Ac Aceca Battery type? and Battery Tray

[SpqrEddie]

Be careful, the early Ace has a different battery tray and fixing. The early battery is aligned fore and aft - I think '31 would have been like the other early cars ?
Barrie

now there still the battery on top.
but i think the one on the car, looks like this one.

anyhow, for me the important was to understand it i was missing any parts. if the battery i just hold down by the friction caused by the to side plates bolted togheter. i think my set up is complete.
i was thinking may be i was missing a strap on top.

Thanks

[nicksonsticks]

Hi Eddie,
Michael has very kindly sent me some pictures of a '59 Aceca battery tray, (see attached). He will post some more details later on.
Hope this helps.
Kind regards
Nick

[nicksonsticks]

Photo 2

[B.P.Bird]

Jonas,
Apart from being RHD the battery tray in AE22 is almost identical to your AEX 31. Like all these differences on the early cars one would love to have a changeover car number or date, but it seems A.C. didn't bother to record these running changes in production. Keith Lessiter might have an idea though
Barrie

[nicksonsticks]

**Michael has very kindly sent me some pictures of a '59 Aceca battery tray**
**Apologies, this should read 1957**

[Michael Trotter]

Good morning gentlemen

I described above the battery tray in my 1959 Aceca. I did this from memory which turned out to be faulty. When I looked at it closely, or as closely as you can from above when it's full of battery, I found it is two angles with a steel plate spanning them so that it looks like a channel. I have decided that it is not an original AC tray. Sorry about that false start.

Nick has kindly posted pictures (too difficult for me) of a battery tray from a 1957 Aceca I used to own. Looks scruffy but it was in stock for 50+ years. I feel sure it is original AC. The steel is 14G (0.080" = 2.032mm). The key dimension is 252mm between inside faces of the lips on the vertical legs (maximum battery length), and the bolts are 1/4".If any of you would like to have further detail please let me know.

Barrie has alerted us to the fact that early cars had a different battery arrangement. Later cars had the 'transverse' mounting but AC may have fitted trays other than the 1957 one pictured above.

Michael

[AC Ace Bristol]

.

Barrie is correct AC rarely listed any minor changes during production run of any model, Sorry cannot confirm any change to Battery Box / Cradle. The very early Aces especially the first few were really individually hand built and vary considerably to those once bucks and drawings had been agreed accepted and finalised.   
As the Acceca has fibre glass foot boxes, Whereas the Ace has Aluminium foot boxes, there could well be variation in construction and size.
Hopefully Steve or Charlie at AC heritage, Nigel Winchester, Aubrey Finsburgh or some other AC restoration experts can throw some light on the subject.
Maybe John Spencer or AC Heritage has an official AC factory drawing?

Keith

[AEX 31]

Dear all,

On behalf of Keith Lessiter I’m posting some images that hopefully can help in showing the battery tray.
They depict  BEX1000 whilst being restored in 2015. ( Photos Credit Colin
Read in Australia)

Regards Jonas

[SpqrEddie]

Thank you all!
as soon as i can i will post photo of the one in the car.
Thanks!!

[AEX 31]

Barrie,

Sorry for my late reply, I went to the UK last week. Interesting that 22 and 31 are identical in this respect as well. The front wheel boxes on 31 were pop-riveted to the frame when I bought the car, I do suspect that they might have been screwed with some self tapping screws originally. Could I ask how they are attached on 22?

I did get some nickel plated screws with 31 when I bought the car, I strongly suspect they were used for this application.

I guess that AC  didn’t spend too much time to develop the first LHD Ace they manufactured, since the battery is in a rather awkward position. Before I changed to screws I had to dismantle both the steering box as well as the carburettors to get the battery out,  or a 5 minute job exactly!

Finally I think it would be very interesting to gather some early cars and compare different solutions and maybe to some extent get a grip of when the factory did change certain details?

Jonas

[B.P.Bird]

Jonas,
I think the wheel arch front inner panels on '22 were located by a mixture of self tapping screws together with 2 BA nuts and bolts. However the panels were missing altogether when AE 22 was recovered so I cannot be sure.
The LHD cars were more 'fussy' in layout in the footbox, battery and steering box area. Having to accommodate the hydraulic master cylinders close to the battery does make it all a bit cramped and that is the case with both the early and later battery mounting
Barrie

[AEX 31]

Barrie,

Thanks for your reply and information.

Jonas

[SpqrEddie]

March 1959 Aceca Battery tray.

I have taken off the battery (from the bottom! by lifting the car, it wouldt came out from the engine bay on a LHD!).
and this is the tray i found.
it seems (to my untrained eyes), an orginal but modified tray.
The other hollow tube is welded, the inboard one is lose.
Two L shaped bars have been welded on the inboard side.

As well as you can see (and i am really wandering why!) the battery has been mounted higher. New ears have been welded to the bottom of the tray to raise it. I am planning to cut off these addition and mount the tray in the original position. Any contraindication for going back to original? why the previous owners might have done that? As per now, the battery sits very high, almost touching the steering column. As well to do so they had to reposition the engine bay starter botton higher.

[SpqrEddie]

Some more photos. As well of the tray mounted through the original holes. Not raised trhough the added ears.

And i still dont understand how the battery can not escape from above!:-)
There is no strap on top. So it rely only in the friction of the plates on the side.
Eddie