"Y-Cable "

edfrompa

2008 ROADTREK on F/L 2500
Reading about early year NCV 3 Sprinters having problems due to internal corrosion of subject cable.
Getting in/under our 2008 RS Adventurous, I do not see what the pictures of "Y-Cables" show.
Does/did Roadtrek use all or some of that cable or is the starter/alternator/battery wiring harness unique to Roadtrek??
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
I sincerely doubt (100% probability) that RoadTrek did **not** change the origina Sprinter's engine-area wiring.

You should have the Y-cable (unless a previous owner did something "creative")

It runs from the battery (hence not obvious from the front of the engine compartment in an NCV3) to the starter and then to the alternator.
From the alternator another cable runs to the glow plug module.

--dick
 
D

Deleted member 50714

Guest
I sincerely doubt (100% probability) that RoadTrek did **not** change the origina Sprinter's engine-area wiring.

You should have the Y-cable (unless a previous owner did something "creative")

It runs from the battery (hence not obvious from the front of the engine compartment in an NCV3) to the starter and then to the alternator.
From the alternator another cable runs to the glow plug module.

--dick
Also, note on NCV a 300 amp in-line fuse exists on positive battery cable.
 
D

Deleted member 50714

Guest
Reading about early year NCV 3 Sprinters having problems due to internal corrosion of subject cable.
Getting in/under our 2008 RS Adventurous, I do not see what the pictures of "Y-Cables" show.
Does/did Roadtrek use all or some of that cable or is the starter/alternator/battery wiring harness unique to Roadtrek??
What pictures you looking at?
 

ptheland

2013 144" low top Passgr
Getting in/under our 2008 RS Adventurous, I do not see what the pictures of "Y-Cables" show.
First things first. What model year is the chassis? Not the motorhome, but the underlysing chassis.

A 2008 motorhome could be on a 2006 or a 2007 chassis. In Sprinters, there was a big change between these years.

A quick check - how many cylinders does your engine have?
 

edfrompa

2008 ROADTREK on F/L 2500
PicS I was looking at was in parts catalog nd y-cable threads here.
Believe from what I see, the cable from the battery runs to the battery separator --not the alternator?????
In any case, I'm an NCV3, 6 CYL
 

autostaretx

Erratic Member
PicS I was looking at was in parts catalog nd y-cable threads here.
Believe from what I see, the cable from the battery runs to the battery separator --not the alternator?????
In any case, I'm an NCV3, 6 CYL
The "battery separator" (isolation relay) should come from the Power Distribution Center (PDC) that's wedged into the starter battery box, on the driver's side of the battery:

(the comments in the boxes are from a previous "where should i add a wire?" thread)



The PDC:



--dick
 

RT.SS

Active member
Roadtrek battery separator is connected to the starter + terminal. The Y - cable is MB wiring, it connects from chassis battery to starter to alternator as mentioned by Dick.
 

edfrompa

2008 ROADTREK on F/L 2500
Roadtrek battery separator is connected to the starter + terminal. The Y - cable is MB wiring, it connects from chassis battery to starter to alternator as mentioned by Dick.
See that now...thanks.

No problems with said cable to date. Question: after 10 years and 120k is it prudent to replace it as PM or better to leave it alone??
 

tinman

Well-known member
See that now...thanks ge.

No problems with said cable to date. Question: after 10 years and 120k is it prudent to replace it as PM or better to leave it alone??
Are you getting full alternator voltage at the battery (should be 14+)? If so, your y-cable is OK. Maybe you got a good one, or it hasn't been operated in challenging conditions. If it's OK, I'd leave it and check it from time to time. Not that big a deal to change it out when it goes bad, and I would guess that the deterioration in performance is progressive.
 

bcislander

'07 Mercedes-badged Dodge
Are you getting full alternator voltage at the battery (should be 14+)? If so, your y-cable is OK. Maybe you got a good one, or it hasn't been operated in challenging conditions. If it's OK, I'd leave it and check it from time to time. Not that big a deal to change it out when it goes bad, and I would guess that the deterioration in performance is progressive.
+1
 

gte

2008 RS
I have a 2008 RS(2007 chassis) Freightliner. To date(96,000 miles) my Y cable seems to be working fine. I get 14+ volts on shore power. I do not drive in the winter much and in Minnesota that means minimizing salt exposure.
Gary
 

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