how do i put my battery in the boot?

GT4 20 · Post by **GT4 20** » Thu Jun 17, 2004 11:12 pm

Is this of any help?
http://www.220gti.co.nz/boot%20mounted%20battery.htmTaken from my website, I did the conversion a couple of years ago and have had no issues with it whatsoever.
Gary

Snoozin · Post by **Snoozin** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 1:44 am

Sorry but this is a shameless plug....

Jaycar sell pretty much everything you'll need to do this conversion.

2G cable will be sufficient to run battery cables to the boot, has a current capacity of 160A... if you want you can go with welding cable (0g) but IMO a waste of time and money.

Circuit breakers are available... 120A is the biggest I think.

Also AML wafer fuses, (prob. the better way to go IMO) and fuse holders which will accept a 2G conductor, rated up to 150A which is probably overkill slightly but will do.

Lots of bling battery terminals so you can also tee other wires out from them to feed amps etc. in the boot!

So all you really need to do is run your power cable to your starter motor and go! Earth can go back to any point on the chassis....

spencer · Post by **spencer** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 9:39 am

Hey just a point you talked about soldering fuse terminals in etc but your never going to solder 2g cable with a normal soldering iron. I use the gas torch for my battery location to connect the cable to the starter etc. It munts the insulation but a big bit of heat shrink far away from where your soldering tidys it up. Also a sealed battery is they way to go

Snoozin · Post by **Snoozin** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 3:04 pm

An alternative to soldering terminals as well are the ones that use a screw clamp, or ones that terminate with a sleeve fitting.

Not as bendy as a soldered ring terminal though is the only issue. Oh and price!

BigDon · Post by **BigDon** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 6:11 pm

check out this link for a basic walk though of the process and some discussion.

Scottie · Post by **Scottie** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 9:12 pm

where can you get a sealed battery from?

Lloyd · Post by **Lloyd** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 10:49 am

I've got a couple of those terminals to take 1/0 gauge wire and you just poke it in and screw down the allen key bit to lock the wire in. Then you're got a terminal that can so so simply go onto a circuit breaker or whatever, Most high current rated stuff should have a post to put a terminal over and a nut to tighten it down.

KE10 door slammer · Post by **KE10 door slammer** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 2:42 pm

there is no way you can fuse the lead going to the battery from the starter ! a starter can draw up to 300 amps when cranking, especially if the voltage is low, best advice is to run the cable inside the car, ive been an auto electrician for 13 years, so i should know,

Lloyd · Post by **Lloyd** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 2:46 pm

Ummm.... depends on the starter. Small engine like 4AGEs and the like shouldn't be drawing too much. mine was only around 100A and my 140A breaker has never tripped when starting the car.

KE10 door slammer · Post by **KE10 door slammer** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 3:00 pm

HRT wrote:Ummm.... depends on the starter. Small engine like 4AGEs and the like shouldn't be drawing too much. mine was only around 100A and my 140A breaker has never tripped when starting the car.

good point, the reduction gear type starters draw alot less

Snoop · Post by **Snoop** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 6:19 pm

I was working on this today for my mr2 (moving batt. to the front)
Havnt got a breaker yet, but i wanted to test if a 140A breaker would be ok before I bought one. So I got my fuse holder which I usually use for my stereo amp, slapped in the biggest fuse I had lying around (60A) and used it to fuse my battery +ve wire. Started the car, fuse didnt blow!
So yea, I'm gonna be using a 100A, mean.

TRDWGN · Post by **TRDWGN** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 8:17 pm

FWIW, In the racing world all connections are made by crimping only as with soldered connections there is a far higher chance of failure, morethan likely a non-issue in a road car but hey :lol:

Another interesting point is when wiring a race car there are very few fuses used and definitely not fusing the battery to starter, however there is usually at least one but normally two isolation switches as a safety device, one in close proximity to the battery and one incar

spencer · Post by **spencer** » Sun Jun 20, 2004 11:46 am

yes but race cars would use very high quality crimps. They even use crimps in aviation! but of a very high quality. soldering is they way in a road car

TRDWGN · Post by **TRDWGN** » Sun Jun 20, 2004 6:33 pm

Ummm why would you not follow suit and crimp? Save a few dollars and risk a fire :roll:

? My car's safety is very important to me so i dont mind paying a little extra to have the best available solution but hey each to themselves i suppose :lol:

KinLoud · Post by **KinLoud** » Sun Jun 20, 2004 10:12 pm

When you move your battery please fasten it down properly!
Use metal straps across the top of the battery, big bolts to fasten the straps to the floor and big diameter washers to stop the bolts from ripping out through the floor in an accident. A plastic box is only to stop dust and water from getting onto the battery.
On Trackday Queens Birthday here at Taupo I inspected one car (a hatchback) that had one of those plastic battery boxes in the boot. The battery was held in the box by the plastic lid. The lid was help by the by the (weak) fabric strap that went around the box, The box was held by self tapping screws that went throught the bottom of the box into some particle board. The particle board was help by self tapping screws that went though a thin metal bracket in the boot.
In an impact the battery would have nothing strong enough to hold it in place. A 12kg battery will smash its way through or over the back seats and hit the driver in the head.
The driver was sent off to fasten the battery in a safer way.

Ken
Taupo
021 408 863

celica_tommo · Post by **celica_tommo** » Sun Jun 20, 2004 10:52 pm

It really is important... I had a fire in my engine bay not long ago due to the factory battery brace not being done up tight enough... all it took was for the battery to slide sideways and I had a small fire to deal with