9-18V (up to 4A) DC motors + arduino

breadboard hook-up wires won't take 4A or anything like that - often they have significant series resistance and I'd
keep them for low current use only. Also some of the croc-clip leads I've bought weren't even soldered to the clips
and had stupidly thin wires. If you want 4A to flow reliably you'll need better wiring and screw-terminals or soldered connections only.