I picked up a car “amplifier installation kit” from Walmart on the recommendation of a news group / enthusiast forum I read often.  Many people said, “spend the money and get good wires,”  but I listened instead to the individual who insisted that purchasing a Scosche kit at Walmart, for half the price of the specialty websites, was the smartest move to make.  There is a lot of hype in the Car Stereo industry, after all, and how many ways can you strand copper? 

What I didn't realize is that this fool hadn't actually used on. If he had, he'd realize that the reason the kit is cheap is because it has inferior quality (8 awg rather than 4) ground cable and a very short power cable.  Too short!  I need at least 16 ft just to run from the battery to the trunk.  I'd like to get it well into the trunk so we're talking 18 ft.  14 ft got me just inder the back seat.  That is sub optimal to say the least!

Imagine my surprise, after spending quite some time removing my back seat, finding an appropriate place to go through the firewall, attaching the fuse block to the side of the battery case, wiring up the battery, wrapping the cable under the hood, running the wire under the carpet of the interior (after removing all the plastic molding) and then, as I approach the pass through to the trunk.  what?  didn't i measure this?  oh yeah, I went on some internet chatter's advice!  Stupid me. 

So I spliced it to the length of 8awg cable provided in the kit and made it work, for now.  I don't have the subwoofer amp in so the wire is fine until then. 

I ordered some 4 awg power cable from SoundDomain.com.  I like that site.  I've ordered before and had a good experience.  The wire was reasonably priced and I got some speaker wire to boot.  All said and done, I will have spent about what it cost for the professional amplifier installation kit that included, wow, 20 ft of power cable and several feet of 4 awg ground.  Stupid me.