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As part of my 73 BB Coupe restomod project, I keep thinking there must be a better place to put the battery rather than in the under floor compartment behind the drivers seat.
I have thought about building a polished aluminum battery box and mounting it between the inner wheel wells on the deck of the rear compartment.
This morning I was looking at where I could put in under the hood.
I will be swapping over to a vintage air a/c system and thought the battery might fit on the passenger side against the lower area of the firewall.
Just looking at the area, it appears that once the oem a/c system is removed there could be plenty of room there.
It would be pretty easy to fabricate a fixture that I could weld to the chassis to support the battery and put it inside a polished aluminum box to protect it from heat.
Has anyone moved their battery to another location especially to a location under the hood?
If so, can you post a photograph of the fitment and how you made it work.
Thanks, Greg
Last edited by OldCarBum; Sep 25, 2021 at 01:57 PM.
Actualy, there is not a better place to put it...for the car's benefit. The mass is centrally located which is ideal. Now, for YOUR access to the battery, its present location is not great. But, we need to get our exercise wherever we can....
The place is not bad- low- center of the car- away from heat/cold -but with a little reworking-you can improve on it and open up more storage area-
I used two Optima 6V batteries- ran them in a series- will give you the exact same specs at the 12V Optima battery.
Put then in the wasted space forward of the storage compartment- and I have a jump terminal under the hood- MUCH easier if I'll need
to jumpstart/charge.
Actualy, there is not a better place to put it...for the car's benefit. The mass is centrally located which is ideal. Now, for YOUR access to the battery, its present location is not great. But, we need to get our exercise wherever we can....
Yes you are correct regarding weight distribution, but it is hard to get to.
I’m just trying to find an improved location.
Thanks!
The place is not bad- low- center of the car- away from heat/cold -but with a little reworking-you can improve on it and open up more storage area-
I used two Optima 6V batteries- ran them in a series- will give you the exact same specs at the 12V Optima battery.
Put then in the wasted space forward of the storage compartment- and I have a jump terminal under the hood- MUCH easier if I'll need
to jumpstart/charge.
I like that idea and the additional storage space behind the seats would be nice for weekend getaways!
Thanks!
Do you have a picture of the terminal under the hood?
That's a good idea.
/Karsten
Yes- several car manufactures do this- when the battery is hidden away under the trunk or back seat.
Can get a really nice one at the junkyard for $5-10. The big BMW sedans (E38) are really good qallity
A lot easier to get to and less chance of reverse polarity- and when it sparks not near the fumes from the battery
Plus puts the power right where you need it at the starter .
Terminal cover
Originally Posted by 7T1vette
Good idea. Let's retrofit to an older approach that wasn't as viable. How often do you really need to deal with the battery???
Just one time- is enough to warrant the change.
1) Safer- no fumes-battery less likely to blow up
2)Less likely to reverse polarity - damaging fusible links and alternator
3) Pulling dirty jumper cable around and over the seat- crawling around the cables to start- really?
4) Much easier under the hood- side terminals and jumper cables- are a pain
5) Puts the power right where you need the high current- at the starter
I worked on the real historic racing GT1 BBC and wide bodied racing IMSA corvettes.
I always thought about doing it to mine the same. It's not true that behind the seat is the best location. You want as much weight as you can on the rear. for take off traction and braking. So these cars had the battery as far back and low as they could. on tracks that predominantly had left turns because of running around the track counter clockwise we placed the battery on the drivers side back beside the fuel cell. On right turn clockwise tracks we put it on the passenger side rear.
So put it as far back and low as you can with one of those external shut off switches.
I worked on the real historic racing GT1 BBC and wide bodied racing IMSA corvettes.
I always thought about doing it to mine the same. It's not true that behind the seat is the best location. You want as much weight as you can on the rear. for take off traction and braking. So these cars had the battery as far back and low as they could. on tracks that predominantly had left turns because of running around the track counter clockwise we placed the battery on the drivers side back beside the fuel cell. On right turn clockwise tracks we put it on the passenger side rear.
So put it as far back and low as you can with one of those external shut off switches.
Sounds like I need to change my planning.
Thanks everyone!
I worked on the real historic racing GT1 BBC and wide bodied racing IMSA corvettes.
I always thought about doing it to mine the same. It's not true that behind the seat is the best location. You want as much weight as you can on the rear. for take off traction and braking. So these cars had the battery as far back and low as they could. on tracks that predominantly had left turns because of running around the track counter clockwise we placed the battery on the drivers side back beside the fuel cell. On right turn clockwise tracks we put it on the passenger side rear.
So put it as far back and low as you can with one of those external shut off switches.
I was talking street car- as out of my driveway- sometimes I take a left and sometimes a right...
Let's retrofit to an older approach that wasn't as viable. How often do you really need to deal with the battery???
Battery Relocation Question
