I am in the process of resto-modding a 92 245 (for starters). I finally managed to drill out the rotted battery tray bolts and saw what little was left of the metal battery stand underneath. As a result, I am interested in just grinding out the battery stand and not replacing it... of course, this means the battery has to be put elsewhere in the car....

My thought was to do something similar to a V70 and put the battery under the floor near the rear hatch. Has anyone done something like this on a 245? If yes or no, any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

jorrell

A typical battery box with vent tube will fit in the rear right saddlebag. Get #2 or better welding cable for the +12v feed, and ground should be a local one.

This is a normal deal for rallye 242's. The nose is already heavy enough.

For cold air feed I used a 3 liter soda bottle as a form for a fiberglass cone filter deal and made the base from routable PVC block (helps if you freeze it).
Hoses can be silicone or flex metal (HVAC supplier).

Interesting notion.
Consider one of the small, powerful gel cell batteries that can be mounted vertically or even inverted.
Ensure that it can vent to outside the compartment, and that it's not susceptible to shorting out in a flood.
Some street rods use a battery holder which hinges downward for access.

Al A., '84 245GLT, advanced entropy labrat

I don't think you could put it under the floor without some serious trouble since that's where the gas tank is.

You *might* be able to fit it into the storage compartment on the side though. It would be a matter of picking up a generic relocation kit from your local performance shop.

I'd tend to agree with Richard though, just replace it.

would be useful to have the space in the compartment.
I'd like to have a 2 battery setup (one for audio).
--
Stef -- 1981 245 B21A SU M46 323000km my volvo pages

Hello,

Nice idea to relocate the battery, BUT....

The trays rarely rot out, so it's likely there was once/is a battery that was there which leaked out it's rather corrosive load of acid. Replace the tray and keep the battery where it's meant to be. Other cars have different locations because the engineers had their reasons. The Swedish engineers decided to put the 240 battery where it has always been.

--
Happy Bricking!!! - Richard - '95 855T 309k, '87 245 DL 406k, '82 242 GLT 121k - Volvo's are alive and well in Brampton!!!

Thanks for the input folks! It is unfortunate that this near perfect specimen of a 245 had (until a few days ago), a leaky battery... beyond that the car is a Swedish Brick SH** House! I am tempted to just replace the battery stand and do body work and paint on the engine compartment to resolve the problem.

On the other hand, I know that heat kills batteries and it is also advantageous to have a decent amount of weight over the drive wheels. I am also in "search" of space under the hood for additional equipment space to accommodate a cold air intake and intercooler plumbing for the Turbo and associated control systems.

This also means that I won't be using a typical side to side mounted rear muffler, so I am tempted to "use" that area to sink a battery box into the floor.

Thoughts, comments, curses?

jorrell

The battery is not a problem on 240s - it only needs to turn over a
very well-balanced 4 cylinder engine.
I'd move it to the passenger rear wheel well for weight and convenience.
Be sure to use good cabling that is a size up to account for increased resistance in extra length.
I don't know if there is a size that would fit in the "trunk".
I figured you wanted to modify the airbox and go CAI. There is so much room in the compartment it's not that necessary to move the battery, but it is a cool plan.
--
Stef -- 1981 245 B21A SU M46 323000km my volvo pages

At last weekends Texas Volvo Club meeting a guy showed up with a 244 with a V8 in it. He had relocated his battery to the trunk because he just did not have the room for it. It creates a better balanced front end and looks awesome. In a 244 we have the two spare tire wells, but because of the gas tank you cannot put an extra spare in the passenger side. So he put his battery back there. I know 245's have something similar. YOu will need ~12-15 feet of HEAVY guage wire to run the wire from the front to the back. He installed terminals on the firewall below the windshield wiper motor. Again it looked great and he said it only took about an hour to get everything set up.

Place a piece of wood under the battery so it is not resting on the metal. Or buy a remount kit. Also make sure you don't block the fuel drain.

I am going to do it myself, when I have the money for the wire.
--
85 240DL 189k; 91 240 169k

volvostud:

Thanks for the battery relocation input! I have chosen not (reluctantly) to follow the V8 conversion approach on this car. The main reasons for the "non-V8 approach" is to avoid the additional weight and frontal impact survivability concerns. Yes, Volvo spent a lot of time making sure that the B230 would "slide" under the floor pan rather than drive through the firewall and crush the occupants! I doubt any of the companies offering a V8 conversion kit have done a single crash test!

When it comes to the additional space I need under the hood, well thats just for the 14 Elecric Superchargers (I say I say that's a Joke Son!) Honestly, the powerplant is a B230 Block and a B230F head with a B230FT compression ratio.

My final goal is to call this vehicle a true 240 T5 R without excuses! Any 850 T5 R's game for a duel???? Once I'm done wrenching of course!

jorrell