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Factory-original battery fitment in estate - pictures please?

Posted: Mon Jun 05, 2023 9:11 pm
by alpder
Rebuilding a '64 Countryman, trying to keep it to factory-exact appearance.

Can't for the life of me figure out how the battery was originally held down. The parts drawings have so many options it's impossible to make head nor tail of them. Does anyone have any pics of an original installation, please?

If there are any special battery panels/brackets I need to weld before painting, that'd be good to know too.

Re: Factory-original battery fitment in estate - pictures please?

Posted: Tue Jun 06, 2023 9:06 am
by EMOKID
Check out the drawing from Somerford Mini. Found at web site below. Electrical and Instruments / battery and cables
They also have many of the parts available. Should give you the idea until photo appears
somerfordmini.co.uk

Re: Factory-original battery fitment in estate - pictures please?

Posted: Tue Jun 06, 2023 9:25 pm
by alpder
EMOKID wrote: Tue Jun 06, 2023 9:06 am Check out the drawing from Somerford Mini. Found at web site below. Electrical and Instruments / battery and cables
They also have many of the parts available. Should give you the idea until photo appears
somerfordmini.co.uk
Thanks, but I've always struggled with SomerfordMini's website. Unlike on MiniSpares, you can't quickly navigate from the part (say, REPAN197) to the drawing. And, in this case, there's no obvious way to navigate using the drawings-menu to find anything battery-related. So although I can see that I might need a REPAN197, I can't see how it's fitted or what other parts go with it. And that part number appears to be specific to Somerford Mini.

Re: Factory-original battery fitment in estate - pictures please?

Posted: Wed Jun 07, 2023 12:55 am
by minibitz
Probably not much help but is on exploded drawing on Somerford site. Part no.41

https://www.somerfordmini.co.uk/travell ... van-pickup

Re: Factory-original battery fitment in estate - pictures please?

Posted: Thu Jun 08, 2023 9:40 am
by alpder
Dave Howarth from MiniSpares to the rescue...

Images from their 1963 Traveller (they're my annotations, so blame me - not MS - if they're wrong!)

14A8173 takes a couple of rubber bonnet-stops for the battery to rest against.

The REPAN197's must be placed at least the width of the battery tray (not the battery) apart. Or - I suppose - a hole(s) could be drilled in the back of the battery tray to fit the rod(s) through.

Thanks everyone.
estate batteryx.jpg
estate battery2x.jpg
estate battery1x.jpg

Re: Factory-original battery fitment in estate - pictures please?

Posted: Thu Jun 08, 2023 10:08 am
by Old English White
That's a nice tidy installation but if you want perfect originality, I would guess that for a start:
a): The car would not have been wired negative earth?
b): The terminal posts would not have been on the same side as the battery clamp where they look as if they could easily short out?
c): The terminal connections would have been the "helmet" type with a central screw?

Not that I'm an expert and I sold my Mini Countryman in 1976, so my memory isn't good on detail!

Re: Factory-original battery fitment in estate - pictures please?

Posted: Thu Jun 08, 2023 11:23 am
by alpder
Interesting points. When did Mini's go negative-earth?