🛠 DO IT RIGHT - Battery Relocation | TECH TUESDAY

[@haltech]

Yes it's Tuesday! Well, in Australia and New Zealand it is:) So it's time for another dose of Tech Tuesday! Need to make room for engine mods or get better weight distribution ? It's time to move that battery! Before you grab a grinder and start ripping your battery out from its original spot though, there are a few things you need to know. Luckily Tuning Fork is here to tell us how it's done:)

[@wobblysauce]

Oh... yea, dodgy installs.

[@TunaRacing]

Love the videos Scotty keep up the good work 👌🏽

[@kaydog890]

Got the like for mentioning your neighbors

[@averyalexander2303]

Yes bigger is better when it comes to batteries, I totally agree! It's pretty much the best insurance you can buy against alternator failure. Several months ago I went to Nashville TN to get car parts. As soon as I started driving back home to Memphis TN (about 200 miles), I noticed that my voltage was low and the battery light was on. A quick check confirmed my theory that the alternator completely died. I shut off all accessories and hit the road, feeling pretty confident that I would make it home no problem. Then I hit heavy traffic and got concerned. After sitting through 30+ minutes of traffic, I wasn't feeling quite as confident. But once I got moving I made it home no problem. The only reason I made it back without problems is because I have a big Optima Yellowtop D34 battery in my trunk. If I was using the tiny group 51 battery that these older Honda's come with, it would have died well before I got back home.

[@averyalexander2303]

Hmm you got me thinking about the voltage drop across the chassis since I am using it as a battery ground, so I did a bit of testing to get some numbers. I ran a a 2 gauge copper battery cable from my battery's negative terminal to one of the strut tower nuts in the trunk and I grounded the engine to the chassis with about five 4 gauge copper cables, making sure to sand all connections down to clean, shiny metal. I get about a 0.14 volt drop from the battery negative terminal to the engine block while cranking the engine with the fuel disabled, nothing to worry about in my opinion. I also tested the voltage drop across the 2 gauge copper cable that goes from the battery's positive terminal to the starter's positive and it loses about 0.36 volts while cranking, which I don't think is bad but I was surprised to see that a thick copper cable loses more voltage across the same distance than the steel that the chassis is made out of. A channel by the name of CE Auto Electric Supply tested chassis ground vs 15 feet of 1/0 copper cable and found that the chassis was actually a measurably better ground than the huge cable. So my suggestion is to use heavy gauge cables (ideally 0 gauge copper or heavier) and if you choose to run a negative cable from the battery negative to the engine, ground the battery to the chassis in the back also since from my testing as well as CE Auto's testing, the chassis drops significantly less voltage than even a 0 gauge copper cable. Just be sure to make proper connections to a clean, thick piece of metal with good nuts and bolts that can be torqued down tight, don't use self tapping screws. Electricity takes the path of least resistance, so you will never make anything worse by adding more paths for the electricity to flow through. Hope this helps!

[@krusher74]

he covered all this in the video

[@karenthomson9749]

What your missing (and what he explains) is that chassis grounds corrode and cause issues over time. I’ve experienced the issue myself with a rear mount chassis ground that initially worked great but then eventually caused a 3 volt drop on crank.

[@averyalexander2303]

@@karenthomson9749 That's true, but broken or corroded chassis grounds will cause you problems regardless of whether the battery is grounded to the chassis or the engine, although most likely worse if the battery isn't directly grounded to the engine. Battery cables can corrode over time too, especially if they aren't soldered/crimped properly and sealed with water tight heat shrink tubing. I also like coating the bolt end of the ring terminals with copper anti seize, it helps prevent corrosion and keep the connections healthy.

[@eoin730]

I’m about to relocate my old car batteries to the bottom of the ocean, it’s perfectly legal

[@haltech]

with or without your car?

[@jadz684z]

@@haltech at this point i think he was still in the car as well

[@J2A61]

Joe Zen 😂🤣😂🤣

[@SideKickNz]

Love scottie, 10/10 Would recommend to a family friend or significant other

[@g_wizard9866]

This Tech Tuesday episode was perfect, Thanks Scotty! These episodes are awesome.

[@802Garage]

Question: Have you ever seen issue with running the alternator cable past important wires? For example, I have an alternator wire tucked under my intake manifold and it passes near injector wires. Could it cause interference and poor function? What if it goes by coils or spark plug wires? The ECU? Thanks for all you do!

[@johntheconnor8721]

Some vid ideas, Injector sizing, whats the difference between spark plugs(colder,iridium etc). Egt’s how many, where to put them, what they do. Wheel offset-how to measure etc. I’m sure I’ll think of more but so far these vids have been helpful and explanative. Keep up the awesome work👍

[@lukeclarke8054]

I’m not sure if it’s because of mcm but I find you so easy to listen too.

[@gearheaddan819]

Awesome Video Guys! I just have a question about the battery kill switch part. In the video he says there are two big terminals and 2 smaller ones. He says the bigger terminals go inline with the battery positive cable, but the illustration shows it on the negative side. Which one is the right answer?

[@stevenon5664]

Spark plugs get their ground connection from the head. Always ground the head.

[@89_triumph]

That's man that was great. Would be cool to see a quick tech on wiring a cut off switch and whether u need to put a resistor in the small terminal and why... cheers

[@mazcatii]

Funny this came up as I've just finished relocating the battery to the boot in my xr6t to make room for the cold air intake. 0 gauge cable from starter to battery, earthed in the boot and also earthed the factory cable in the engine bay. Mounted the factory positive cables on an insulated post next to the original battery location and hey presto......mint with much dosages

[@maxrockatanksyOG]

Epic dosage or just much dosage?

[@brettus9115]

And choice alternator whine...command centre whine... With your car running, Switch the stereo to AUX, turn volume to max (without sound playing)! Also for dramatic effect press the light switch on and off...fucker sounds like a Dalek!

[@wannabecarguy]

I approve of the information provided in this video.

[@catastrophic82]

Thanks Scotty. I'm learning :)

[@truthseeker8483]

Right battery = biggest that fits.....

[@SoulTouchMusic93]

Well, there's a minimum size but if you can put a lorry battery on your Honda even better. Just make sure the Honda can carry it!

[@KXP70]

I want to race. Smallest battery that can reliably start the engine wins.

[@truthseeker8483]

@@KXP70 Yes for racing small wins....unless you stall on the start line haha

[@stevenon5664]

@@KXP70 Then use a hand crank for starting.

[@gullreefclub]

When drag racing people who use the smallest battery possible are very often the ones who get driven around on the big end because their battery voltage has dropped from because there battery and electrical system cannot keep up with the demands of the starting the car and then the ignition system on a pass. Generally speaking since most cars like some ballast somewhere (over the drive axle or to compensate for the driver) means that you don’t actually pay any penalty for using a big lead acid battery or two with lots of reserve CCA. I normally like to run two batteries and have a plug for a jump box to start the car or run fans before the run and after the run before the car gets back to the pits where I isolate the two batteries and plug eat into a separate battery charger. The cars battery are wired in series that supplies the cars electrical system needs while making a pass and are isolated by pulling a shunt so that each battery can be charged with its own charger. Each battery and charger uses safe-t-connect connector to avoid mishaps in the pits and besides it keeps people from wanting to “borrow” your battery charger as much. I also use a small rechargeable battery from a cordless tool manufacturer as a backup battery to my data-logging system.

[@iheartmysquid]

How many occy straps would i need for it to be considered a safe mounting ?

[@crimson2822]

yes

[@brightstarlastname2812]

@@crimson2822 Yes x 2

[@steveallen1340]

One, but only if it’s lost all of its stretch, is frayed and at least one of the hooks has lost its protective coating and is rusted.

[@vigilante351]

Again - Perfect explanation man. Shame you werent at AFD NSW last weekend Scotty, it would of been good to have a chat!

[@haltech]

We did have a stand at AFD but unfortunately Scott couldn't attend. Hopefully next year:)

[@volvovalor8051]

I'm really confused now because of the phrasing. Is this the go-to way to branch off only from the starter? So pos battery to starter, starter to alternator, starter to power distribution block? Can someone confirm this? I'm running all new wires and can't find one sure way to wire positive leads. I get the grounds part though.

[@pec1739]

your spectacles glare like anime evil character btw good content

[@haltech]

How do you know he isn't an anime evil character? Hmm?

[@krusher74]

I know on battery size he said "bigger is better" but smaller is lighter, so how do we choose the minimum AH battery if trying to go small and light and how do we choose an alternator output ampage?

[@carlycarlyle]

Do you put the kill switch on the negative or positive at the battery?

[@jasonbliss1762]

Hey Scott, I fully agree not grounding to thin floor pans in the boot but where do you recommend I ground the battery in trunk on a MKIV Supra?

[@macanblazic]

Thnks, I learn 2-3 interesting things!.

[@ahcrx]

Great video. Who would you recommend to do such a job properly as I'm not too confident with electrical ?

[@haltech]

It's always best to start with the help of someone who at least has some previous experience. Better to learn from someone else's mistakes than your own:)

[@stevepeters3032]

Am I wrong with thinking the battery isolator switch diagram was wrong, because the negative terminal was used instead of the positive? @haltech

[@davideastment2403]

So we can connect the alternator to the starter or distribution point and not a seperate cable from the alternator to the battery?

[@nickprostizenovski6948]

So the earth runs from rear to front? I went to a wrecking yard and got the Batt loom out of a 90s BMW .. when u say bigger is better do u mean more CCA then what usually have ??

[@Angry-Little-Fish]

Will a antigravity car battery work? Inside the truck?

[@PTRPerformance]

👍

[@leslietsekouras8565]

Can I ask why you use isolator on ground cable instead of power cable?

[@Venomzr200]

It's safer on the ground circuit as you want to keep live wires to the minimum.

[@markosiv]

Hi Scott and Haltech crew, nice job with these videos! Can you check that main switch connection drawing that is shown at 5min time stamp at this video. I think that is not correct...

[@J.Galvao76]

I Agree... I Think it´s not right! In the Big Kill switch terminals, one is the negative and the other goes to the ground. Isn´t supposed to be the Positive?

[@dangdrewgun8776]

Cheers mate

[@7173mach1]

Fantastic info thank you so much! Would you kindly comment on my style of starter circuits? My GM buddies hate it lol, but I always use a "Ford style" starter relay so I don't have constant power in the hot & cramped starter area. If the starter also has a relay then I send a trigger wire from the "I" terminal. I use a good quality heavy duty relay, Cole Hersee brand seems pretty good. I am curious your thoughts about this and also about using diodes or resistors to prevent fly back. Perhaps the better relays don't need? Can't find a solid consensus on the web.

[@lsgemini7686]

Hey Scott I’m running 2/0 cable to the starter can I run 0 gauge for the ground or am I better off running the same size as the positive, cheers

[@mikelarry626]

If the wire is long do you lose power .. ground or positive

[@SmitherinesRacing]

So i'm relocating my battery to boot in my 31. I'm also running the new Nexus, is it the same config for cable? Pos - from battery to circuit breaker - stop switch - starter/ecu. Neg - from battery to block - strut tower.

[@Joseph-ex9kh]

Radiator relocation next

[@detroitredwing919]

Great job 🙌 Scotty much love from Detroit LIKE, SHARE, SUBSCRIBE. HIT THE BELL WATCH THE AD'S

[@brianbrigg57]

With everything else equal, does a bigger battery have a longer lifetime?

[@haltech]

Not really. While it may be true in some cases, most of the time it's the construction of the battery that makes the biggestt difference.

[@G_ROD11]

Does the kill switch go in line with the positive or negative??

[@Venomzr200]

Negative

[@KoreRacing]

Could we see this actually being done to a car. While the diagrams are helpful it still seems daunting.

[@haltech]

We have one coming up as a part of a series in the near future.

[@ronsmithedits]

Can i use a 600amperage wire?

[@MrWilliam.Stewart]

You don't want chaffing in ya trunks.

[@brightstarlastname2812]

I use a wireless battery.

[@693tanner]

woah

[@nickg4135]

At least you say Battery unlike some people in Australia. I hear people saying bat ree or bat tree.

[@elitecol69]

At 1:39 he says bat tree

[@tepidtuna7450]

OI ! I resemble that remark...

[@thecrazyazza]

He went back and forth between the two

[@DEATHWISHVQ]

Wtf is a battery in a BOOOT BRO