battery relocate?
Keyboard Humorist
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 9,814
Likes: 11
From: Granada Hills, Ca, USA
Keyboard Humorist
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 9,814
Likes: 11
From: Granada Hills, Ca, USA
Re: battery relocate?
Well, which one is it? DIY or kit?
Basically feeling that all you want is to see pics.
It's a battery... in a trunk... of a 20 year old car.
not much going on there.
Keyboard Humorist
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 9,814
Likes: 11
From: Granada Hills, Ca, USA
Re: battery relocate?
Well, the side of the trunk opposite the driver so you can offset some weight.
I used a properly vented Taylor aluminum box for mine.
Make sure you pick the correct box for your battery! You do not want fumes in the cabin.
For cables I used an aftermarket terminal on my battery that let me use several different gauge outputs.
One 4 gauge went to a fuse and then to stereo amps mounted in the trunk in the back seat.
A 2 gauge went to another fuse and then to distribution block under the dash. Power split from there to fuse boxes, ECU, alarm, etc. and just one 4 gauge to the starter. Never had a problem starting - power was always good.
I used quality power cable and lugs from a local stereo shop.
Some people run large welding grade 0 gauge straight to the starter... I think that's total overkill, more difficult route through the chassis, and the lug connection at the starter looks sketchy. If you really have your heart set on 2 or 0 gauge then consider a power distribution block under your dash.
Many BMWs have rear mounted batteries. Try to find one in a junkyard and you will find that under the hood they have a terminal. It's used for jump starting the car from under the hood if you ever need to. Comes in handy, but it's not required.
Be sure to fit your power wires with a circuit breaker or fuse in-line at the battery. This is for safety. Don't skimp out - use one!
Ground cables are just as important as the power. Do NOT use a smaller wire than your largest power wire. I used a 4 gauge ground since my starter was ultimately using 4 gauge power.
Again, I used an aftermarket battery terminal. This one allowed me to hook up two 4 gauges for ground. My car was a pain in the butt for finding a good ground... ended up hooking to screw near the tail light as well as the tie down for the spare tire. Eventually I ran a 4 gauge ground cable from the engine bay all the way bay to the trunk. Along the way back I added a couple lugs - one under the dash and one where my stereo amps were finding ground. This was to tie the chassis together. Old unibody chassis (these cars are basically tack welded and glued together - no solid frame from front to back) proved itself not to be the best for solid metal contact. I highly recommend the ground cable to anyone doing a battery relocation I noticed a decent improvement in starting, but very noticeable in simple things like headlights and dash never dimming
I used a properly vented Taylor aluminum box for mine.
Make sure you pick the correct box for your battery! You do not want fumes in the cabin.
For cables I used an aftermarket terminal on my battery that let me use several different gauge outputs.
One 4 gauge went to a fuse and then to stereo amps mounted in the trunk in the back seat.
A 2 gauge went to another fuse and then to distribution block under the dash. Power split from there to fuse boxes, ECU, alarm, etc. and just one 4 gauge to the starter. Never had a problem starting - power was always good.
I used quality power cable and lugs from a local stereo shop.
Some people run large welding grade 0 gauge straight to the starter... I think that's total overkill, more difficult route through the chassis, and the lug connection at the starter looks sketchy. If you really have your heart set on 2 or 0 gauge then consider a power distribution block under your dash.
Many BMWs have rear mounted batteries. Try to find one in a junkyard and you will find that under the hood they have a terminal. It's used for jump starting the car from under the hood if you ever need to. Comes in handy, but it's not required.
Be sure to fit your power wires with a circuit breaker or fuse in-line at the battery. This is for safety. Don't skimp out - use one!
Ground cables are just as important as the power. Do NOT use a smaller wire than your largest power wire. I used a 4 gauge ground since my starter was ultimately using 4 gauge power.
Again, I used an aftermarket battery terminal. This one allowed me to hook up two 4 gauges for ground. My car was a pain in the butt for finding a good ground... ended up hooking to screw near the tail light as well as the tie down for the spare tire. Eventually I ran a 4 gauge ground cable from the engine bay all the way bay to the trunk. Along the way back I added a couple lugs - one under the dash and one where my stereo amps were finding ground. This was to tie the chassis together. Old unibody chassis (these cars are basically tack welded and glued together - no solid frame from front to back) proved itself not to be the best for solid metal contact. I highly recommend the ground cable to anyone doing a battery relocation I noticed a decent improvement in starting, but very noticeable in simple things like headlights and dash never dimming
Last edited by 4drEF; Mar 19, 2010 at 09:22 AM.
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From: Ft. Hood
Re: battery relocate?
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GARBhatch.
Honda Civic / Del Sol (1992 - 2000)
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Oct 7, 2002 11:08 AM
