Whats this wire on my starter motor?

Hi guys, I'm doing a 300tdi conversion and am starting on the electrics. Fortunately the engine loom was left in place by the previous owner. Looking at the starter motor I have a short, thick wire coming off with a ring terminal on it.
I'm not sure what this is, could anyone help me? Thanks

Take it starter has got power all ready,in that case could be anything,something to do with a split charge or winch set up?

Is it the link wire to the alternator output stud?

Where does the other end connect?

My td5 has two wires on it. One is the alternator. The other is to/from the battery

Thanks for the replies guys

tottot said:

Take it starter has got power all ready,in that case could be anything,something to do with a split charge or winch set up?

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Yes the cable with the battery terminal on it is hooked up and goes into the battery box.

Kwakerman said:

Is it the link wire to the alternator output stud?

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The thing is, since the loom was left in place when the engine was taken out, there would be no reason to disconnect this one cable form the alternator. I haven't tried but I don't think it's anywhere near long enough to reach the alt anyway. So I'm thinking it's some sort of aftermarket addition that I can take off without a problem.

Marmaduke said:

Where does the other end connect?

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The other end goes to the top nut/bolt on the starter solenoid. You can just about make it out if you trace the cable back in the photo.

a 300tdi has a main fuse box with 3 fuses on the passenger footwell feeds for car come from there,whereas earlier models the feed for car went from starter to ignition switch and anything fed by brown wires

jamesmartin said:

a 300tdi has a main fuse box with 3 fuses on the passenger footwell feeds for car come from there,whereas earlier models the feed for car went from starter to ignition switch and anything fed by brown wires

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So if I understand corectly, I can remove this without issue?

yes ,but you need to ensure you add the brown wires from your vehicle loom

Sorry for the dumb questions but I just want to make sure - I need to take the two brown wires off my old starter, and put them in place of this one on the 300tdi and wire them straight up to the original loom?

Thanks

From what I can see in the picture all you need to do is removed this short wire and bin it, the brown wires will already be part of your existing wiring loom and this small wire is just a hazard as it is live and liable to short out on the chassis rails if you're not careful. Remove the nut from the starter motor, disconnect the other end and bin it, job done