Big Three Upgrade - 2nd Gen Tacoma - Writeup with pictures!

ramonortiz55

Adventurist
First install was important - This was a big three upgrade to pave the way for a switchpros and powertrays install.

Never really found a true write up for a big three upgrade, so I figure I could put one together. The install is straightforward but figured it would be good for those contemplating the mod.



The negative and positive cables were removed from the battery:





The cables will be completely extracted from the truck, therefore everything must go. Here we remove the ground off the fender:



Then I reached down and remove the wiring harness from a wiring clamp:



Save it for later:



Then I removed the mud guards in the fender well of the driver's side. This allowed some access to the wiring that runs to the starter.



See that ground there? - the one on the coil frame support right under the UCA, must be removed as well.





Once that is removed (not shown as removed in this picture), there will be a plastic cover that houses the wiring for the alternator and starter. Remove this cover, be patient. It is stubborn.



I removed the skid plate to look around and see if I needed to remove other stuff related to the wiring. Might be a good idea to remove it in case you need to reach in there for some oddball reason



Then the tedious work: Removing the wire loom and all the electrical tape holding the wiring together.





Work in progress:



Once all the tape and loom is removed there will be nothing but loose wiring, it is time to disconnect the starter wiring and ground. In this picture the starter wiring is wrapped in the foil looking insulation:



Remove starter plug and ground:



At this time, all the ground cables can be pulled out. Here is a comparison picture with the replacement upgrade:



See this black wire with blue line? This goes to the alternator FROM the inside of the fuse box.



It connects in here:



See this black wire? It comes from UNDER the fuse box. This wire will be routed INTO the fuse box and placed where the alternator cable is connected as shown in the above picture. We will get to that later.



Let's disconnect the alternator cable. I removed this bracket that is over the alternator for ease of access:



Once the alternator cable has been disconnected, disconnect the alternator cable from INSIDE the fuse box and pull it out.

At this point, the stock power cable and the fuse box to alternator cable can be completely removed. Here is a comparison picture with the upgrade wiring.

For reference, the longest red cable will run to the starter. The mid length red cable will run DIRECTLY to the alternator. The shorter cable will run into the INSIDE of the fuse box where the alternator cable was originally at. We will get to that soon, patience!



Red shorter cable running into the INSIDE of the fuse box:





Routed wiring to starter and alternator:



Reinstalled loom, taped wiring neatly and reinstalled clamp:







Not all the wiring fits in the wiring housing, so I routed the alternator wiring on the outside:



Reinstalled more loom:



Remember the wiring that comes from UNDER the fuse box? - run it INTO the fuse box using the same routing as the alternator cable that was removed earlier.



I removed a side cover and some plugs to allow ease of routing:



It is a TIGHT fit, but will work:



Reinstall plugs and side cover:



Connected positive and ground leads to battery:

 
Nice work Ramon.

Where'd you get that snazzy looking positive terminal? What is the display for? volts or amps?
 
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