| Topic | Summary |
| Capacitors |
Inside a capacitor are two surfaces, separated by insulating material. When the capacitor is charged, one surface is positively charged, the other is negatively charged. |
| Conductors & insulators |
Conductors are materials that allow electrical current to flow. Insulators are materials that do not allow electrical current to flow. |
| Wires |
Electric wires are used to conduct electric current around the motor vehicle. |
| Shielding |
To prevent noise (interference), some vehicles use shielded wiring harnesses. The type of shielding used can be one of three forms: twisted pair, Mylar tape and drain lines. |
| Wire sizes |
There are two scales used to measure the sizes of wires: Metric and AWG (American Wire Gauge). |
| Length vs. resistance |
As the length of the wire increases, so does the resistance within the wire. Therefore the greater the length of the wire, the larger the cross-sectional area needs to be. |
| Fuses & circuit breakers |
Fuses and circuit breakers are used to protect electrical systems from allowing too much current to flow. |
| Relays |
Relays act as switches that are turned on and off by a small current. They can allow large current to be switched on and off in a circuit. |
| Ballast resistor | The ballast resistor is used to reduce the voltage to the ignition coil during normal running conditions. |