A&Q about Lotus
Q:
I think I'll check mine too.
A soft strap would be a good way to go, not very affectect by battery acid either.
Or I could certainly weld up something like yours Jer. Having a MIG welder comes in handy.
I still have the original battery- I have no idea if the people at the Portland dealer checked it on the first service. It came from Newport European, and I've heard good things about their PDI. I have not seen anything wrong yet with the car since I got it, except one of the oil cooler grills coming loose. Park Place fixed it under warranty.
Mark
A:
Seek me out, Foosh. Chris and I will be co-driving me BRP Elise. I'll be there around 10:30.
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This also happened to me after an autocross. The battery tie down NEEDS to be better...... svag told me to get an aftermarket battery!!!
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The stock battery mount is solid in 5 directions, it uses clamping forces to keep it from slipping toward the back of the car in the sixth direction. Some of us have used an L bracket with holes drilled in it on the wheel well side clamp to keep it from moving toward the rear of the car.
A:
My stock battery is definately loose now. I found in the boot a 1-2" piece of black sponge foam that I presume came from under the battery somewhere. Also the "high strength" velcro is off. Founded it lying by the battery.
Both look like they were cemented on top of a painted surface, and the paint came off.
The bracket bolt on the tight all the way, but still the battery can slide.
Is there anything I can buy off the shelf to remedy this without replacing the battery? There is no sign of battery leakage. And I'm not much of a fabricator.
A:
Originally Posted by EldersburgElise
My stock battery is definately loose now. I found in the boot a 1-2" piece of black sponge foam that I presume came from under the battery somewhere. Also the "high strength" velcro is off. Founded it lying by the battery.
Both look like they were cemented on top of a painted surface, and the paint came off.
The bracket bolt on the tight all the way, but still the battery can slide.
Is there anything I can buy off the shelf to remedy this without replacing the battery? There is no sign of battery leakage. And I'm not much of a fabricator.
Some of the people who are fabricators aren't much of a fabricator either. And don't feel bad, look at the swell job Lotus did! First off, the body mold for the trunk should have allowed the battery to be down in a recess. In a wreck, that's a ton of weight. Anyway, the glass under the battery needs to be flat, no rocking. It can be leveled with resin. You need to support the battery all the way around at the base. Imagine a frame made of angle iron, corners welded. Use stainless if possible. The battery needs to sit on a pad of rubber, 1/8 to 1/4 thick. Vibration can wear thru the bottom of the battery. The horizontal part or the angle metal should be outside of the battery perimeter. It can be attached with resin and pop riveted to the existing trunk. Not sure but the trunk bottom may be too thick. In that case, use fasteners. The resin is best to use in conjuction with fasteners as it beds everthing together nicely. There are 2 part epoxies that will work, they have to be especially friendly toward the metalyou use. Aircraft Spruce has stuff. Then you need a method of securing the battery in the mounted frame. How elaborate depends on things. What size angle did you use? I 1/2" does a better job by itself than 1". The larger the angle, the better. As long as these are gell cells, you can get away with aluminum. If you come out with 1 1/2" or even 2", then the 2" up the sides of the battery does a decent job of keeping the battery from sliding. Your concern will be rollover restraint. You want it even if you don't rollover. The battery bounces up and down. I've seen flat rubber stretch straps that can hook to the frame and do the job. For a car that gets inspected, it's fine if it's decent quality and you know what you're doing. If in doubt, add more straps. I wouldn't sell this to GM as 6 yrs. later, the rubber is dead. You have to watch this yourself. If that's not to you're liking, 2 vertical metal straps up the sides and one across the top. They can be joined by hinge, pins, or anything as long as it's resonably strong and removable. They must exert some downward pressure on the battery. Maybe it's time to learn to fabricate. The only way to learn is by trying. Down the road, things get easier.
A side note, for those needing more corner weight in the right rear, moving the battery will do wonders.
A:
Originally Posted by EldersburgElise
My stock battery is definately loose now. I found in the boot a 1-2" piece of black sponge foam that I presume came from under the battery somewhere. Also the "high strength" velcro is off. Founded it lying by the battery.
Both look like they were cemented on top of a painted surface, and the paint came off.
The bracket bolt on the tight all the way, but still the battery can slide.
Is there anything I can buy off the shelf to remedy this without replacing the battery? There is no sign of battery leakage. And I'm not much of a fabricator.
EE,
What I did before I installed the Odyssey PC625, I epoxied that 'ribbed rubber piece on the fiberglass and placed the stock battery (for pressure) and clamped it down. It was pretty secure but I had no faith in it and got the Odyssey instead. I fabricated a piece out of 1/8" thick, 3/8" wide aluminum stock and this puppy is PERMANENT!
It's going nowhere...
The best solution for you would be to do what AZreason did and get the L bracket and bolt it in place. I saw it and it's supersecure. PM him for more info
A:
This happened to me (to a much lesser degree) on this last weekend LA drive and I did not even realize it ! We were getting on the freeway to go to the super cars show, I punched it on a very tight curve, heard a very very loud WHAM in the rear. I thought I had been hit by another car it was so loud. When we parked I looked all over the car and could not see any damage. Later on it hit me that maybe the sound was my soft top sliding and hitting the side. This morning I went and looked at the battery cover and it is totally loose, the bottom part that bolts into the floor is free but the bolt is still bolted in ! So the plastic snapped either from force or being slammed by my soft top ( which I am guessing what happened. Is that plastic shroud the only thing holding down the battery or is there a metal clamp back there as well?
I am a huge Optima battery fan and would love to use on in the Elise, maybe I will have Kais at SBL fit one for me
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Thanks. I went ahead and ordered the Braille battery from Sector111.
It saves a good deal of weight, and the bracket is well reviewed. I think less weight inherently improves the situation.
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Originally Posted by delise
Is that plastic shroud the only thing holding down the battery or is there a metal clamp back there as well?
The black plastic shroud is merely the battery cover and it does nothing to hold the battery down -- take off the cover and take a peek.
A:
Originally Posted by Jack
The black plastic shroud is merely the battery cover and it does nothing to hold the battery down -- take off the cover and take a peek.
Thanks, I looked this morning in better light situation. I did not know the carpet snaps down onto to 2 snaps under the plastic battery bracket. I think as I took the hard corner my soft top must have slid into the cover and unsnapped and bent it back so that it popped over the carpet. I felt underneath the shroud before snapping the carpet back and the clamp is there firm and solid.
So no problems ! other than that I will need to secure my soft top whilst being spirited.
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Originally Posted by delise
So no problems ! other than that I will need to secure my soft top whilst being spirited.
sector111 bootie. It also eliminates the need to put the top in the bag when stowing it.
Another option would be to put the top behind the seats. There's a recent thread on how to fold it so that it fits.
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Originally Posted by delise
my soft top must have slid into the cover and unsnapped and bent it back so that it popped over the carpet.
Your soft top has nothing to do with your battery problem. The stock battery weighs 28 pounds, 2 carpet buttons aren't going to hold that. My stock battery escaped its mount when (a) my soft top was secured by a bootie, (b) the mounting bolts were very tight after the incident.
I conclude from this that the design is flawed -- nothing prevents rearward movement in the stock setup. The bootie saved my clam, and I got a the Sector 111 Braille. Problem solved.
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Bane,
what was the result of your claim? did lotus warranty this, or were you left hung out to dry? from the looks of it, it does seem to be a defective design, as so many others have reported similiar problems with their battery hold down mounts.
just curious
Fishguy
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Originally Posted by Taxcheat
Your soft top has nothing to do with your battery problem.
Not saying that there may not be a battery hold down problem, but delise's problem appears to have been the top sliding into the battery cover and knocking it loose (with a loud noise). His battery was still firmly mounted...
Everyone should be aware that you should never have loose, hard objects in the boot. They will slide and if they hit the side of the body, it can very easily cause small (or large) cracks from the inside. The Sector111 bootie is one solution to help alleviate this problem.
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Originally Posted by TimMullen
delise's problem appears to have been the top sliding into the battery cover and knocking it loose
Oops, misread his post and thought the wham was the battery moving. Perhaps touring batteries are more secure?
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Originally Posted by Taxcheat
Perhaps touring batteries are more secure?
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This happened to me also but I was on the track. The pos battery the car comes with leaks like a sinking submarine.
Originally Posted by Bane
While driving spirited today my battery decided it didn't like where it was...
It flew back, busted the rear clam (ripping through the fiberglass and knocking my taillight out), then rolled over damaging the engine lid (won't close properly now), before coming to a rest in an inverted position damaging the right side of the clam. There are bits of fiberglass/plastic/carpet/acid everywhere in the trunk.
I heard a few clunks but just dismissed it as typical Lotus noises. Once I got to my destination I turned the car off and noticed it has ZERO electrical power. It was running on the alternator after my little mishap. I'll admit I was driving the car like it was meant to be driven. The car is bone stock and I only have the touring pack and star shield so it was on AD07 tires on asphalt!!!
What do you think my chances are that Lotus will honor this under warranty?
I'm so bummed right now I haven't even had the car for a full week
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just took dodoge's advice and ordered the bootie
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Bump.
Everyone who has this car should read this thread. I really feel like Bane and the others saved my rear clam.
The braille battery install is very, very easy if you know how to use a box wrench and a screwdriver. The result is much, much more secure and the weight savings is a bonus.