Hello All,

I just purchased a 04 GS430! I was reading through the forums and see that many people recommend the grounding kit. Now those posts are from 2001 to 2003. I don't see any recent posts on this topic. Are the grounding kits still recommended? do they really make the acceleration and shifting smoother and crisper? I'd appreciate your guys's feedback.

Thanks,

P.S: this forum rocks!

 

honestly, I doubt you'd notice it-but I can't say I've tried it.

Post some pics of that sweet 430-we don't care if it's stock.

 

i got a frouend kit in awhile ago for y gs430 but havent installed it yet.. im gonna install this comin weekend and ill post some thoughts on it

 

Hey man,

Installed one on my SC400 and I didn't notice the slightest difference. If you are planning on running a lot of aftermarket add ons then I would consider it - if not I honestly wouldn't waste my money.

However, this was on an SC and not a GS but I don't know why it would be any different.

Jonny

 

I didn't notice anything after install.

 

Thank you all for replying... I intend to keep the car stock for right now. This is my first lexus and I am truly amazed with this machine. I started with looking around for an 540i and ended up buying this beauty. I must say there is no comparison b/w the 540i and the gs430. I agree that BMW's have good handling, but boy their interior sucks a$$. You just can't go wrong with lexus reliability. Also, this forum is amazing... lots of good information and I look forward to using it everyday.

Peace

 

Grounding kit HIGHLY recommended. For $100 or less, you can't beat it.
Made a huge difference in how my car runs. The factory ground wiring is skimpy, and there aren't enough ground points. It will really smooth out the way your transmission shifts.

 

Welcome to CL and congrats on the purchase. Let us know when you want to talk options for beefing up the handling on the GS.

 

Alright guys, I happened to find a good deal on the grounding kit on ebay, $23 shipped so I went ahead and bought it. I figured for $23 it is worth a shot. Anyone else here have good experience with the kit?

 

It is recommended, it does inprove the car's fuel economy, sparks, ignition, and battery last longe... even though you don;t fell the difference in performance ( even 5 HP will be noticable on 300HP car), it still improves it.
You have so many positive in the car but you have less grounds... more ground is always better... just don;t make your engine bay looks like spyder web!

I have it in my car, and I like it.. I would do it to all my cars too.

 

Can someone explain how grounding kits improve performance?

 

Read this thread:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...+grounding+kit

 

Yes, it is been discussed many times now

 

nobody really explained how extra gounding wires help. From the pictures, the Apexi wires look like 10ga wiring... that's a little over kill. 10ga wires can send about 30 amps about 30 feet with very little loss in power. I seriously doubt the tranny, throttle, etc need so much power to operate at maximum efficiency.

I guess my question is, what's the fee-zx behind the extra grounding. Cutting the distance of the ground path by several feet shouldn't explain any noticeable difference in response times either. electricity travels so fast, human beings cannot tell a few feet of difference.

someone explain please

 

OK, you asked for it.
Electrical conductors are not only judged by their current carrying capability, that is, until they begin to melt, but also have other properties, mainly resistance, capacitance, and inductance. In this case, resistance is the one that matters most.
The normal grounding scheme of a car consists of intentional grounding wires placed by the manufacturer in spots they think are important, and also additional paths thru the body metal of the entire car. The key to a good ground connection is to establish a good voltage reference between any interconnected devices. There is one main ground point in the entire car - the negative terminal of the battery - that is the 0 volt reference. The 'ground' connection of all the other devices must remain as close to that voltage (0 volts) of the main ground (battery -) as possible, or they may not work properly. Now comes the good part.....
Whenever you have devices that are supplying current and others that are drawing current, there is a feed path through the positive power wires, and a return path through the negative, or ground, path. Since either the ground wires or ground path thru the car body have some resistance associated with them, the current thru the ground path causes a difference in ground voltage = V=IR. In other words, the voltage difference between the ground points (between the battery negative and the device) is equal to the device's current times the resistance of the ground wire, or the resistance of the body ground path, which can be high. That resistance depends strictly on the size of the ground conductor, the quality/looseness of the connections, any oxidation of the metal, the length of the ground path, and some other minor factors.
So now you should be able to see a few things:
1) As the car gets older, the connections deteriorate, the resistance goes up.
2) The wiring ages, the body metal deteriorates, the resistance goes up.
3) The manufacturer cuts cost on wiring and contacts, etc. The resistance goes up.
4) The ground path for some of the devices in the car is thru the body only. These paths are not necessarily direct. The resistance is higher than it could be as a result.
5) Since many ground paths are thru the body, the body carries the return currents. These currents cause V=IR voltage differences everywhere in the body metal, causing the grounds at any two different body points to be different in voltage.
When the grounds are not identical, with a VERY low resistance path between them, it's like the two interconnected devices are not speaking the same language.
Adding a grounding kit adds additional very low resistance paths between key interconnected devices, thus keeping their grounds at nearly the same voltage. The wire is not a thick heavy gauge to carry loads of current or prevent it from melting. It is typically 4 gauge or so, in order to have the low resistance needed.
The same theory applies to amplifier grounding, but in that case the amp is drawing very high current, so the resistance needs to be extremely low to prevent large voltage variations of the ground due to I*R.

Hope that clears it up for you.