Battery Relocation DIY

[atomic_hoji]

Nicely done! That's a reasonably long run battery cable - what gauge did you use? Looks like maybe 4 AWG?

Must be nice to be able to get your hands in and around that side of the engine bay now. lol

-- Adam

[tmontague]

Originally Posted by atomic_hoji

Nicely done! That's a reasonably long run battery cable - what gauge did you use? Looks like maybe 4 AWG?

Must be nice to be able to get your hands in and around that side of the engine bay now. lol

-- Adam

Thanks Adam, yes 4AWG is what I used. The total length from the positive terminal on the battery to the junction in the engine bay was 10'. This is well within spec for the normal charging and operating amperage the car draws. The starter only draws peak amps for a very brief moment in time so your main wire doesn't need to be able to handle that amperage. The voltage drop is potentially a little on the high side but I have the 1.6 kw starter (cold weather package) so a slight drop in voltage isn't an issue. I actually haven't noticed any issues with the starter when I relocated my battery, still fires up as fast as ever in the deep cold.

My breaker is 100 amp and is ignition protected so it had a delay in the trip. As an fyi the factory main fuse is 120 amps and the alternator main fuse is 60 or 80, I cannot remember 100%.

Technically my breaker should be 120 amp but it was either 100 or 150 for the Eaton breaker I wanted to use and 150 was too high IMO. Tom recommended 100 and I think he was right on the mark, I've had no issues yet.

It probably seems silly to most people, but having the a/c lines out of the engine bay as well as the battery makes life much easier to maneuver a hand around the engine. It is well worth it for that alone.