Submerged Battery Box

...Hey Gary, I just wanted to make a comment about the 'Dropped' (I like the term 'Submerged', also) Battery Box. It took me weeks of weighing the concequences, for and against the cutting of the forward trunk floor; before I got up the nerve, and decided Yes! Go for it! I did the work myself and costructed the box to my design out of a single sheet of steel. To those who do the cutting themselves; be very sure to take a long detailed look UNDER the floor. The placement of the box must go exactly between the 'Rack-n-Pinion' Mounts, and directly back and against the 'FootWell' Bulkhead. This will make it more difficult to get to these mounts, anytime in the future. I'am not sure as 'that' work was all done Before I installed the box. When cutting, keep in mind that 'Extra' floor sheetmetal should be left intack so as to be 'Bent' downward to be used as an aid to support the mounting of said box. For the actual fastening; I used 1/4" Stainless Steel 'Pop Rivets' around the perimeter, 2.0 " apart. Very strong and Solid. And after years of driving; still Solid! All seams were sealed with 'Rubber Putty'. I did NOT add any vents, to the box, as I did not want dirt 'Blowing' in from under car. Now, to My Point: What tool did I use? A 'Milwalkee Sawsall'. Would I do it again? YES!! Was it 'Worth' the time and Trouble? Absolutely YES!! If you are 'into' taking hard curves at the Maximum Limit of Your Pantera; You will notice the great difference the very first time you 'Dive' into your Favorite turn!! Lowering 40-50 Pounds of Battery down aproximately One Foot in distance, does wonders for lowering the 'center of gravity', and 'Roll center Height'; of the Pantera's nose. I cut enough room for a larger 'Group 47' Battery, Yes, there was just enough space to pull it off! Be Forwarned, In my case it was necessary to loosen and 'almost' remove the clutch Master Cylinder; in order to actually install the Battery, itself. This is a beautiful modification to the Cat that frees up a lot of space in the trunk as well creating a more 'Sanitary' Look. Be sure to well insulate that Positive Terminal!!!! To anyone contimplating this bodywork; it takes Guts to chop into that prestine floor metal. A job NOT for the faint of Heart, you can always have a 'Professional' do th job for you. To those with 'Big Brass Ones', I send my Best of Luck, and 'Measure 3 times; and Cut Once!'...

The dropped battery box is the way to go ... my 79 has this from factory and is real nice but I have to say the bottom is open ..mybe for spillage or fumes ??? and the new batteries dont fit right. The factory box is narrow and long and very deep. It apears to have a cover that I'm missing ??? does anyone have an extra one for me ??? I have the Optima sealed battery in there now but it doesnt fit nice. I think its a great idea to cut it into the floor of the front compartment.

Ron

I bought mine from Hall. I liked the punched louvres in it. I think that it has louvres in the bottom, but I can't swear to it.
I had to put in a -3 flex line for the clutch in order to get the battery in or out.
I too use the Optima. I don't think that anything else will fit in.
I shim it to the side of the box with some styrofoam.
I carpeted the cover to hide it and while I was in there put in a battery kill switch mounted to the floor to make it easier to work on the car, kill the power in an emergency and add a little anti theft boobytrap to the car.
The location of the box isn't the best place but it's the only place it could be located in front.
I used my Makita recip saw. I don't have big brassies, all my stuff is small.

quote:

Originally posted by Mark:
Once again

I thought the job of a Moderator was something other then harassment?
This is the box I used. Mine is already installed so all you would see would be a picture of my hole.
I'm not pulling it out to take a picture of it.
This is a scan from the Hall catalog.
It came with a reinforced stainless top which doesn't show here.
I'm pretty sure that the bottom has three louvres punched in it also.
You need to supply your own grommets and the battery floats in the box with no firm mounting.
I have an Optima in mine, I think it's a size 24 or 22? You need a small case size to fit it in.
I found that the hydraulic line from the clutch exits in exactly the wrong spot.
I put a banjo fitting and a -3 Earls flex line in to keep it out of the way of the battery insertion.
It isn't a difficult installation but it is very tight and takes more patience then skill. A block ow wood and a rubber mallet will help also.
Hope this helps.

Doug cant open it .... and the last thing we want to see is a picture of your HOLE !! LOL please dont pull it out and take a picture ... I'll use my imagination .... LOL

I screwed it up. It's in Corel Photoshop. I'll try to make it a jpg.

By the time I get a picture off of my car of the oil cooler I could show you this.
(To get the pictures I have to pull the right rear tire and take the inner fender out to expose the innerds).
I copied Halls and used the Ford Motorsport oil cooler which is probably what Hall used.
I added a little 10" fan and an automatic temp sensor switch (just a Mustang temp warning sender).
The dual rmote filter mount, -12 aeroquip and Mocal thermostat are all tucked in there too in the hole.

There is one problem with the submerged box. It can be really difficult to lift out the battery if, like mine, it is a close fit.

So make sure you use a battery with lifting handles or use one small enough that you can get a grip on it, or put something around it so you can lift it out later.

I didn't discover the problem until I needed to get the battery out the first time - it took me 30 minutes!

> Dan I was just looking at the photo of your submerged battery box. I like it!

Was that my battery box (or perhaps another Dan) you're referring to? I put
some pictures up on my website but didn't think I had mentioned it. In any
case, here's a close up shot of my submerged battery box:

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Submerged_Battery_Box

The box is from Marino Perna at Patneras East and is stainless steel (comes
with a SS lid that's not pictured). It's about as large as will fit within
the constraints and just fits an Optima battery. I had a helper and drilled
several pilot holes to tell where I was before attacking it with the Sawzall.
Even then, I cut the hole small and then trimmed it to size. Since the
positive cable runs the length of the car, I had to make the hole in the box
rectangular to allow the post end to slide through. That worked out well as
the cable needs to be pushed back into the recess to allow the battery to
slide into place. I didn't have any clearance issues with the clutch slave
but I did have to open up the hole the lines go through and bend the clutch
and brake lines for clearance. I also had to put a notch in lower right hand
corner for clearance at the steering rack mount. The box was welded into
place on three sides with screws on the fourth side. I didn't want to risk
welding the forth side in place as there was some flammable material nearby
in the passenger compartment. A rectangular hole at the top of passenger side
footwell had to be cut to route the positive cable. I have the negative cable
grounded to a steering rack bolt but may may rethink that later. The area
will be smoothed and filled with brushable seam filler and the entire trunk
area repainted. Haven't decided yet on carpeting or felt yet.

Here's a shot of the front trunk compartment stripped to bare metal prior to
painting. The brake booster is removed, submerged battery box is intalled and
brackets for the 3 point brace are welded-in. The front bracket is welded on
the outside so only the three bolt holes are visible:

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Front_Trunk_Stripped_1

Another shot of the front trunk stripped to bare metal. The clutch master,
submerged stainless steel battery box, and one of the 3 point brace mounts
are visible:

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Trunk_Stripped_2

Some other pictures of recent work:

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Pantera_Roller_Driver_s_Side
http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Pantera_Roller_Passenger_Side

Driver's side shot showing interior stripped to bare metal prior to painting.
Also shows lowered floor pans for increased headroom:

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Driver_s_Side_Stripped_1

Passenger side shot showing the drop floor pans installed and the floor
stripped for painting:

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Passenger_Side_Stripped_1

Painted engine compartment. Engine, transaxle, gas tank, A/C, coolant bottles,
et. al. have been removed:

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Painted_Engine_Compartment_Bare

Blurry shot of some parts after painting. Three of the chassis braces are
visible as are the coolant tubes and bottles, the radiator screen, the old
removable crossmember, a splash shield, motor mount stands, engine pulleys,
alternator brackets, gas tank neck, and some interior bits (including the
original bulkhead cover):

http://www.bacomatic.org/gallery/album03/Pantera_Parts_2

Now if I can only remember how to put it all back together :-)

Dan Jones

Thanks Dan, It was your's. I was looking around at your photos. Makes sense to put it there.

Gary

When you have trouble removing a top-post battery from a submerged mount, get two 3/4 inch 90-degree iron pipe elbows and screw a 6-inch length of iron pipe into each of them. (Both of those items are easily attainable from your local hardware store.)

Assuming that you don't want to get knocked onto your @$$ (or worse) by simultaneously gripping both battery posts, place a pair of children's bicycle handle bar grips over the iron pipe as insulation.

Now, simply place the open ends of the elbows over the posts so that the grips extend over top of the battery and lift it out.

Be advised that the posts of the battery can get seriously scored by the threads inside of the iron elbow, so you may wish to put some rubber tape on the interior of the exposed elbows, but it'll definitely get that closely-fit battery out that doesn't have a handle on it.....

The only thing I don't like about the submerged mount is most new batterys have both side and top mount terminals. My fear is a possible short and fire between the side battery terminals and the steel battery box.

But they are sure nice for cleaning up the front truck and additional storage space.

Dan is that your aluminum containment facility on your web site. Or is that the parts room at Roush racing? LOL...

To get my battery out of it's submerged box I made two straps from an old seat belt.

Just cut a length of belt about 2 or 3 feet long (you need just enough length to go around the battery and overlap by about 4 to 6 inches) then stitch the ends together using 3 or 4 rows of strong thread
Do it again and you will have two strong light and thin straps to lift your battery in and out.

> Dan is that your aluminum containment facility on your web site. Or is that
> the parts room at Roush racing? LOL...

Nah, that's just the spare bedroom...

Dan