Battery Relocation... How difficult is it??

Kdubslugga

Active Member

Jun 7, 2003

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38

Akron, OH

Dec 4, 2004

#1

• Dec 4, 2004

• #1

Im thinking of relocating my battery to the trunk and getting the kit from Summit. I just wondered if this was an easy job or is it hard? Anything i should know about...

 

A

Allforspeed

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Oct 25, 2004

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Dec 5, 2004

#2

• Dec 5, 2004

• #2

i've had friends do this and their car started alot slower when they were done, its easy though and makes wiring up stereo amps really easy!! if its a hatch and you ever want to go to the track though the plastic summit wont pass tech, got to be a metal box i hear

 

HISSIN50

"How long does it take to get help in here?

15 Year Member

Nov 29, 1999

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Dec 5, 2004

#3

• Dec 5, 2004

• #3

Kdubslugga said:

I just wondered if this was an easy job or is it hard? ...

Click to expand...

relocating the battery to the trunk is easy. piece of cake.




















it is the rewiring that is hard.

good luck.

 

HISSIN50

"How long does it take to get help in here?

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#4

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• #4

seriously, running the power cables and power ground can be a bit of a pain. to do it, some drop the gas tank, etc to facilitate proper routing.

one needs, IMHO 1/0 AWG cable, etc. an upgraded chargin system and battery might be in order to accomodate the voltage drop from the length of wires.

good luck.

 

393Bird

Founding Member

Jun 26, 2002

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Clarksville Tennessee

Dec 5, 2004

#5

• Dec 5, 2004

• #5

I just recently completed mine. I have a aluminum firewall between the passenger area and the trunk to meet NHRA Rules, so did not use a box for the battery. For street use, the rod for the cut off switch is unscrewed from the switch.

Here are several pictures of the battery, rear cutoff, and fuel cell instalation.

http://members.tccoa.com/392bird/battery.htm

 

ImportEater98

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Mar 17, 2003

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Worcester, MA

Dec 5, 2004

#6

• Dec 5, 2004

• #6

I can go with the plastic job in my notchback right, because its not a direct shot to my trunk?

 

Michael Yount

Mustang Master

Apr 10, 2002

9,039

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Charlotte, NC

Dec 5, 2004

#7

• Dec 5, 2004

• #7

I'd have to say that relocation was one of the jobs that I thought was gonna be relatively easy, and it turned out to be WAY more time consuming than I thought it would be. Of course, there are no 'kits' made for mine so everything has to be fabricated. But routing the battery cable turned out to be the biggest chore of all. As others have said, most kits don't provide a large enough cable to carry the the current the extra distance. Use nothing smaller than a 1/0 welding cable. I used a set of high quality 2 gauge jumper cables (24') and stripped the insulation back so I could solder together both cables. So my hot cable is a double 2-gauge. No starting issues at all - starts just like it did before the relocate. Be sure to over-insulate - you don't want it to rub against anything, or have it close to anything hot. Black heater hose makes a great insulater for rubbing; aluminum gutter flashing is flexible enough to wrap around it and be held in place with nylon tie-wraps; wrapping it around the heater hose makes for good heat insulation.

Click on the link to see a pic of mine. Yes, that's a $6 WalMart marine battery box; but it's plenty stout, and seems to work just fine. You can see the battery cut off switch mounted just above it on the plastic bulkhead. Makes it easy to work on the car (kills the ground circuit), and is a great theft prevention device. When I travel and leave the car at the airport, I just disconnect the battery and take the 'key' with me.

http://www.stangcity.com/showphoto....00924d8b66ac33273fab9fed3e4a33/sort/1/cat/506

 

04sleeper

Founding Member

Jun 22, 2002

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Dallas, TX

Dec 5, 2004

#8

• Dec 5, 2004

• #8

I had a friend of mine make mine for me out of stainless steel. I used 2 gauge and have never had a problem. Here is a few pictures of it.


Hold Down.

Vent tube.

Vent running out of the car through plug at rear.

 

Michael Yount

Mustang Master

Apr 10, 2002

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Charlotte, NC

Dec 5, 2004

#9

• Dec 5, 2004

• #9

K - I thought surely yours would be out of fiberglass!

 

Kdubslugga

Active Member

Jun 7, 2003

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Akron, OH

Dec 5, 2004

#10

• Dec 5, 2004

• #10

Thanks for all the replies, had some real good ones

 

04sleeper

Founding Member

Jun 22, 2002

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Dallas, TX

Dec 5, 2004

#11

• Dec 5, 2004

• #11

Michael Yount said:

K - I thought surely yours would be out of fiberglass!

Click to expand...

LoL. No. Hows the experimenting going?

 

B

BaXTeR3221

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Jan 12, 2004

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Orange County, NY

Dec 5, 2004

#12

• Dec 5, 2004

• #12

How much cable is needed for the positive side? I'm buying a kit soon and i dont want to have to go out and buy extra cable if i find out i dont have enough.

 

Michael Yount

Mustang Master

Apr 10, 2002

9,039

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Charlotte, NC

Dec 5, 2004

#13

• Dec 5, 2004

• #13

20 ft. ought to be enough to allow you to play around; but you probably ought to measure your car from the place you plan to mount it to the place you're running to in the front. Everyone routes differently so there's not a one size fits all answer to how much cable will it take.

K - just got a great idea about using a food vacuum bagger to vacuum squeeze small parts. I'll let you know how it turns out.

 

B

BaXTeR3221

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Orange County, NY

Dec 5, 2004

#14

• Dec 5, 2004

• #14

And do i need a box if i have a notch and might go to the track, or can i just use the tray?


Sorry for the hi-jack

 

Michael Yount

Mustang Master

Apr 10, 2002

9,039

6

79

Charlotte, NC

Dec 5, 2004

#15

• Dec 5, 2004

• #15

You should probably check with the folks who run tech at the track - different tracks adhere to different rules. You'll probably be safe with a box; some places probably won't let you run it without a box.

 

hllon4whls

BANNED

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Jan 17, 2002

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Covington

Dec 5, 2004

#16

• Dec 5, 2004

• #16

IMO relocating the battery is easy, but time consuming to do correctly.

If done correctly with the proper sized cables and good grounding, there should be NO issues starting or charging.

Michael has some good ideas about saving on cable costs and his grounding is overkill, but too much is about right in hotrodding.

As far as a 100% NHRA legal battery installtion in a notch, the rear seat is NOT a firewall. You must use the appropriate gauge steel or aluminum sheet. Dont forget for track use, you need a master cut off switch that will kill the car. That means you have to do a little something special with the alternator wire to make sure that it does not keep the car running without the battery.

 

HISSIN50

"How long does it take to get help in here?

15 Year Member

Nov 29, 1999

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Dec 5, 2004

#17

• Dec 5, 2004

• #17

sometimes when trying to figure out a rough idea on how much cable you will need, i use a piece of string. route it as close as you can to the path you will take with your cable and then add a smidge extra for fudge factor.
if i eyeball it or use a tape (which does not take the exact same route as the string since it is bulky), i tend to be off.

good luck.

 

crazypete

All my crevices are greased.

Oct 22, 2004

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18

Arlington, MA

Dec 6, 2004

#18

• Dec 6, 2004

• #18

As some extra insurance, add a 200 amp audio equiptment style circuit breaker right as the cable comes off the positive terminal. Push button reset. I bet you could even rig up a cutoff from it.

 

rsw007

New Member

Jul 7, 2004

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Lexington,SC

Dec 6, 2004

#19

• Dec 6, 2004

• #19

buy the taylor alum. box kit comes with everything. 120-130 bucks

 

B

BaXTeR3221

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Jan 12, 2004

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Orange County, NY

Dec 6, 2004

#20

• Dec 6, 2004

• #20

Yep thats exactly what i got