Hi there,
I just found your post and read it.

I'm the one that made the post you refer to as giving good advice. I agree I was a little weak in some areas as you pointed out.

I was trying to recall, by memory, an article that I read.

The article was in the Auto Restorer Magazine. It’s a How-TO Guide for Car & Truck Enthusiasts. It was dated July 2006-Volume-18-Number 7

The article was written by Milton Webb.

I looked it up, to put in some those facts I fail to recall, that you nicely pointed out.

These are all voltage tests.

During all test the 0-5v scale or 0-20v scale is used if the meter is not auto-ranging. This means a Digital meter has to be use.

The use of an analog (needle) meters are not accurate enough for low voltage readings.

The battery to engine ground test is done during cranking.

The voltmeter is hooked up as follows;

Connect Red lead on unpainted surface of engine block or a bolt.
Connect Black lead on negative battery terminal post.
Disable ignition and crank for five seconds.
Normal ground is 0.2 (200mv) volts. > Than 0.2 indicates poor engine ground. The 0.3 is marginal. Over 0.3 is bad!

The next is Battery Ground Voltage to the chassis.
Connect Red lead on bolt of the fender, vehicle frame, a bulkhead or where an accessory or headlight ground is fastened.
Black lead goes on the negative post of the battery.
All the accessories are ON (bright lights, A/C fan high, rear window defroster, windshield wiper, etc.)
You want at least 15 -20 amps flow through all the circuits to a ground cable or strap.

He also mentions that he keeps the ignition disabled and cranks it the engine again but this time he Notes he allows 0.3v (300mv)or less because the current draw is higher.

The chassis ground point voltage of more than 0.4volt (400mv) (with a 15-amp draw) indicates a poor chassis ground circuit.

I read all this into my thought pattern. My conclusion has become;
All the loads start from the ground points. According to scientists, the Electrons (the juice) flow “from” the negative side of the battery out to all the loads. This instant makes this half of the circuit. This makes nuts, bolts and tinny sheet metal the circuit, with all their various environmental influenced problems!

A rusty spot or a bad chassis ground strap it is bad news quickly.

This is where I push the idea to check around to the computer module's chassis mounts. I double check them for a comparison of ground points back to the battery. My thinking is there may be a bad route that I’m not aware of.

He just uses the same set up on the solenoid. He is looking for a high resistance "bad contacts” inside the solenoid when cranking. He loves that 0.2 volt limit!

When checking the positive battery cable side. He puts the Red Lead on the positive side of the battery and the Black lead on the negative terminal of the solenoid?
There is a method to his madness.

I do not do his article justice as you can tell. He gets in to alternator/ battery charging and sensor testing and reference voltage for them from computers.

I could have been better at it. I was catching a drift that the original poster was throwing in his towel to write a check for a Chrysler 300.

I would recommend to those who want a variation of the car world.

This magazine widens the view of hobbyist, awakens new and old mechanics. It exploits the plain “ole” tinkerer to find a love for the older cars.

It reminds me of the old days when Henry Ford had a reason for the positive ground system on his early cars. I believe there is some science and controversy around still. It is about the same for, dielectric grease. It doesn’t conduct and not is considered a lubricant. The term salve, paste or jelly might be better.

How new techniques and materials can make things better. You know that’s trying to keep things running nicely.


It has helped me in doing some small painting jobs.
I hope I did better this time,
Phil