Automotive Wire, Electrical Wire, & Conductor Wire

Don’t let your vehicle’s electrical wiring turn into a mess of spaghetti. Using the proper gauge wire in assorted colors is the best way to ensure your automotive electrical...

Don’t let your vehicle’s electrical wiring turn into a mess of spaghetti. Using the proper gauge wire in assorted colors is the best way to ensure your automotive electrical wiring stays safe and organized. That’s because the right automotive electrical wire makes it easier to troubleshoot electrical issues and ensures that your vehicle’s electrical systems operate reliability.

From traditional red and black wire to a palette of other wire colors, you can keep your electrical system organized and easy to follow. More importantly you can select from a range of the most common automotive wire gauges (wire thickness), from smaller 20, 18, and 16 gauge wires for low-current accessories, all the way down to larger gauges like 14 and 10, ideal for electrical accessories with higher current demands.

While it may be counter-intuitive, when talking about electrical wire gauge (commonly abbreviated as AWG for American Wire Gauge) the bigger the number, the smaller diameter of the wire. So for instance 20 AWG wire has a smaller OD than 10 AWG electrical wire. In other words, 10 AWG wire is thicker than the 20 AWG wire.

Selecting the right automotive electrical wire gauge for your vehicle is critical, not only for the proper operation of your electrical accessories but also to prevent potential damage to the wire, your electric components, and ultimately the vehicle. Drawing too much electrical current (amps) through thinner, higher gauge wire can cause the wires to get really, really hot. That heat can melt connectors and burn through the wire insulation, resulting in shorts, which can potentially cause arcing or sparks between the wires and other metal components. Obviously, that’s no good for the electrical system, but it becomes much more serious when the electrical wires are run near combustible material—like gasoline, wood, fiberboard, carpet, or vehicle upholstery.

And as alluded to earlier, when you’re wiring up electrical components your wire colors matter. Typically red and black electrical wires are used to denote power, but beyond that, you should consider color-coding your electrical system to make it easier to troubleshoot electrical wire issues in the future. For instance, running blue wire for a fuel pump switch, yellow wire for a subwoofer amp remote, and an orange wire for trunk popper solenoid can mitigate a lot of confusion when you’re staring at a crowded wire loom.

Ready to start wiring up your vehicle’s electric accessories? Find the right automotive electrical wire you need to do it right here, at Summit Racing.