first is first chase down any burnt wires, obviously a new wiring harness is hard to do and time crunch so just do a splice job with proper connectors and electrical tape. to get rid of the bad parts of the wires.... the wire from ignition switch for the solenoid goes to the small stud with S by it.
almost always purple color on most GM
all other wires go to the battery cable stud
so yes there correct the little wire went to the (s) spot.
whatever you rigged up chase that wire up and down and make sure no bare spots or a chance to ground out again... when you put them on make sure there is no possible way any wires can touch together. because if you look closely its very easly able to let the wires touch together or ground out... also chase the negative cable down and make sure the other end of it is clean and tight with no rust so it has a good connection cause a bad ground can cause it to get hot also. don't worry negative cable easy to follow where it bolts at.
then its down to the battery if its any good still or not.. obviously check head lights and horn see if they work well. you could try charging it but man when a battery explodes its not pretty.... plus since it boiled as you said im wandering if it didnt boil the battery acid which means it will be junk.. will go dead and not hold a charge... we dont no for sure till u try her out.
even if it burned the alternator out the engine will still fire up and run off the battery.... so get it all back together and charged battery in it and try her out. if she fires up pull the positive battery cable off buut hold onto it and do not let it touch anything at all.. while its running and see if it dies..... it will only run if its getting power from some where.. so basicly if it dies then alternator is junk.. if it continues to run then alternator is good still and put your cable back on tightly.. make sure it dont touch the hood or any metal near the battery.
I should add some times they used or people used the the big wire spot as a way to transfer power to other places on the truck also and the wires would have a fuseable link in the wires so if you shorted this out which you did... it is possible you may need to fix those wires that have fuseable links... usualy if bad they will just pull apart if my memory serves me right. well if you run into problems we will conquer that together... one step at a time =]
Sounds like you fried your battery. Was the black cable hooked to the negative (-) terminal of the battery and to the ground of the engine and was the red cable running from the positive (+) terminal of the battery and to the positive terminal on the starter solenoid? The loud clicking noise was the starter solenoid. They do this when the battery is low or they are worn out. You might have hooked up the jumper cables backward, because the battery was boiling. You probably need a new battery and a starter solenoid and check the wiring to make sure it's hooked up right before you start it again.
I've had a bad battery (factory install, no one ever touched anything on the car) that decided to start boiling from normal use. Also wouldn't hold a charge.
Pretty hard to cross/short wires (especially from the battery, which anen't fuse-protected) and not notice it immediately.
you needed a new positive cable. now you may need a positive cable, a battery, and maybe an alternator.
Car Info: 88 Chevy Cheyenne 3500. Engine 350 5.7 Rear wheel drive Automatic.
Ok, so my starter failed and I replaced it myself. (first time doing so) After I replaced it, it had to be jumped due to trying to start it with the old starter. It started up no problem. So, I drove it for about 5 minutes, then turned it off again. When I turned it back on, all I heard was a loud clicking noise. I had figured that the truck was on long enough for it to charge the battery . was wrong. So, later that night I had it jumped once again. I drove it about 2 miles then started smelling rotten eggs. I quickly rushed home. My truck died as I was pulling into the drive way. I popped the hood, smoke came rushing out of the battery, then I heard boiling noises inside. I quickly unhooked the battery and let it sit,
As for the starter, when I put everything back to together, I had to somewhat rig, what I believe is the positive end that of the cord that connects into the starter. The end that you slide over the bolt then put a nut on it. Sorry not too knowledgeable. I also called the auto parts store to confirm that the small wire is connected to the side that is designated "s".
There's the book of info, now here's the simple question: What in the hell did I do wrong.
Any insight/knowledge would be GREATLY apprecaited. Please do not suggest a shop. I don't have much money to my name. It's a last resort,
