Yeah, I saw the similar thread in with those snooty R53 "I has a supercharger" guy's thread. Anyway, has anyone ever thought, planned, done or tried to move the battery on a JustACooper? Maybe a box behind the seat somewhere? Maybe a place where we could ditch that stupid box under the hood and mount a real battery, read:Optima...

 

I'm offended!

 

Hey! Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Granted, I'm not talking about hitting on any d00dz any time soon but I am saying it's a good idea and I figured I'd share the interest with my fellow N/A brothers.

 

It took me a second to realize that said "dudes" haha!

Ok you got me, can't think of a comeback.

 

funny. i was thinking about this yesterday. but the reason i was thinking about it was because i was wondering how we could mount a REAL C.A.I. like the ones made for the S in the S location.

 

This will be done on my R50 soon...

I'll have to double check the particulars on this, but either the airbox or the battery box also houses the ECU. So, if you remove both, you need to rig up something to secure the ECU to.

And, at least the early Coopers do not have a hatch release cable inside the car. So, if you relocate the battery to the boot and still have the rear seats in, you're screwed when the battery goes dead - no way to open the hatch, and no easy way to get to the battery from the passenger compartment either.

 

are you relocating the air intake?

i think the battery box is the one that houses the ECU as the ECU is right next to the battery housing.

i wonder in my case if you could swap the spots? relocate the intake to the battery area and vice-versa? or would the new battery location not allow the hood to close. hmmm probably wouldn't work.

 

I dont know if that would be possible but I dont think you would want to move the 50 pounds another 2 foot further forward?

 

forgot about that 50 lbs thing!! yeah that wouldn't be too good would it?

 

I think the company Braile <sp> makes a 11# battery if you worried about weight.

 

i was just thinking out loud. the reason was is because there really isn't a true CAI for the R50 and i noticed the AFE filter i have on my intake lost all of it's oil on it after a couple months. we're talking like 1000 miles not the 30,000 miles AFE recommends recleaning and re-oiling the filter. i haven't been driving much lately due to my work schedule.

i then realized the oil was gone because i wash my car usually every weekend, guess the water from washing the grill is enough to wet the intake. that's kind of scary IMO. so i was thinking the intake or air box location on the S is much better.

 

Has anyone actually used of these everyday? When I think "lightweight battery", I think one designed to crank a car over and start it and that's it. Not one designed to be used day in and day out for a few years. I live in PA so the weather runs from 20 degree winters to 98 and humid in the summer. I get concerned that one of these wouldn't last.

 

i've never used one but, the best regular weight replacement i found was the duralast gold at auto zone. it is the same exact dimensions as the OEM and even made in germany, seems much more powerful than the OEM one. weighs a ton though and not available at every auto zone. you'd have to use the auto zone site to locate one in your area.


Duralast Gold (Part # H5-DLG) $110 if you want to replace your battery at some point. good info to hang onto as getting a decent and perfect match to fit that battery box is a pain. has a good warranty on it too...

 

I've already memorized that part number. I work at Advance Auto and we don't sell a battery to fit the R50 which means I either go to NAPA down the road or go about 15 miles north to the nearest AZ for a battery. I've also had to give that battery PN to a few people who come into my store asking about one.

 

Ok....I have used one of these...but it was a DEKA (relabeled Braille). You can find them on ebay for $70. It lasted me about 4 months until one day it went dead and wouldnt even jump (I think I left the interior light on). Luckily the Touareg was next door or else I would have been really pissed.. All-in-all, even with the premature failure, I would (will) run another one. I also used an Odyssey PC680 and that thing went dead on me within a month. Wouldnt recommend that one. They weight on the DEKA is 11lbs. A helluva lot better than the 45lb Dura-heavy Im running now...

 

Oh and it only has like 300CCA's so no....it wont last in cold climates. But Im not worried about it here in AZ...when it gets to 126 degrees...

 

That's what I thought. The Braille is rated at 360 with the AZ battery at 550-600.

 

You know...it might have been 360CCA. It makes no diff....theres not enough juice to crank it in cold climates.

 

If I were doing this I'd move the battery to the boot on the passenger side and maybe the ECU along with it. Otherwise I'd find out where the S ECU is kept and buy that part for my MC (along with the long S battery cable). May still require so rigging for where to hook it up.

 

This is a GREAT idea! I'm excited to see if this mod works

 

Yeah, this pisses me off. I have a jumper that I kept back there. When my battery died, I was screwed! no way to open the hatch. Is there a way to install a cable? That would be very useful.

 

Im guessing you can use the newer latch system since the wiring should be the same...it should just have the pull chord incorporated into it...

 

I'm relocating my battery to the boot (where the tools are and I'll put those in a bag in the drivers side boot compartment) I will have dedicated + & - cables to the rear and I will incorporate jumper points under the hood mounted next the the future CDA CI CAI. I'll take that area where the battery used to be and pull out the stock intake and install a CDA filter piped to the cowl box by way of Mini Madness Cowl mod. Then install some cowl scoops and I'm set (fresh cold pressurized air). As for the battery the manufacturer is Kinetik, it's rated at 600 CA and weighs 14lbs. I'm tossing around the idea of installing a grounding kit as well when I relocate the battery. What do you guys think?

 

What up maaaan..where have you been?!? Im gonna eventually relocate my battery IF I HAVE TO for my eventual swap. But I think I can make room for the DEKA in te engine bay...hmmm....

 

Gotcurves, why don't you just make your own cowl mod. We did it to my dads MCS. All we had to do was drill a big hole into the panel. Looked exactly like the madness one that was sitting right next to it.