I am going to wire in a CB radio for an upcoming road trip and the instructions say the vehicle has to be a vehicle with a negative ground... So are Minis a negative ground car?

 

Yup. Fact is I have never seen a car that was not negative ground.

Rich

 

Yes.

BTW, Which CB/ Antenna are you running?

 

Thanks!

I just have a Midland 1001z. I have the 'through the glass' antenna, but I am going to get something else, because I want something that is easily taken on and off. I see there is a magnetic base antenna so perhaps I'll go for that.

 

What brand is the mag mount? They're certainly not all created equal. The Wilson brand is pretty good, but with the mag mount you need to make sure underneath is spotless and the magnet sits on a true flat section of the roof or you'll get scratching form the magnet rocking and dust/dirt getting underneath (I learned the hard way)

Through glass is OK for scanning but if you're going to Tx you'll have high SWR issues until you get over 500mhz (CB is ~27mhz).

Be sure to post up in the CB thread after you get it all installed:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-the-mini.html

 

Lucas Electronics used to provide car-wiring that was "positive ground" ... and in general, Lucas equipment was among the LEAST-reliable car-electrical wiring and instrumentation to be found ANYWHERE; ask around among your friends who owned Spitfires and Jaguars 30 years ago: http://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/sh...d.php?p=110472

 

A friend of mine had a Ford Model A with positive ground.

 

negative grounds are those little spots of bare metal throughout the inside and outside of a car. usually thread heads and such. use a voltmeter/multimeter to find a good one in the spot you need.

 

Almost all cars nowdays are negative Ground. The negative side of the battery connects to the frame (considered ground). Some large trucks use 24 volts for starting and are positive ground. Most all automotive electronic equipment is negative ground. Without special converters you can not use most modern electronic equipment on positive ground. Your equipment will work in the negative ground Mini Cooper. Therfore 10-4 Good Buddy, keep the clean side up.