fast90hatch

I have a 1990 civic hatch... I want to get the battery out of the engine bay and get it into the trunk.. I want to do this for many reasons, first i want to get some weight into the back, and i also hate the battery where it is on EF's. It is always in the way of everything. Plus if i get the battery in the back i can also run a EG carbon fiber intake, if i ever wanted to. So is there a kit for this or do i just have do make a box for it in the back and run new wire??? Also for the power wire, could i use like 6 gauge speaker power wire?? The kind that you would normaly use when you run subs. Thanks.

ridexstraight

i would like to add a ? to this cause i also want to relocate, do i have to run a ground all the way back up the engine or can i chassis ground it by the battery, i have a grounding kit, and yes what gauge wire to use and where is the power cable supposed to run to on a crx, mine goes to the starter and like a 10 guage wire into the fuse box is that all or should there b more

pyro_freak8

there are kits to do it, all you really need is a long like 4 or 6 gauge power wire and a short ground to the body, you will also need to mount it to hold the battery still

MonkeyMagic

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by pyro_freak8 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">there are kits to do it, all you really need is a long like 4 or 6 gauge power wire and a short ground to the body, you will also need to mount it to hold the battery still</TD></TR></TABLE>

4 or 6 guage wire is just BEGGING for a fire.. when i first relocated mine i used 2 guage and it got hot and the car would crank slowly. O guage is a MUST!!

and yes you ground it to any part of the chassis.. i used where the spare tire would normally bolt to the tub

you can connect the positive wire to where the factory positve clamp was (in the engine bay)

and again, O gauge wire is a must!!

drdisco69

DON'T FORGET TO SEAL THE BOX AND VENT IT.

Hydrogen is not forgiving. Neither is acid.

And like MonkeyMagic said, use a huge wire. Resistance increases with length, so what was ok for 2 feet under the hood has to be a lot bigger to go to the trunk. 6 WILL cause a fire.

Make sure it's also mounted very securly. That's a lot of weight, and what holds it in place now might not when Soccer Mom pulls in front of you and your car stops quickly, whether due to the brakes or "other methods".

Relocating the battery is sort of a big deal, so think through everything, and if in doubt, it's better to have too much than not enough.

fast90hatch

ok.. then i have 3 questions for you guys... how do i seal the box?? i was just gona make a 5 sided box (4 sides, and bottom) then i was gona make a cap for it. then drill two holes on the one of the sides and put gromments where the wire goes through the holes. Also where should i vent it out to?? should i drill a hold somewhere in my trunk. then also should i run the power wire inside the car and through the fire wall? Or should i go under the car? Better yet, does anyone know where i can get a kit for this?

DocSean

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fast90hatch &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ok.. then i have 3 questions for you guys... how do i seal the box?? i was just gona make a 5 sided box (4 sides, and bottom) then i was gona make a cap for it. then drill two holes on the one of the sides and put gromments where the wire goes through the holes. Also where should i vent it out to?? should i drill a hold somewhere in my trunk. then also should i run the power wire inside the car and through the fire wall? Or should i go under the car? Better yet, does anyone know where i can get a kit for this?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Here is a good kit for a battery box if this is what you are talking about. They are all over the place. http://store.summitracing.com/...1&y=9

drdisco69

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fast90hatch &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ok.. then i have 3 questions for you guys... how do i seal the box?? i was just gona make a 5 sided box (4 sides, and bottom) then i was gona make a cap for it. then drill two holes on the one of the sides and put gromments where the wire goes through the holes. Also where should i vent it out to?? should i drill a hold somewhere in my trunk. then also should i run the power wire inside the car and through the fire wall? Or should i go under the car? Better yet, does anyone know where i can get a kit for this?</TD></TR></TABLE>

You're right on the money with everything. Seal the wires and vent with grommets, vent to the outside through a hole. You can probably get some rubber weather strip with an adhesive back to seal the top. You can run the power wire either way, I would choose inside to protect it. Make sure you put a fuse or circuit breaker close to the battery, less than 6-8" to keeps things under control.

pyro_freak8

well summit has a relocation kit that uses 2-gauge.... sorry for the wrong info...

88civichbz6

i used 0 awg wire for power and ground. i ran a gound in the trunk and one up to the engine and grounded it all over the engine. one reason is the car is a unibody and doesn't have one piece of metal that runs from the front to the back with out a weld in between it. but the car runs great. i would also suggest adding fuses between the engine compartment and battery so if the wire gets shorted you don't have a fire and the fuse goes. as for ventign the battery i used the side air vents and i got a marine battery box and use flex pipe for pluming for the vent hose.

any questions pm me

fast90hatch

DAMN!! $120 is alot of money to pay for a steel box and some wire!!!! I am gona make my own i think.. I got a question tho. If i run a optima battery do i still have to seal the box? Because they "say" that there batterys are totally sealed. so sealed that you can mount in upside down if you wanted to! So would i still have to use a sealed box if i used the Optima... sorry i know i am spelling that wrong. I have seen them in trunks of cars OPEN, without a box over it. I wouldn't be so worried if i had a "trunk" But i got a hatch... so there is no split in between where the bat. is gona me and where i am gona be!!

ICeDoUt

and if u ever want to run your car at a track/drag strip your gonna need an on/off switch that is accessable form the outside of your car. most people put it where the hatch key hole is. Seems a little overkill to me, but its required. i was booted off the drag strip before because of not having one.

thatbluecrx

Summits kit NOT THE 120$ one, mine was only 40...

Blue Top Optima

recommend the spiral cell battery cause it wont kill u
i love my setup in my 90crx soooo much more room underhood

i have 2 breakers, one in the hatch at the battery... and one under my hood on the firewall, so it cant short either way... consider that too

PHOBIA

just go to the flee market,my roomate got a whole setup with every thing needed for $15.on my car i ran it through the fire wall,under the car is not a good idea.you can also buy just the box at any auto parts store for like $35-40 and just get the rest of the wire at a harware store.you can also pick up the battery terminal posts at wall part for $10 if i remeber right.

RCautoworks

If you ever want to go drag racing at a track, go to nhra.com and find the rules for relocationg a battery.

W O T

4gauge wire is fine, mine is just right behind the passenger seat though, I basically just used the wire I had for my stereo, then used a 4gauge ground to the body in two spots, then when going with the power wire into the engine bay I used a distribution block and form the 4gauge, went to 2 8gauge lines, one to the starter and one to the fusebox

Never had a problem, I dont have a battery box though, just a large U clamp deal and bolts to the floor

Dont know if Ill be aloud to run at the track or not

brnzbuddha

What size breaker/fuse are you guys using?

daubleaaron

Ive been running my optima yellow top relocated to the trunk of my crx for over a year now and ive just got it straped down in the trunk on its side, and havent had any problems. I used wiring from my amps to hook it up and I kept the fuse for the amp inline, after a week or so when it was cold out I cranked the car over 3 times and the fuse shorted out. Mind you this fuse is for an amp and not made for the starter. Im wondering what size fuse you guys are running and whether my optima is ok to run at the track without a battery box?

brnzbuddha

I think you would need a distribution block. Run the fuse for the starter/battery through that, and then run a smaller inline fuse holder for the amp. I don't use a battery box on my Optima battery since it is dry cell and can't leak (as far as I know). You just have to make sure it is very secure.

I am still curious as to what size fuse everyone inline from the starter to the battery.

fast90hatch

i was talking to (88civichbz6).. he said that I should use atleast a 100amp fuse. so like if i used a stinger 100amp fuse, used for a "amp" i would be fine. he also said if i run a optima battery i don't need a sealed box. So that is another good thing. How are you guys holding down the battery though???? I was just gona get a Optima battery and the wires and fuse.. then just dig in!!! this is how i figure alot of things out. I want to put my battery in the middle of the spare tire compartment. I already took out the spare tire, i just got to figure out a way to mount it really tight! anyone have idieas?

MtnCRX

I just relocated my battery yesterday! Heres what i did with what i had and where i got it

16 ft red 4 guage wire (4 is plenty think) - Napa auto parts - asked the guy
2 ft black 4 guage wire w/ fastener on end - Napa Auto parts
tsunami 1 - 4 guage to 4 - 8 guage power distribution block - circuit city
optima d51 yellowtop battery - Pep Boys - dont need a box
Battery rubber hold down, battery tray (i cut a side off for better fit), and long 8'' screws - Pep Boys
extra fastener to attach to red wire - Pep Boys
6 self-tapping screws (self screwing screws) - local hardware store

-I put the battery tray down in the right rear, then made pilot holes with a hammer and nail.
-Then i screwed in the 6 self tapping screws to make it so the tray wouldnt move.
-Laid the battery on its side, keeping it down with the rubber hold down with 8'' screws going through the hold down and mounted to the tray. - the tray has slots for the hooks on the end of the screws to fit in
-Ran my positive wire along the wheel well, under the door sill through the firewall
-Put power distribution block above where old battery was. theres a #10 hole on strut tower.
-ran starter, alarm, air/fuel meter, and fuse box into 8 guage slots and positive into 4 guage slot.
-grounded the battery to an existing grounding point on the rear wall.
-prayed for my life and started the car.

- you might wanna use a fusable link in the middle of the positive wire somewhere in case theres a spike. youll blow your fuse instead of somethin more important. hope this helped

brnzbuddha

Four J Bolts and two strong rubber straps would work.

dr_latino999

Not track safe but it works; we just took a standard hurricane strap used in connecting your roof to the beams and bent it to shape and put two screws on each side. We have hit the battery as hard as we can with a rubber mallet and it didn't move so it gets my for cheap-quasi-safe fab work. The fuse is currently a 150 but not the one pictured.

W O T

Do track techs look for this though? My interior is gutted and Ive just got a normal high cracnking amp battery and Im not running a sealed box, need some info

crxgator

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ICeDoUt &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">and if u ever want to run your car at a track/drag strip your gonna need an on/off switch that is accessable form the outside of your car. most people put it where the hatch key hole is. Seems a little overkill to me, but its required. i was booted off the drag strip before because of not having one.</TD></TR></TABLE>

what about cars that have batteries in the trunk from the factory like bmw, volvo, etc?