Battery Relo -- the aftermath
09-09-2001 | 10:59 PM
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Battery Relo -- the aftermath
Well, the battery relo is complete. I had to rig up some mounting points in the car (used L brackets, a drill, and a dremel) so that I don't have to crawl under there to remove the battery (the J bolts were to be tightened under the car).
Anyway, it's secure, easy to maintain, and is not going anywhere. The weight distribution is noticable. Before there was a slight "extra nudge" that the car had coming off a corner, that is gone now. It just feels heavier in the back.
There are some electrical problems, though. My starter seems more anemic. It still starts the car, but I tell the sound is more strained. Also, when under heavy load, my dash lights go out. I have them low to begin with (all the way down on the rheostat wheel), but last night when I was launching through the first 2 gears, it would dim to nothing and then come back once I got to cruising speed. The headlights don't dim, the radio works fine, and the clock works fine. Odd.
I think the two problems are related. there are two ground leads that come off the battery. One is thick and goes towards the starter/alternator. The other is thin and goes straight to the frame. They are tied together at the clamp. I left them alone, so now the starter has to pull through the thin wire, which is probably causing a voltage drop. A 0.05 Ohm resistance translates to a 5V drop when the starter pulls 100 amps. It's probably much less than that, but like I said, there are issues.
I have a length of 2 gauge wire left, I'm going to try to either use that to run the starter/alternaor, or just try to ground the existing starter wire to the frame at a different location.
I'll try that tonight and see how it goes.
Thanks for all the advice and help folks,
a
Anyway, it's secure, easy to maintain, and is not going anywhere. The weight distribution is noticable. Before there was a slight "extra nudge" that the car had coming off a corner, that is gone now. It just feels heavier in the back.
There are some electrical problems, though. My starter seems more anemic. It still starts the car, but I tell the sound is more strained. Also, when under heavy load, my dash lights go out. I have them low to begin with (all the way down on the rheostat wheel), but last night when I was launching through the first 2 gears, it would dim to nothing and then come back once I got to cruising speed. The headlights don't dim, the radio works fine, and the clock works fine. Odd.
I think the two problems are related. there are two ground leads that come off the battery. One is thick and goes towards the starter/alternator. The other is thin and goes straight to the frame. They are tied together at the clamp. I left them alone, so now the starter has to pull through the thin wire, which is probably causing a voltage drop. A 0.05 Ohm resistance translates to a 5V drop when the starter pulls 100 amps. It's probably much less than that, but like I said, there are issues.
I have a length of 2 gauge wire left, I'm going to try to either use that to run the starter/alternaor, or just try to ground the existing starter wire to the frame at a different location.
I'll try that tonight and see how it goes.
Thanks for all the advice and help folks,
a
