I have looked all over the place on this forum for a topic I read a while back. Can not find it. Searched a million different combinations of "splice", "quick splice", & "do not cut". So I'm asking this similar question. The article was about doing some sort of electrical modification on some lights and using quick splices, but there was a notation of "do not cut" in bold letters as if it meant there was a serious reason for so. I have never been a fan of the quick splice. It is almost always good at first but given a little time the contact might not be good enough. Sometimes you might even have only gotten a hold of only one wire strand. I've just had too many problems with those in the long term. I always prefered to actually cut the wire and then crimp a butt splice (with a good copper based electrical grease as well). My question is: Is there a reason this person said to quick splice instead of cutting/butt splice a connection. I'm wondering if the computer would sense that as a broken wire (because it had been cut and possibly have a higher resistance it might read) or some other flag it might pick up. Just wondering if it was a personal preference or some bonafide reason. This will be my first new vehicle since I got my 2000 Silverado. It's computer system is nothing compared to today's new vehicles. And the computers have completely taken over almost every function in the new trucks. I guess I'm just scared to death of doing something to mess up the computer system. Where as before I never thought twice about doing anything. Have lots of plans for my new truck and just counting the days till it gets here !

 

To just slice into a wire without disturbing the structural integrity of the wire I would suggest;

 

Good tip on the wire ties. I never thought of that on all of my car wiring projects.

 

The splice can easily be removed later and the bare wire taped up. Cutting and slicing cause a weak point that can cause problems later.

 

That's a decent technique that's missing one step - solder the wires. No solder will result in a high-resistance connection over time.

 

Are you competent at soldering ? If not,lots of practice before the truck comes will help What wires do you anticipate splicing into ? Heat shrink is best for a good insulator of the joint. The trick with electrical tape is to stretch it as you wrap. jd50i is correct about causing a weak point,especially in thin gauge wire. That's a great joint shown,even better if soldered.

https://www.google.ca/#q=how+to+solder+wire

 

Only if the wires are left loose. In the 80's I used to install car stereos, alarms, etc. I only saw problems with wiring that had come loose. I installed autostarts in my 2001 Sequoia 8 years ago and in my 1998 ranger 15 years ago with not problems. I just removed the autostarts when I traded them in on my new truck along with numerous other add ons over the last 35 years. Solder of course is a better connection but not necessarily required, especially if you plan on removing later.

 

Any wiring connections on a vehicle need to be soldered and heat shrink tubing used. If you just use crimp connectors and electrical tape, or even worse, T taps, you are looking for problems.

 

solder - or if in a tight spot I use painless performance and build a connector to make a connection

 

+1