Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Posted: **Sun Aug 09, 2015 10:42 am**

KevJ+2 wrote:Paul, a couple of ebay links for examples.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Battery-Isola ... 419a0898ab

Kev.

Fitting one under the dash was exactly what I was going to do. I wondered it it was possible.
So , thanks, for that! I notice that the Ebay Ad. shows the isolator on the return feed! Why?

With the only isolator under the dash would that not mean that some shorts could still be active even with the isolator removed? Fit it to the power side and, removed, its all dead.

Perhaps I should fit 2.

Vince

Posted: **Sun Aug 09, 2015 1:53 pm**

With the negative side of the battery disconnected from anything, there is nowhere for current to flow if you accidentally bridge from one of the +12V points in the wiring to engine or chassis, so it is safe.

This is why you should always disconnect the chassis side first when disconnecting a battery. Shorting that side to metal with a spanner does nothing anyway and once that is disconnected, shorting the live side to metal with your spanner will also then do nothing. (all more relevant in metal cars of course).

With the isolator fitted on the chassis side there is no additional risk of shorting its big fat terminals to chassis metal. If it is on the live side you need to insultate those terminals well.

Posted: **Sun Aug 09, 2015 6:03 pm**

halfords 038,3 year guar,it starts my 1980 elite 2.2 litre also,just need to alter floor boards in elan+2 as it is slightly higher than no longer obtainable 015

Posted: **Sun Aug 09, 2015 10:16 pm**

Excellent discussion

Spyzee, could you please post some nice pix of the battery set-up in your "180/5". Would be very helpful.

Thanks,

Randy

spyzee wrote:There is no other battery that is a direct replacement for the type 038 fitted as the 038 is very narrow. However it is possible to get a type 038 with a 40 AH rating which is slightly better that the 35 AH offered by the standard one. Even then the battery poles may be the wrong way around so you'll have to do a bit of surgery.

I have a +2 Spyder Zetec and the 35AH Type 038 simply wasn't up to the job so I've done an awful lot of research to find a battery that I could fit without having to modify the original battery box. (yes I know I've modified just about everything else). Result of all this is that by using a Type 75 rated at 60AH, a piece of wood and a couple of metal clips the battery will fit but again the poles will be the wrong way around.

The trick is in using the height of the battery because although the type 75 is much wider it is not as tall as the type 038 so if you place a thick piece of wood into the battery box to level out the floor then the Type 75 will now fit on top of it. The piece of wood will need to be properly secured to the floor of course and the battery will need to be firmly secured to the wood. I've screwed two pieces of metal into the wood at the end where it meets the boot wall and as the Type 75 has the securing fitments at the base of the battery I can slide the battery under the metal pieces and then use the existing restraining fitting to secure the other end.

The battery cost me ?36 at Euro car parts with a 3 year guarantee. There are cheaper places online but not by much.

Posted: **Mon Aug 10, 2015 7:06 am**

Thanks for all the great points.

I suppose the other part of the problem is the cables them self's..For the power (red) what do I need? Size wise that is. Ie if the battery is rated at 1000cca..do I need cable sized for 1000amps?

Same for the earth too..what size is required? I have 16mm welding cable as my current earth..It doesn't look the best and I'd like it to be better.

Paul

Posted: **Mon Aug 10, 2015 9:37 am**

Watching this topic with interest as I have an Elan S4 which has a battery which doesn't appear to be holding charge so looking to replace it. (I'm still running a Dynamo :-(

).
Trouble is I am a little confused as I thought the thing to go for was Cold Cranking amp, however looking at the various options mentioned the lightweight Odyssey battery which people say is fantastic has lower cranking amps than the Bosch model also mentions
Odyssey PC925 = CCA of 300
Odyssey PC680 = CCA of 170
Bosch S5 = CCA of 600
I want to make sure I change out to the correct option, it isn't a track day car but a general purpose weekend and occasional holiday touring car so which is the best option ?

Sorry for hi-jacking someone else's thread but seemed better than starting yet another battery discussion
Thanks
Rob P

Posted: **Mon Aug 10, 2015 11:57 am**

Rob..

Feel free..all is good..its exactly what I was was thinking too. I saw a battery that had 900 amps but only 700cca..well that just confused me!!!.

Right now I'm happy to modify the floor to mount a battery and put in 50mm2 cable for power and earth..

its just making the right choice once..

Posted: **Mon Aug 10, 2015 12:15 pm**

May I point you at Malcolm at MSAR.
http://www.msar.co.uk/motorsport/Batter ... cessories/
He used to race Elans and sold me the Odyssey for the Exige. He's a fountain of knowledge. After he's talked at you for 30 minutes perhaps you could bring back a pr?cis of his pearls?

Posted: **Mon Aug 10, 2015 12:36 pm**

jbeach wrote:Hi Paul,

I installed an Odyssey PC925 in my S4:

IMG_0475.JPG

It's compact and powerful. I highly recommend it.

Best,

John

So do I, and I am very happy with it.. I still run a dynamo and so far have not had any problems with it. It's worth investing in an intelligent charger/conditioner as well for those long cold winter months and for keeping the battery topped up..

Carl

Posted: **Mon Aug 10, 2015 1:23 pm**

Cheers Carl,

I do like the look of the Odyssey product so think you have swayed me in that direction :-)

Posted: **Mon Aug 10, 2015 2:19 pm**

It's smaller than the original so you will need to modify your battery compartment accordingly.. I bought the battery from MDS battery who were very competitive (http://www.mdsbattery.co.uk) and a bracket from a company called Powervamp ..(http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/POWERVAMP-PVR ... 232e9e1f73). If you need round terminals they are extra but MDS may do a deal ... I think I got mine thrown in for free with the battery:-)

Carl

Posted: **Thu Aug 13, 2015 9:13 am**

Type 75 battery on wooden mount and battery isolator switch on earth side

The battery is held firmly in place on the secured wooden block but it can be removed easily by undoing the original mount bracket and sliding the batter out. I will put the car on the track eventually but I will place a restraining band around the top of the battery just in case.

hope this is helpful
Colin

Posted: **Mon Aug 17, 2015 9:42 am**

Odyssey PC925 purchased and fitted, my my what a difference straight off, Cranks very nicely indeed, now just need to determine where to fit the isolator and after checking the cabling I think I need to replace as the car must have originally been Positive earth and converted as the cables have been messed around with and red insulating tape now signifies the live lead :-(

Posted: **Mon Aug 17, 2015 9:48 am**

Glad to hear it's working well.

I have a isolator connected directly to the negative terminal of the battery

I don't worry with the fuse as there is nothing which needs standby power on my car! It great, just open the boot and loosen the green knob to disconnect the battery... No need to make holes in your car to mount a switch either

Oh, both the positive and negative cables on my car are black.. I guess the factory had run out of red cable when they built my car ..

Carl

Posted: **Mon Aug 17, 2015 5:44 pm**

My +2 has a black positive lead (factory fit i believe) so plan to red tape it (unless i can find for red heat shrink...).

Personally I went for a remote controlled battery cut off switch (battery brain). Makes it much easier to turn off and provide increased security. It also feature an auto off, so if the battery level is dropping too low it will cut out and ensure you have enough left in the battery to start it.

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