86Trans Am

The next thing i am going to do is relocate the battery to the area the spare tire goes. with the box and relocation kit you get like 3 feet of negative cable, does anyone know a suitable ground for the battery in that location? I plan on routiing the the positive cable along the sub frame connectors with those little screw on brackets. anyone have any other suggestions or things to watch out for?

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1986 Trans Am
305 TPI
"If it's not one thing, it's another!"
http://www2.hanover.edu/hierlmeier

jcb999

Current reasoning is to run a negative cable the length of the car to the ground on the fender. But, I got my ground going to the rear-bumper mount bolt. I think I will run a 2 gauge wire from it to the front.

The subframe conns on my car are very low. I ran my positive in the drive shaft tunnel area and mounted it with the rubber lined claps.

[This message has been edited by jcb999 (edited November 19, 2001).]

johnsjj2

I ran my ground to the rear frame rail. I ground off all the undercoating, drilled a hole, and presto!!!!! We have a ground point.



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Joshua Johnston
1991 Z-28
350, T-5, K&N, Ported Vortec heads, Edelbrock RPM, Holley 750 D.P., HEI, 11.07:1 CR, Comp Cams Roller-.510"/.520"-282*/288* dur., Shorty Headers, Dual 2.5 Exhaust, Dynomax Bullet Mufflers, T&R Motorsports custom air intake, Bald tires

Rob P

iTrader: (1)

I have a full length negative cable running to the front and attaching to the strut tower. From there I have short cable over to the a/c brace that goes from the back of the a/c to the header.
I used to have the cable run along the inside of my convertible frame reinforements but was unhappy how close they ran to the exhaust. They now run inside the car, along the channel by the door. I drilled two holes thru the passenger floor and shot them thru into the engine compartment, using nice rubber grommets to protect the wires. Don't forget a battery cut off switch if you want to run at the track. SOme of the tech inspections are getting pretty difficult.


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Rob P
89RSconvtZZ4TPI Edelbrock Intake
SLP Dual Cold Air Intake 1 5/8" Headers Semi-Siamesed Runners, IROC
suspension, alum shaft. Numerous mods.
92Z28convt5spd (stock)
71Impala convt 402BB
BETTER DRIVING THRU SUPERIOR HORSEPOWER!

F-BIRD'88

You can ground the battery to the frame
or floor at the back of the car, but be sure to ground the motor to the frame rail or
firewall at the front. Grind the ground point clean and cover the ground point with grease when done. These ground points should be inspected and cleaned periodicly, just like a battery post and cable. Actually
mounting a battery lengthwise in a car can cause the internal plates to touch inside
from braking force, causing premature failure of the battery. Something to watch for.

[This message has been edited by F-BIRD'88 (edited November 19, 2001).]

88 427 Camaro

The best thing to do is run a 1/0 or 0 (NOT 2 GAUGE) wire directly to the engine block, then run a wire to the frame. The biggest current draw is from the starter (which is grounded to the engine). Go to a welding shop and get some 0 or 1/0 cable. Call around though. Prices vary from ~1.20/ft to 4.00/ft !!! for the exact same wire.

Miles

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88 427 Big Block Camaro
(Best 1/4) 12.18 @ 113mph 1.75 60ft
(Best 1/8) 7.76 @ 94mph 1.72 60ft

Currently installing 3.73's into my 9 bolt (YES, it is a 9 bolt & YES they are 3.73's, not 3.70. I currently have 4.10 gear sets and new series 3 posi carriers for sale for 9 bolts )
www.koolmeister.com

88TPI406GTA

Wow...there are a lot of misconceptions here...

1. Standard lead/acid batteries need to be mounted straight up and down, not worrying about parallel and perpendicular to the car. You go around corners, don't you? The battery acid should be full enough to cover the plates even around corners in a normal battery. If your plates move, you have a defective battery. They are "attached" to the case of the battery. Or just get an Optima and be able to mount it upside down if you want.

2. You do not need to run a negative cable all the way to the front and ground it there...That is not necessary. Simply ground it to a good spot on the body (bare metal) and use dielectric grease to prevent rust.

3. Then you should ALWAYS have a ground strap or ground connection from the battery to the body (cause things under the dash ground to the body/firewall) and then to the frame (on a unibody car the frame and the body are one) and from the engine block to the body/frame) The body is one giant ground connection as long as you connect to bare metal.

4. Get a good quality battery box and mount it down...then make sure the battery is mounted well in it.

5. As for the size cable, welding cable is ideal, but the 2 guage copper terminals are cheap and plentiful (didn't find any larger when I looked) not to mention that the major battery kits available use 2 guage wire as well. If your starter needs welding cable to start, either you own a massive rustbucket and your ground sucks, you have a mountain motor or high compression (over 12 to 1) or you need a ministarter for better efficiency.

I have done these now on an F-body and a G-body (body and seperate frame), plus a small import car (for a friend) and have been successful.

To Recap: Battery to Body and Body to engine block (use a 12 or 18 inch ground strap) The reality is that you can use 2 guage wire successfully (positive and negative) if your ground is good. I have a modest compression 406 and it has had no problems with the above setup in different vehicles. The key is to tie all the grounding points together to the battery so every grounding point is as good as any other.

Any questions to this...just ask.

-Adam
88 GTA


[This message has been edited by 88TPI406GTA (edited November 20, 2001).]

Tom 400 CFI

I'll sit right here and agree with that.

johnsjj2

I agree too. As long as the engine is grounded to the body, and the body is grounded to the battery, you should be fine.



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Joshua Johnston
1991 Z-28
350, T-5, K&N, Ported Vortec heads, Edelbrock RPM, Holley 750 D.P., HEI, 11.07:1 CR, Comp Cams Roller-.510"/.520"-282*/288* dur., Shorty Headers, Dual 2.5 Exhaust, Dynomax Bullet Mufflers, T&R Motorsports custom air intake, Bald tires

crazeinc

I'm agreeing too, since I ground to the frame and have an engine ground as well and it works fine.

BitchinCamaro

I'd like to tack on a question here:
Could I use the power cable that is running to my amp for my subs in the trunk for the positive? It is a fairly thick cable (bigger than my stock batt cables) The guy who owned the car before me had installed 2x500 watts or so amps in the trunk. Seems like the cable would be more than enough right?

88 427 Camaro

I didn't say other ways don't work, just that bigger cable and grounding directly to the engine is more reliable. Welding cable is a much better conductor than battery cable because of the smaller strands.

Miles

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88 427 Big Block Camaro
(Best 1/4) 12.18 @ 113mph 1.75 60ft
(Best 1/8) 7.76 @ 94mph 1.72 60ft

Currently installing 3.73's into my 9 bolt (YES, it is a 9 bolt & YES they are 3.73's, not 3.70. I currently have 4.10 gear sets and new series 3 posi carriers for sale for 9 bolts )
www.koolmeister.com

88TPI406GTA

To Bitchin Camaro: NO...almost all of the good power wire out there is Monster Cable (at least that is they want you to believe at over $3 something a foot here) and it is most likely 4 guage wire at most...Monster cable has a lot thicker insulation than regular cable, don't confuse this overall bigger diameter with more current carrying capacity. Use a minimum of 2 guage wire for the positive. Keep in mind that this whole question also depends on your usage and climate. People in MN, for example, should consider using a larger size if they use their car in winter. People in Warmer climates can get by with 2 guage and a smaller battery because the cranking capacity of the battery is better at a warmer temperature. Depends on if you are starting your car in -15 or 75 degree weather. In general, a more important factor is the quality of the connection and people tend to overlook that. Make sure the connection is to bare metal and is corrosion free.

To Miles: Here in MN, I would personally like to use 0 guage even on my little 4 cylinder import car, especially when starting at -30 in Jan/Feb And theoretically I agree with you. However, cost is a factor here as is ease of installation with 2 guage as opposed to welding cable, when 2 guage will be the solution for most people.

88 427 Camaro

88TPI406GTA,

Guess we agree to partially agree and partially disagree. Works for me and to each their own.

I am fortunate enough to be able to spend a few extra bucks for increased reliability and to me it's worth it as I spent many hours DOA over the years on the side of the road for one reason or another.

(EDIT)
Just to clarify my opinion, this is directly from Shogun Industries for mounting a battery in the back. PS If the link doesn't work, I also posted the schematic on the top of my page at www.koolmeister.com

Miles

[This message has been edited by 88 427 Camaro (edited November 21, 2001).]

daStingray

I fabbed and welded in a battery tray in spare tire well.
All wiring is in the car with a mere 3 inches only exposed when the passenger door is open. I used Stinger wire from my local sound shop 4 gauge. This stuff is think, multi-strand and VERY flexible. As far as I'm concerned it's the only wire.
I ran a junction box to power the alternator and starter. It's grounded @ the shock tower. The factory happened to use copper washers may as well take advantage of it!! I have no
Optima box as it is held in tight my the screw in hold down clamp from the rinky dink tire. I then drilled a hole in the tray for the vertical tie down strap. Love the improved power to weight ratio and traction!!!!!!!!