DaveW

I've got a few electrical connector blocks where the contacts are a bit grey and furry (a conequence of my interior water leaks). It's going to be quite tricky reaching into the embedded contacts with abrasives so I was just wondering if anyone out there has any magic contact cleaning tips they want to share.

Cheers
DaveW

Dozman

I sure do. But I don't think my elf really wants to travel any time soon.

What contacts are you trying to clean? and what makes them difficult to reach? Can you move the wiring harness, or remove the device from the car to clean the contacts? Have you tried the pencil eraser?

Depending on what contacts your cleaning, I have had good luck applying a very small dab dielectric grease on each contact point. But not so much that it will cause bridging to other contacts.

John D

Steve Cattaneo

Dave,
There is an aerosol relay and contact cleaner, just sprays it on, any Electric store should have it. Use what ever plugs into the block as a tool for cleaning the terminal. Once clean apply dielectric grease
<img src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" border="0" alt="[cheers]" />

WallyP

Professional (i.e., expensive, hard to get) contact cleaners work. Consumer-grade contact cleaners don't.

DeOx-It from Caig works.
<a href="http://www.caig.com" target="_blank">http://www.caig.com</a>

No vested interest, and there are doubtless others that also work well, such as Corrosion Block, available at good boat supply stores.

Thom1

Wurth makes a good contact cleaner. My Porsche certified mechanic friend swears by, not at Wurth products.
<img src="graemlins/burnout.gif" border="0" alt="[burnout]" />

When I asked him how to clean-up relays, he said to just spray the Wurth product on the contacts.
<img src="graemlins/burnout.gif" border="0" alt="[burnout]" />

DaveW

Excellent, thanks guys. I haven't tried any of the spray cleaners so it's good to have a pointer towards effective ones. Time to go shopping!

John, when I was installing new door seals I had the door harness block disconnected and the contacts in there were fairly grey. So I checked a few others in the footwell, near the main board and there were a few others that were showing signs of corrosion, and the window/sunroof switches have also got a bit 'sticky' recently. Everything electrical is still working properly at the moment (i'm probably speaking too soon!) so this is a bit of preventative action to try and avoid future problems.

Cheers
DaveW

Moss928

I agree with WallyP. DeOxit is the bomb. I bought mine at an electrical supply co. Contact them they will be able to tell you where to get it.

I found out about it here a little over 2 years ago.

Thom1

Hi Dave,

Something else to consider is the blade connectors are self cleaning. Cycle them in and out a few times to shine them. You can also use scotchbrite, sandpaper, point files, tiny round files, etc. to polish connectors. For the plugs with 8 or 10 round pins, I use scotchbrite on the male side, and a small round file on the female side.

Clean the battery terminals often, and ground (always brown wires) points in that battery well under the plastic cover.

Also see the following notes about grounds and a link to an earlier discussion:

Ground Points:

There are a total of 7 ground points. Some easy to get to others you will need to lift the car and climb under. I will try and get you in the right area.
1) Battery negatice pole to body in the trunk.
2) Two points seperate points above the central electric board.
3) Engine ground to body on right side member.
4) Ground point on front left cross member.
5) Ground point on front right cross member.
6) Ground point underneath instrument panel next to steering column.
7) Ground point in trunk at rear right underneath trim panel. (you have to remove the trim panel for access)
This was taken from the shop books. I am going to start trying to find them on my car and clean them. I found this topic while I was looking for another one that talked about electic problems. I dont know if you should put any kind of protector over the ground to keep it clean.

Hi Sharks:
See this discussion for more data and pictures about grounds. Here are some excerpts too.
<a href="http://forums.rennlist.com/cgi-bin/rennforums/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=14&t=001295&p=" target="_blank">http://forums.rennlist.com/cgi-bin/rennforums/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=14&t=001295&p=</a>
2 coil or engine ground cables. (Right side cable goes from coil bracket bolt to topmost front timing belt cover bolt. Left side connects at bottom rear of back timing belt cover.)
Listed as follows in the manual:
-Battery negative to body
-Above and behind central electrical panel (2 points)
-Engine to body (under passenger's side)
-Left front cross member (to left of headlight motor)
-Right front cross member (passenger's side)
-Under instrument panel by steering column
-Under right rear side trim panel (inside)
Additionally, my fuel injection harness is grounded to bolts on the passenger's side valve cover.
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'83 US 928S 5sp
<img src="graemlins/burnout.gif" border="0" alt="[burnout]" />