How To Change Battery Cables On 1997 Toyota 4- Runner

When you say you have all the right things, I'm assuming you mean that you have the proper battery cables, tools, a pair of safety glasses or goggles, a paper cup, an old toothbrush, some baking soda, water, an old jacket or sweatshirt that can be trashed, and a pair of rubber gloves..

If you are having trouble following the directions on the new cable box, then do this.

1) Park on level ground and set the parking brake. Put on the old jacket or sweatshirt. 2) Write down the AM and FM radio station presets on your radio on a piece of paper - this is handy when it comes to re-programming the radio after you have disconnected the battery. 3) Open the hood and put on a pair of safety glasses or goggles. If you do not have safety glasses, a pair of regular eye glasses or sunglasses will do. Keep the glasses on the whole time you're messing with the batter and cables! 4) Look at the battery. If you see a beige crumbly buildup on the cables or on top of the battery, put about an inch of baking soda in the bottom of a paper cup, add some water to make a runny paste. While wearing the gloves, use the old toothbrush and baking soda paste to carefully brush the crud off the battery cables. The crud is acidic and will eat holes in clothes, burn skin, and eat paint so be VERY careful when brushing the stuff off, especially your eyes. Rinse the battery and anything the crud got splattered on with clean water. 5) use a wrench to loosen the nut on the negative battery cable clamp. The negative cable is usually black and is connected to the negative terminal on the battery, which should be identified with a minus sign "-." You may have to pry the clamp jaws open with a screwdriver to be able to lift the clamp off the top of the battery. 6) Loosen the positive battery cable clamp. The positive cable is red or has some kind or red sleeve and is connected to the positive terminal on the battery, which should be identified with a plus sign "+." If you have to pry the clamp jaws open, make sure the screwdriver does not tough anything metal like the clamp that holds the battery, or the body or the other battery terminal. You will get very hot sparks and the risk of explosion if you do. 7) Follow the positive cable down to the starter. The other end of the positive battery cable will be connected to the starter. disconnect the old cable from the starter and install the new one. Disconnect any thinner wires that are attached to the old positive cable and attach them in the same manner to the new positive cable. 8) follow the negative cable down to whatever it is bolted to and unbolt it and replace with the new negative battery cable. 9) re-attach the positive cable and then the negative cable, re-set your clock and radio, and you're done!

Good luck!

Disconnect the Negative ( - ) cable from the batttery, then from whatever it is connected to at the other end (or, leave it to hang so you don't lose the connection point later).

Disconnect the Positive ( + ) terminal from the battery and from whatever it is connected to at the other end. Connect the new Positive cable to the same places, do this in reverse order of how the old one came off.

Connect the Negative cable to the point where it connected to the block or frame, then connect it to the battery.

REASONS FOR THE PARTICULAR ORDER OF MAKING CONNECTIONS If the Negative cable is connected to the battery and the frame (engine) while you are working on the Positive cable, you can short the positive cable and turn your tools into an arc welder. The odds are good that you won't do ayn serious damage, but the odds are about equal that you turn your car or truck into a pile of molten mess in the middle of your driveway. The surprise of arc welding unexpectedly can result in an injury to yourself or a bystander. You can avoid all possibility of arc welding if you disconnect the negative terminal first. Well, you can still arc weld between the Positive and Negative battery terminals, but they are spaced pretty far apart, and you'll have to work at this mistake with lots of enthusiasm and effort. Normal caution will prevent arc welding between the two battery terminals, and if the negative cable is disconnected from the battery the positive terminal will not arc to nearby body parts.