BritishV8 Forum

Hi Everyone,
I am currently installing my CCE 4 link and ford 8.8 in my mgb roadster.  There is interference with the battery boxes as I had expected, but do the battery boxes offer the car any structural support? I think they make the underneath kinda cluttered and would like to trim them back and just move the battery to the trunk.  I do not want to give up any strength in this car as I want it as rigid as possible.

That's a known issue that needs to be addressed by beveling the side of the battery box to provide clearance. Doesn't impact battery positioning inside the box

I actually did not hit there on my car maybe because it is an earlier chrome bumper car?  I had the axel hit on the inner side of the passenger battery box.    However I am curious if I could just remove the boxes completely or will this cause a lack of strength in the car?

Quote.....I had the axel hit on the inner side of the passenger battery box

Ah, the axle is hitting, not the upper link!
I think the general consensus is that the battery boxes do provide additional body strength - If it were mine, I'd remove the minimum material from the box to allow full axle articulation.

Advantages of original location compared to the trunk:
lower center of gravity
shorter polar moment of inertia
at least one fewer bulkhead connection or pass-thru for cable
shorter battery cable means less cable weight
shorter battery cable means less voltage drop in cable
doesn't consume/displace cargo capacity
acid vapor vents directly to atmosphere instead of into cargo area
better protection from collision/accident

Advantages of trunk mounted battery, generally? The only one I can think of is (possibly) more convenient jump starts.

I think a better idea might be switching from a lead-acid battery to a newer and much more compact type that can be mounted very close to the starter motor.

What Curtis said.  

There is one more reason to move it to the trunk.  It has been standard practice forever to place the battery in the right rear of the trunk for drag racing.

There are inconveniences with any battery placement but for sporting use the engineers got it right. Car was not designed as a drag racer and they put it as low as it could go. Note that the later cars eliminated the driver's side battery, giving better balance. On my car I have heavy terminals in the engine compartment and in the trunk which are very handy.

Jim

I am planning on eliminating the heater box and install a small new style battery. One of my friends has done this. Looks very nice. I'll try to sent a pic  later.
Werner