FYI FORD MustangSteve's Ford Mustang Forum / Installing a smaller lithium battery with 24” radiator upgrade.

**Posted by RTM** 9/22/2024 7:43 AM

BILLY WALTON from GEORGIA wrote:
I used the MustangSteve Wilkes designed battery tray that CJ PONY coppied and started selling and learned its best to install the battery tray and the battery you are gonna use before drilling that top bracket for radiator and hook your radiator hoses up before mounting the saddles on the bottom its easier to tweak the radiator location that it is the battery and where those hoses go.

I was not able to go that route and I had both trays to make the tray you speak of. My AC lines are in the way and I did not offset the 24” radiator, I kept it centered in the core support opening. So I had two options, battery in the trunk or go with the smaller style battery. A lot of my build is kind of figuring things out as I go. Pretty much everything that I install has to be modified in one way or another.

**Posted by MS** 9/22/2024 8:17 AM

Putting the 24” radiator so the fill cap is exactly centered in the car is the best way to mount it, as you did. The stock battery tray will fit if the obsolete mounting bracket is cut off. A stock bsttery will fit, but you must unbolt the radiator top mount and slide the radiator 1/2” to the side to get it in, then put radiator back centered. An Optima battery with rounded corners eliminates the need to move the radiator over. The smaller lithium battery should make it even easier.

Are they a lot lighter?

**Posted by RTM** 9/22/2024 9:28 AM

I’ll have to look and see if I have pictures of when I tried to fit the larger battery tray. Maybe my second tray wasn’t the correct tray to use for that modification. Gate to confuse people with wrong information. Either way the AC lines would differently not fit with the larger battery.

I can grab the battery with one hand and pick it up. I forget the weight but it is for sure lighter.