Battery Relocation on 3B

[Habib]

Has anyone relocated there battery into the boot. I am thinking of relocating mine into the boot for more space in engine bay.

Cheers

[SteveH]

Habib

I've been thinking of doing the same too. It would free up a nice bit of space for an oil catch tank. The later S2s have the battery under the rear seat. If you do manage to move it, let us know how you get on

[S2central.net]

Thats a big job, but the LHD 3Bs had the battery under the rear seat, so there must be a way to do it - though some major rewiring would be required of course.


Paul

[Stick Insect]

If you re-locate the battery may I suggest that you go up a size on the leads. They are ok for a short distance but due to the heavy cranking power needed to turn over a tuned engine it may heat up the cables more than you would like.

I will look at my coupe and see what space is under the seat out of interest.

It is a simple wiring job but the routing of the cables is an interesting project. Habib, the battery needs to be vented to ensure that there isn't a build up of Hydrogen in the car and then an explosion.

The metalwork is simple, there must be plenty of metal bashers in Birmingham. Maybe use zinc plated sheet steel 18 or 20 Gauge. a decent clamp and you're away.


HTH

David

[desmo888]

I just bought an under-the-seat battery tray from a wrecked S2. I am having it welded in place and will use teh battery cables from the 200 I parted out.
Rewiring is not that major at all...

[martinjs]

Ive been meaning to do this for a while but other stuff has taken priority:wacked:
ive got a mocal catch tank like mark/doug, but theres sod all room for it.
to move the battery under the rear seat you'll have to cut your floor and weld in a suitable box to accomodate, maybe chop one out of a later scrapped coupe, (dunno if V6's have batteries in the boot),
think the easier option is to stick it in the compartment at the back of the boot, see pic. but ive been told you have to ground the battery the same side as the engine ground or you'll have problems.

martin

[audiman]

Good idea, but where would my CD changer live?! LOL
I have also thought about doing this, but its one of those jobs that i cant be arsed to do.

Good luck

[puppetman]

i like the battery in the boot. im thinking of relocating it to the spare tire space (as i hate carrying a spare) and since i have full coverage i also have free roadside assistance. so thats prolly where it will end up.

[Stick Insect]

As there is so little space in the coupe boot the hide-away section is invaluable.

The advantage of moving the battery back is it helps the front/rear weight distribution.

Has anyone found a fuel can that fits in the coupe stowage?

David

[dan_b]

Originally posted by audiman
Good idea, but where would my CD changer live?! LOL
I have also thought about doing this, but its one of those jobs that i cant be arsed to do.

Good luck

I didn't put my cd changer in that bit coz it's always damp in there


Is moving the battery back there really going to make that much difference handling-wise on what is already a pretty heavy car, the odd 5kg or so moved front to back, is that significant?

[Stick Insect]

If you drop it on your foot it makes a difference:eek2:

Seriously though, the polar moment of the battery moved from the centreline of the wheelbase back as opposed to standard position could make a difference.

It all helps.

David.

[Stick Insect]

Forgot Dan,

see my thread in handy tips about sealing the rear lights!

David

[Alistair C]

Just come across this thread as was thinking about moving the battery myself.

Thought it was a great idea until I thought about a rear shunt.

Putting a battery in there totally removes the rear crumple zone. The only thing that would happen is the rigid battery being forced straight into the fuel tank. Now I don't remember how the fuel tank is sealed, but if it were to burst / puncture - right next to it you've now got an ignition source right on top of it........

Not such a nice thought. Perhaps the wheel well would be a better solution.
Any thoughts?

[mcandmar]

I was thinking of doing the same but the thought of a rear end shunt put me off. The another option was fitting the box under the rear seat, but i dont like the sound of cutting a hole in a perfectly good floor pan. Has anybody ever done this?

Having the battery inside the car scares me a little, we had a battery explode in my dads old 90 quattro when we got in to start it one morning, left a nice dent in the bonnet and covered the engine bay in battery acid. Imagine that happening in an S2, visions of exploding rear seats

[nismo]

Does anybody have pics of the tray underneath the rear seat? I'm trying to do this myself.

Eric

*EDIT* found pics