Blowfish Racing Battery Relocation Kits

[cloud9]

I just received the kit and it looks really well designed. We just finished up the engine wiring harness project so this is next up. Hoping to tear into it in the next week or so.

 

[Jimmy Pribble]

Gary, as this forum's very own "Richard Simmons of BOSS weight control" can you tell us how much this kit weighs and what is the net weight gain?

 

[cloud9]

Gary, as this forum's very own "Richard Simmons of BOSS weight control" can you tell us how much this kit weighs and what is the net weight gain?

Keep Sweatin' to the Oldies baby! It's about 25lbs which is more than I hoped. I haven't weighed the individual components, but was going to do that tonight. The cable is pretty heavy, and fortunately that weight is evenly distributed low along the frame rail on the passenger side. The steel battery box is probably a lot of it too which will sit behind the axle, and along with the 38 lb stock battery will serve the same purpose us Northerners use sandbags for in the winter ;D I have been borderline on making TT2 weight and have left my passenger seat in for TTs. Now I can certainly pull that 46 lb seat out for track days.

The other offsets that all come out of the rear are:

Rear axle weights = 5 lbs
Trunk liner = 7 lbs
Flat repair kit = 5 lbs

The downside to pulling the above weight out of the rear without moving the battery is it negatively impacts F/R balance and diminishes rear grip. I also have been running a full tank of fuel to make weight so now I can run 1/2 tank if I want and drop 48 lbs of fuel.

Once we get this done we will put it back on the scales and see where we're at from a total weight and corner balance situation.

 

[pufferfish]

just weighed everything on my shipping scale:
the box weighs 12.8lbs
the cables weigh 7.9lbs
switch and bracket weigh 1.1lbs
post bracket with alternator shutoff solenoid weighs 2.9lbs

total parts adder is: 24.7lbs

parts removed:
plastic battery tray with insulation sleeve weighs 1.8lbs

net weight gain is: 22.9lbs

this kit (or any battery relocation kit), will never be a good addition to the weight loss plan. but it is excellent for moving a full 1% weight distribution from the front to the rear.

 

[cloud9]

just weighed everything on my shipping scale:
the box weighs 12.8lbs
the cables weigh 7.9lbs
switch and bracket weigh 1.1lbs
post bracket with alternator shutoff solenoid weighs 2.9lbs

total parts adder is: 24.7lbs

parts removed:
plastic battery tray with insulation sleeve weighs 1.8lbs

net weight gain is: 22.9lbs

this kit (or any battery relocation kit), will never be a good addition to the weight loss plan. but it is excellent for moving a full 1% weight distribution from the front to the rear.

Thanks Steve you just freed up some of my time this evening! Glad to see a lot of the weight is in the box which further enhances the F/R and High/Low weight distribution. Can't wait to get it finished!

 

[Jimmy Pribble]

this kit (or any battery relocation kit), will never be a good addition to the weight loss plan. but it is excellent for moving a full 1% weight distribution from the front to the rear.

Yep, I agree with that statement and the weight-distribution benefits as outlined by Gary. Thanks for the info, guys. This does look like a great kit.

 

[cloud9]

Well we're halfway home. After sorting out the cam sensors last night (and everything works - YEA!! ;D) we started on the battery relocation project. We spent about 2 hours getting the bracket mounted, cables rerouted outboard of the A/C lines and the positive cable routed through the firewall and into the trunk. Tonight we'll finish wiring in the engine bay, mounting the box in the spare tire well and installing the cutoff switch in the bumper.

So far it's all worked smoothly, but I'll add a couple of pointers not mentioned in the instructions:

Step 1 should be pop your trunk!!! ;D Step one in the instructions is to remove the battery and tray. Our trunks can only be opened electronically since there's no lock plug for a key! With the roll bar in the back I didn't want to try to crawl through to the emergency release which is at the very back of the deck lid, so we had to temporarily reconnect the battery to get the trunk open :-[

Regarding Step 4, you can mount the low voltage black wire that's zip tied to the main positive cable to either of the small bolts on the bracket. The picture shows attaching to the one that's outboard toward the fender, but that's where the small red wire that goes to the fuse box is installed. You can attach it to that one or the empty one that's nearer the engine. Also after getting direction from Steve, the larger cables attached to the solenoid bracket labeled "B" and "C" can be attached interchangeably. They were assembled reverse of the picture in the instructions.

I followed Nick's suggestion on the fire sleeve where the positive cable passes into the engine bay as there is a sharp edge there. We used duct tape temporarily on the opening where the rubber grommet goes into the cabin to prevent damaging the wiring while pushing the cable through that grommet. Another tip, my friend used a hook through the lug hole at the end of the cable to help pull the cable through that small opening on the grommet. It's a tight fit getting the cable through there.

I'm excited to finish this up tonight and everything seems to be really well made.

 

[pufferfish]

gary, really good point on popping the truck before disconnecting the battery! it actually made me chuckle a bit to think of how a simple thing like that actually makes a big difference. I will make sure to add it to the instructions...as well as a note about the interchangeability of the posts in the solenoid.

 

[cloud9]

gary, really good point on popping the truck before disconnecting the battery! it actually made me chuckle a bit to think of how a simple thing like that actually makes a big difference. I will make sure to add it to the instructions...as well as a note about the interchangeability of the posts in the solenoid.

Good because it made me laugh too. I just thought to myself, you dummy Gary! Oh well not a big deal

 

[cloud9]

We have all the wiring finished and all that's left is to drop in the battery, drill the hole in the bumper cover and put it back on the car. We were a little worried about being able to bolt the switch to the bumper where it would be hidden by the license plate, due to the reinforcement they welded on when installing the tow hook. Fortunately we were able to reach the wrench far enough to the left to catch the nut. It looks like we drilled a bigger hole than Nick :-\

Steve/Nick - If you wouldn't mind looking over the pics of the wiring before I hook up the battery I'd appreciate it. I just don't want to fry anything.

Bracket with rubber cover in place:



Cover lifted to show connection to terminal block:



Battery box mounted:



Kill switch mounted:

 

[Black Boss]

Steve/Nick - If you wouldn't mind looking over the pics of the wiring before I hook up the battery I'd appreciate it. I just don't want to fry anything.

Looking good

 

[pufferfish]

It all looks correct. Drop that battery in and fire her up!

 

[cloud9]

Looking good

Good deal thanks! My buddy that's helping me is seriously skilled.

It all looks correct. Drop that battery in and fire her up!

Ok! ;D

 

[cloud9]

We buttoned up the project tonight. I have to say Steve put together a really cool kit and should be commended. I'm really happy with it and looking forward to getting her back on the track this spring. Here are some final shots of the cutoff switch. Also a big thanks to Pete at Track Day Solutions for the decal.

 

[Roadhouse]

Very clean install 8)

 

[OrangeBoss]

Nice install - stealth!

 

[pufferfish]

Would there be an interest in a kit without the kill switch? There is a lot of cost in the switch, alternator disconnect solenoid and associated wiring. So, although not legal for competition, it would be significantly cheaper and still offer weight distribution benefits.

Would it be worth looking into?

 

[ORANGE CRUSH]

Nice job Gary!

 

[cloud9]

Nice job Gary!

It was a fun project. A little more like a race car without affecting streetability

 

[patrickshelby]

Would there be an interest in a kit without the kill switch? There is a lot of cost in the switch, alternator disconnect solenoid and associated wiring. So, although not legal for competition, it would be significantly cheaper and still offer weight distribution benefits.

Would it be worth looking into?

I would say yes.
I am 100% happy (!!!) with my full kit but would have chosen a simpler one, if available, as I do not race.
Cheers,