# Is this green wire loose or is it in right place? **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [May 25, 2024, 6:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976 "2024-05-25T18:07:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![itouring2010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@itouring2010](https://community.cartalk.com/u/itouring2010)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2024, 6:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/1 "2024-05-25T18:07:22Z")
mazda3 2010. still hearing what was speculated as heat shield rattle. well noticed this today under the hood. is this green wire loose or is it where its supposed to be? ![IMG_0256](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/0/7/0788938af92f11ec0fbabf9b396133a29b553b1a.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2024, 10:48pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/2 "2024-05-25T22:48:15Z")
Is that wire robustly connected to something (an electrical terminal) on both ends? It is not possible to tell by the photo. Sometimes a shop tech will have to remove a ground wire and forget to re-connect it at the end of the job. That may not produce any obvious immediate problems with the car’s operation, but usually will cause a problem of some sort in the future. ---
**Author:** ![PvtPublic](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pvtpublic/32/13089_2.png) [@PvtPublic](https://community.cartalk.com/u/PvtPublic)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2024, 10:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/3 "2024-05-25T22:55:53Z")
Good job, not giving anyone any perspective. Back off a bit so we can see the whole picture. ---
**Author:** ![Nevada\_545](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/nevada_545/32/41232_2.png) [@Nevada\_545](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Nevada_545)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2024, 11:17pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/4 "2024-05-25T23:17:25Z")
Looks like a cable was routed through the firewall, possibly for an audio amplifier? Start with a basic description of the cable, what is each end attached to? If you feel the cable isn’t secure, use cable ties to hold it to non-moving anchor points. ---
**Author:** ![itouring2010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@itouring2010](https://community.cartalk.com/u/itouring2010)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 12:36am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/5 "2024-05-26T00:36:49Z")
so green means grounding wire? it seemed to be connected to some part of engine or transmission? ive been having a lot of rattle noise in car during idle. ---
**Author:** ![itouring2010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@itouring2010](https://community.cartalk.com/u/itouring2010)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 12:44am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/6 "2024-05-26T00:44:03Z")
my audio is stock. i cant reach it to check if its secure. i was looking through the hood. i put the phone towards it to take a pic. i have no set up here to lift the car. i just popped the hood and saw it from above at an angle. as i stated in another response i cant reach it. im not even sure if its a wire. its thicker than wire and going by whats around it you can assume the size of this thing. you can prob tell there is a cv boot or something behind it. ---
**Author:** ![itouring2010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@itouring2010](https://community.cartalk.com/u/itouring2010)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 12:45am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/7 "2024-05-26T00:45:42Z")
my other concern is if that thing gonna melt if it touches anything around it? ---
**Author:** ![cigroller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c68b51/32.png) [@cigroller](https://community.cartalk.com/u/cigroller)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 4:09am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/8 "2024-05-26T04:09:40Z")
Oy. With the pic you gave, I can’t speculate as to the mysterious “green wire.” But it’s not your rattle. And it’s not going to “melt” unless it ends up directly on the exhaust. Use common sense. And it it seems a problem just use some cable ties to secure it as @Nevada_545 said. There are mountains and mole hills. This isn’t even a mole hill. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 1:22pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/9 "2024-05-26T13:22:04Z")
Do you have an inspection mirror tool like the one shown below? They aren’t expensive. It would help you see where the wire goes on the right of the picture you posted. ![IMG_0123](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/4/1/41cf3ff5ed2c712daa417e7ea4a95d7dbcd1c3bd.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 1:50pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/10 "2024-05-26T13:50:39Z")
> [@jtsanders](#): > > They aren’t expensive. +1 Harbor Freight has one for $3.99: > **[Telescoping Mirror](https://www.harborfreight.com/telescoping-mirror-7361.html)** > > Amazing deals on this Telescoping Mirror at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices. ---
**Author:** ![itouring2010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@itouring2010](https://community.cartalk.com/u/itouring2010)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 2:51pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/11 "2024-05-26T14:51:00Z")
thank you for the advice and consultation. this site is worth a million dollars or more because of people like you ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 3:54pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/12 "2024-05-26T15:54:25Z")
I don’t recognize the wire nor what it would be going to or for what it would be used for on your vehicle… I simply think you ran over it on the road somewhere and it flew up in the engine compartment, or maybe even a rodent drug it up in there… But I don’t think it belongs to your vehicle… I would see if you can pull on it a little to remove it… ---
**Author:** ![bing](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bing/32/4619_2.png) [@bing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bing)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 4:17pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/13 "2024-05-26T16:17:14Z")
I can’t see much of anything from that picture but some cars, at least my Gm cars, have a test terminal for the fuel pump. Used for quality control at the factory. ---
**Author:** ![db4690](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/db4690/32/2583_2.png) [@db4690](https://community.cartalk.com/u/db4690)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 7:09pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/14 "2024-05-26T19:09:37Z")
my wild guess . . . heat-resistant wiring for factory upstream O2S ![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/e/e/eec8555c1d89d0d28da098224feca6c14d426be4.png) and that’s the bellows for the power steering rack in the background, not a CV halfshaft, as someone else suggested ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 10:29pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/15 "2024-05-26T22:29:12Z")
> [@itouring2010](#): > > so green means grounding wire? Maybe, but no way to know for sure without referring to manufacturer’s wiring diagrams. Ground wires are often black, brown, or green. Green being the less common of the three for vehicles. Green is a common color for safety-grounds in home-appliances & buildings. Car designers use the body of the car as the common ground b/c it saves on wiring cost & weight. For example there’s no need to run a separate ground wire to the rear tail-lights; the ground current can return via the car’s metal body. The engine, transmission, and cylinder head ground paths have to be given more consideration for the grounds, both b/c of high currents and sensitive sensors. For example on front wheel drive cars it is critical the starter motor ground current return to the battery along the designed path, otherwise the ground current may return to the batter through the drive-axles and this will cause all sorts of grief. ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 10:35pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/16 "2024-05-26T22:35:18Z")
> [@db4690](#): > > heat-resistant wiring for factory upstream O2S That makes the most sense… Maybe replaced at one time and re-routed for ease of install.?.?.. ---
**Author:** ![itouring2010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@itouring2010](https://community.cartalk.com/u/itouring2010)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2024, 12:45am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/17 "2024-05-27T00:45:20Z")
this looks like what i saw in there. is it where its supposed to be? does it look like it needs to be more secure? it just caught my eye for some reason while looking in the engine compartment. ---
**Author:** ![davesmopar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davesmopar/32/41750_2.png) [@davesmopar](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davesmopar)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2024, 1:00am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-this-green-wire-loose-or-is-it-in-right-place/194976/18 "2024-05-27T01:00:52Z")
Take some more pictures from a little further out/away as well as different angles, we can not tell for sure from that one picture…