TheSamba.com :: View topic - Sliding battery KO'd my tail light housing!

Sat Nov 23, 2002 8:22 am

OK. I asked about this six months ago and no one came up with 'the solution', so I put it on the back burner. Then, last night I get pulled over for my right rear tail light being out. Look at it this morning and the connectors are broken from the battery continually beating against it. Aside from the battery doing this, it obviously isn't a good thing to have a battery moving around. It probably encourages battery acid to make it's way to the battery tray (we've all welded in one of these at one time or another). So, it's a 12 volt battery and there are the 6 volt strap things on the tray. What is available out there (to buy or to fabricate) to utilize the existing tray hooks? I've never seen a battery strap in person, so I don't know if these are obtainable and then extendable?

Thanks,

Tony

Sat Nov 23, 2002 9:08 am

I have a couple tricks for this problem.

first, get an optima battery. they are expensive ($100+), but they are well worth the money. they have no acid, they produce no hydrogen gas and they have much more power than a standard lead-acid battery. all around a much better battery.

second, I have got a stock battery strap to work with my optima, but if it doesn't work, there is another trick. the straps that hold the gas tank down in a splittie bus are the exact same strap material, with the same hold down foot on one end. the only differences are that the gas tank strap is longer and it doesn't use the latching mechanism like a battery strap. what you can do to make the perfect sized battery strap is take a gas tank strap, figure out the size that you need, fold it over a latch from a battery strap and tack weld it toegther.

if you are entirely confused at this point, I can take a picture for you.

there is a temporary fix, just put a section of 2X4 below the taillight so the battery can't slide into it. the battery will still bounce around and if it is a lead-acid battery, it will still rust out your battery tray but at least it won't take out your taillight and the cops will have to fabricate an entirely different excuse to pull you over.

if you need a battery strap and/or a taillight, drop me an email. I have lots of these parts.

Lind
info@deadstickers.com

Sat Nov 23, 2002 9:40 am

I've been running with the 2X4 solution for 4 years now. . . I've got my battery in a plastic battery box to keep battery stuff away from the sheet metal. It's not "correct stock", but then neither is the rest of my bus. . . :-)

Nate
http://www.nateswaterart.com/vw/