot before cleaning them up Is that cable in front left standard or have you added something to the wiring in the vehicle.
That thick cable shouldnt be distorted either Is it shorting against something.
Get someone knowledgeable to look at it as next time it might go on fire

The wiring in the engine bay is 100% standard. I've added heated seats (10 years ago?) with an OEM style plug and play harness, but that's all out of the main fusebox and I can't find any issues on that end. That said - I haven't checked under the dash where all the distribution terminals are. I might have to check there on the weekend.

I'll be driving it to work tomorrow (no AC) and I'll measure the temperatures when I get there. If i get stuck I might ring an auto-elec.

Thanks for your thoughts all!

[syncro]

Those terminals are available from VW. The problem is finding the part number. I have bought terminals before but I had people with inside knowledge at the time. Just make sure that you don't solder them on.

The heat may have been cause by a high resistance joint. Make sure that the connections are very clean and tight with no grease or dirt.