Battery relocation Reply #30 – September 20, 2012, 06:19:21 PM Quote from: Big B;398732I'm getting ready to relocate my battery to the trunk, only I'm gonna relocate the Solenoid with it as well to keep the positive battery cable short. Then, running the ALT charge wire directly to the battery in the trunk, and a new 4ga wire from the Solenoid to the Starter, running through the interior. Since the 2ga ALT charge wire probably will get hot while having 130amps pushed through it, would it be best to run that wire under the car instead of through the interior?; where it could possibly take out other wires if it ever melts down.[/QUOTE I can show you some pics of what I did to keep NHRA happy and I kept the solenoid in the stock location and went with a New style mini torque starter the more you look on the net the more ways your gonna find to do it. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #31 – September 20, 2012, 07:02:20 PM Pictures!! Gives you guys a chance to show off the work you've done, and it makes it easier for novice like me to leaned from you. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #32 – September 20, 2012, 07:06:32 PM Leave the solenoid put, if you have a PMGR starter, run to the starter feed post on the actual starter, then connect the 3g alternator there as well. This way you can keep the cable shorter and you don't have to cross the engine bay to the other side of the car. Besides that, the solenoid studs are only so long. What do you need the most current for? The starter. Attaching the alternator there also gives you the shortest possible path back to the battery, and the cable that used to feed the starter now feeds the car via the junction point at the solenoid. I'd run inside the car with the biggest cable you're comfortable with. If I understand right, Tom says he uses 1 AWG and that seems best to me. I'd also shield it with either some heavy nylon sleeving, or some convoluted tubing to protect it from the vehicle. 1 AWG isn't likely to get hot from what you're going to be able to run through it, the most you're talking about carrying through it is 200 to 250 amps during cranking (probably still on the high side), and it's good for WAY more than that. Keep it in a certified externally vented box if you want to stay good for tech. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #33 – September 20, 2012, 07:28:53 PM Quote from: big b;398732i'm getting ready to relocate my battery to the trunk, only i'm gonna relocate the solenoid with it as well to keep the positive battery cable short. Then, running the alt charge wire directly to the battery in the trunk, and a new 4ga wire from the solenoid to the starter, running through the interior. Since the 2ga alt charge wire probably will get hot while having 130amps pushed through it, would it be best to run that wire under the car instead of through the interior?; where it could possibly take out other wires if it ever melts down.Bad Idea!!!Wire size is to small and running an alt wire back to the trunk and along with an enable lead is not the way i would do it!!!Not following you post at all. You want a 4 gauge for cranking and a 2 gauge for the alt. You are not thinking this out. A single 1 or 2 Gauge wire to the underhood solenoid is all that is necessary. Moving the solenoid is not what i would do. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #34 – September 20, 2012, 07:43:10 PM I think this has been a good thread. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #35 – September 20, 2012, 08:51:56 PM Quote from: thewestie;398734I can show you some pics of what I did to keep NHRA happy and I kept the solenoid in the stock location and went with a New style mini torque starter the more you look on the net the more ways your gonna find to do it.I'd love to see some pics of your setup. I've looked at quite a few, and so far moving the solenoid seems like the best option, and is what I'm going to do, until I see a better setup that doesn't involve a 25ft long 0ga positive battery cable running through the car. I can always switch to 2ga instead of 4ga for the starter wire. I'm looking to stick with the stock starter for now as well. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #36 – September 20, 2012, 09:02:55 PM Sorry to say you are way under capacity with a 4 gauge cable. Maybe a 4 banger can get away with that small of a cable. I dont understand you logic on having a heavy cable. And you will need at least 18' plus or minus to move it to the trunk. Better rethink that wire size. just saying!!! Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #37 – September 20, 2012, 09:04:37 PM There are a few ways of doing it! To be NHRA legal requires an approved battery box or fire wall, shut off switch on the positive lead and when the switch is turned off, the engine dies. This means the alternator must disconnect too, or the car will continue to run (the alternator runs the car, the battery starts it).This arrangement can create issues which may fry electronics (as in an EFI computer), due to voltage spikes. In addition: in a rear collision, the switch; with it's exposed positive leads will likely ground to the body, creating a fire hazard. But if you need to be NHRA approved, you gotta do it (or find a way to cheat...).If you're not concerned with NHRA, a way considered safer; is to mount a solenoid at the trunk mounted battery (even on the battery box). The only wire which does not have the ability to have fused protection is the heavy wire, which serves to power the starter. The only time you need such a heavy wire is when the starter is engaged. By using a trunk mounted solenoid, the heavy cable only has power when the starter is engaged, thus minimizing the chance of fire in the event of a dead short of the heavy cable. A wire must be run from the alternator to the battery to keep it charged, but does not require a large gauge. Once the car is started, the alternator runs the electrical system, there is no need for heavy cable for this task. This wire must have a fuseable link to protect against overload (TOM has a great thread on fuseable links). A cable runs from the alternator to a connection block to run the accessories (located in the engine compartment).Should you wish to have an external battery switch, running it through the negative lead (grounding to the body) will minimize the chance of an electronics destroying voltage spike (though the switch will not shut off a running car) and in the event of a rear collision there is NO potential for a short.I have my Mustang wired per NHRA specs (it's primary purpose is driving to and from the drag strip). The Thunderbird is wired per the second description. This will probably lead to a bit more discussion! Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #38 – September 20, 2012, 09:21:26 PM You think 1ga is too big for the long cable? I figure if you're talking about potential sustained charging current over 100 amps over 15+ feet, a large cable is the best way to not only minimize losses (resistance) but also to keep the cable cool. If you're sticking with the stock monster direct drive starter, you're going to want the extra capacity. At least that's how it seems to me. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #39 – September 20, 2012, 10:03:53 PM So, I will need 1 gauge wire for the starter. I have a mini-starter that uses a negative for that, and a small positive wire (maybe 10 gauge) that connects to my solenoid. So. I only need 1 gauge to reach my starter. If I put my battery box on the trunk shelf (for lack of a better name) over to the right side, will it really need 15'-18' of cable? Like I said before, I had already ordered some Taylor braided 4 gauge cables thinking I was going to keep the battery up front. Could I use the 4 gauge hooked up to my starter negative and connect it to my relay negative post being the need for current is much less? I only have one other wire to connect and that's a small (maybe 10 gauge) positive that hooks up my 6A MSG box. I read an article that said that Lowe's sells 1 gauge and 2 gauge cable for cheap. Is that an alternative to use? I'm with you "TheFoeYouKnow", this thread has really been a good one! Not to mention I really don't want to fry my computer or torch my car.... go figure. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #40 – September 20, 2012, 11:03:09 PM I hate to post what other people have posted, but.... If it were me, I would leave the starter solenoid and alt wiring alone. I would use the biggest friggin wire I could find to run from the front to the battery. It would have to be ran inside the car to protect it. Careful to rout it away from anything sharp. Make sure it does not rub anywhere. A battery enclosure that is fastened down with an external vent would be a must for safety sake. I would also do whatever is possible to keep battery acid from ever reaching the trunk. Starter wire could be left factory. However, a little larger one would be even better. Larger starter cable is a good idea even without battery re-location. :2c: Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #41 – September 21, 2012, 05:54:53 AM 86 it seems like you dont know how to do this!!! What do you mean by the NEG CABLE TO THE SOLENOID??? I am missing something here or you are confused on how to do this!!! You are complicating this and it is the easiest thing in the world to do. Mount a battery in the trunk. Ground it to a thick portion of the body. Run a 1-2 gauge cable from the positive post to the existing solenoid. Then ground the engine to the body with a heavy gauge wire. If less than 10 inches the engine to body ground can be a number 4 Gauge wire. But feeding a number 4 Gauge as the main battery feed is way to small. Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #42 – September 21, 2012, 06:11:42 AM CHROME look at the positive cable!!! Protected as i invented this 45 years ago. You have to protect the pos cable and route it safely. Normally on full frame cars i install it inside the frame. On Monolithic cars i normally run it inside the car. Either way the POS cable has to be protected. By the way that cable is a 2/0 and the ground is a 3/0 Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #43 – September 21, 2012, 06:15:47 AM makes sense to me, too easy Quote Selected
Battery relocation Reply #44 – September 21, 2012, 11:14:47 AM I think I understand, but I better make sure. Battery is in back, positive cable (18' of 1 gauge wire) on battery goes to solenoid (route this wire under car), I also hook up my small #10 gauge positive from the starter to my solenoid, positive should be complete. The negative on battery is grounded to chassis in back (#2 gauge) , battery is now complete. The negative on solenoid has three wires connected two small negative wires,(alternator and one other) and my (#2 gauge) that I hook up to the engine block. So, I have two positive wires and three negative wires hooked up to the relay (relay is now done). I will add a ground strap at this point from the engine block and connect it to the chassis. Also here I connect another (#2 gauge) to starter. I am NOT going to move anything other than my battery (solenoid stays put). I hope this makes sense to you guys! Thanks! Quote Selected
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