DIY: 2006 X5 3.0i CCV Overhaul

[cn90]

Originally Posted by trader4

...It's both dangerous and insane. Spark? Yeah it will be a hell of a spark. And that assumes that it's just a brief contact and the cable doesn't wind up in continued contact with some tool, part, etc
that winds up touching it. Do you not understand that you have
a cable the size of your finger connected to a battery that is
capable of delivering hundreds of amps? First, you have to
unscrew the energized nut holding that cable on. Given where
it's located and that the tools are metal, that's the first part
that's insane.

OK, Sir...

If you know a thing or two about electricity, it needs a ground source for spark.
Put your finger on a battery terminal won't cause anything to spark: in fact, this is what people do all the time to change the battery in their vehicles.

Again, you need ground for spark. I already looked around, there is no metal that this red cable can reach.

I had rubber glove on.
I removed the 13-mm nut.
Then tie the red cable away.
There was no metal nearby to spark, it is all plastic for that matter!

OK, maybe I have been wrenching for 30 years, so I know what spark is. But I am not afraid of this thingy.

Your car, your choice, go to the trunk and d/c the battery.

[cn90]

Originally Posted by trader4

First, you have to unscrew the energized nut holding that cable on...

Do you realize that this step (unscrewing the 13-mm nut on the alternator) is, from an electrical theory perspective, no different than undoing the 10-mm nut at the battery terminal?

PS: I cannot believe this CCV thread is getting into a "electrical fear" session LOL.

[Joshdub]

Cn90, don't bother with Trader4, he is just a troll. Hopefully a mod will come in here and clean it up.

[Ricky Bobby]

Trader is going back on my ignore list he is just a friggin lecturer nowadays again, I remember now why he was on the ignore list when he first joined.

[cn90]

Originally Posted by Joshdub

Cn90, don't bother with Trader4, he is just a troll. Hopefully a mod will come in here and clean it up.

Joshdub,

I know about trader4, so no worry. To me trader4 is more or less arm-chair general that I don't care too much about LOL.

trader4 has his points though: safety first, but he blew it out of proportion. BTW, trader4, look around the M54 area:
- Intake Manifold is Plastic
- Intake Elbow is Plastic
- The cable has its limits, and yes I swing it around a bit, it cannot easily touch anything metal.

Like I said above, worried? Simply tie it up and wrap some black elec trical tape around the tip. Easy Peasy. Save tons of time going to the trunk/

Believe me, I am safety conscious person but the E53 battery location turns me off big time, plus I have back pain at the moment, so no thanks about going into the trunk LOL.

OK, I am not feeding the troll further...

PS: Most electrician replace wall switch with the circuit on because:
- They wear rubber gloves
- They know what they are doing.

The rookies (home owner), for the right reasons, go the the basement and shut of the circuit.

I am not saying anyone is right or wrong, all I am saying is do what you are comfortable with.

Me, I have been fixing cars for 30 years, so I know what I am doing (hope so).

[cn90]

trader4,

I never tell anyone it is safe. All I said is "this is the way I do it", and of course, people do things at their own risks.

trader4, the best you can do now is to:
- Review some basic electrical 101.
- And ... shut up.

[Joshdub]

Lol, I know exactly what'll happen if it grounds out. It'll spark. It'll be a big spark, but it won't kill you nor will it fuse because it simply won't touch for long enough.

So how exactly is it "dangerous"? I'll advised? Possibly, but not because of " DANGER". If it were a tight spot with plenty of places to ground out on sure, but not there as almost everything is plastic.

What "wrench" are you using on the alternator? You mean a ratchet, that is on the front? The cable is on the rear of the alternator. There is zero chance of touching that cable. You may as well disconnect the battery in the X5 while you are working on your weed wacker. And if you just touch the cable with any tool, nothing will happen. So since it won't kill you, and unless you live in an extremely gasus environment, where is the danger?

And the reason people got on you about the starter is that you can easily jump the starter since the terminals are so close. Engaging the starter while under the car isn't going to end well for anyone. You cannot engage the alternator, and if you ground it out, it'll spark, and no one will die.

So TL;DR, it is you that needs to be careful as it is clear you have just enough information to get yourself into trouble, and not a lot of experience to fall back on when shit hits the fan. And just because you have a degree, it doesn't mean you know what you are doing.

[Joshdub]

Lol, you're an idiot. Seriously put the dorritos down, take a deep breath and read the post. You miss the mark almost every time.

First of all, the "wrench" you use to undo the cable securing nut has nothing to hit. Secondly, my securing nut has a plastic coating. So that argument is null.

No one isn't saying you aren't theoretically correct. It just isn't as nearly as big of an issue as you are making it out to be. Now are you done? Or do I need to call your mother and have her revoke your computer privlages for the evening?

[cn90]

Stupid troll, please keep this thread about CCV.
Forget all those stupid electrical engineering degree bragging.

[squidzilla]

Hey CN, thanks for doing this. I am collecting parts to do a whole punch of stuff on my MT as well. I plan on moving it into the garage and take as long as it takes to change all of this stuff and your write up is going to help a lot. Especially all of the small little tips you share during some of the steps. I am a noob when it comes to this stuff so I will probably replace the battery anyway so it looks like I get to remove the battery to do this.