bentandbroken Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Okay guys I recently picked up a SAZ-2500D v.2 for my mini cooper build. I am powering one Zv4 10 in a 1.5cuft box tuned to 33Hz. This is a daily driver build and will not be used for any competitions/ burping other than the occasional showing off to a friend. The battery is in the trunk directly underneath where the box/amp will be sitting. Here is what i know, my budget for the battery(s) and wiring will be roughly $450. my stock alternator is only 105 amps i believe, but changing it out is pretty much out of the question because my only option for an upgrade is to go custom. there is what appears to be 2gauge run from the alternator in the front of the car. The ground in the rear at the battery only appears to be 4 gauge, however. I am not certain what the grounding situation is under the hood but its probably not much better. I *think* i can squeeze one XS D4800 in the stock battery location, but if it wont fit the D4700 is my stock replacement size. Im looking at ordering a 0 gauge OFC kit from Sky High Audio ($125+S/H) and using it to run from alt to batt and grounding. What do y'all recommend I do? Btw i do have room for two batteries (one beside the box and one underneath) but they will have to be cheaper like ~$150/ea like optima yellows. Life's a trip. . . Don't fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ahmed Johnson Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Pray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SLYentist Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 BMW typically uses ~6AWG for the front to back power run, and 10-12AWG for the battery ground in the rear. I haven't yet taken apart a Mini, but they're probably similar. EDIT: if you're not upgrading your alternator, there's no real need to upgrade the run from front to rear. Your best bet for battery fitment is to go out and literally measure. Cables and wires almost never fail; the terminations do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentandbroken Posted November 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Pray HAHA trust me I am. I'm pretty certain in that wire size, but ill take some pics later and see if i can post them. It will need an upgraded grounding strap for sure. 105 amps is puny I know, but If anyone knows where i can get an alt for a 2005 Cooper S for around $300 thats worth the upgrade then let me know, but until then I'm stuck with 105 amps. Well not so much worried about the fitment of the battery. The D4700 is pretty close to the D4800 specs wise, but if I can squeeze the bigger in i will. I more or less want to know what will help more 2 cheaper batteries or 1 xs power battery, what grounds and stuff need to upgraded, what gauge wires should i run where, etc... Life's a trip. . . Don't fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentandbroken Posted November 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2014 http://imgur.com/a/rv61z here is a link to the pics. The box and sub were just a size reference. That is the amp, however. I laid a strip of 4 gauge OFC next to the factory power and ground wire for reference. So the vibe I'm getting from yall at the moment is my alternator sucks and probably won't charge two batteries or support the power very well. I'm fine with that. So if I throw in the largest battery I can fit (d4800) what do I need to upgrade if I want to run zero gauge to the amp? Groundingt strap at the battery for sure, but what else should I look into? Side note of possible interest. My alt charges @13.9v pretty consistently. Life's a trip. . . Don't fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MACnonsence6 Posted November 8, 2014 Report Share Posted November 8, 2014 i only have this to add , " dope senses fail image " I picked up an MTX Sw1212 powered subwoofer today. This thing sounds amazing. 130 watts, 12" woofer with a passive 12" woofer tuned to 27 hz. Moving the pictures on the walls and my girl got wet from the bass when i showed her haha. Tonight should be good haha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ahmed Johnson Posted November 8, 2014 Report Share Posted November 8, 2014 http://imgur.com/a/rv61z here is a link to the pics. The box and sub were just a size reference. That is the amp, however. I laid a strip of 4 gauge OFC next to the factory power and ground wire for reference. So the vibe I'm getting from yall at the moment is my alternator sucks and probably won't charge two batteries or support the power very well. I'm fine with that. So if I throw in the largest battery I can fit (d4800) what do I need to upgrade if I want to run zero gauge to the amp? Groundingt strap at the battery for sure, but what else should I look into? Side note of possible interest. My alt charges @13.9v pretty consistently. 0 gauge wire is the upgrade. Basically with your alt, anything more than 0 gauge runs is super overkill. Make a run from the battery (+) to alt, and if you feel like spending extra money on wire make a run from the negative on the battery to the ground on the amp. You could just find a ground near the amp and save a couple bucks on wire. This really is more of a bump so people who know alot more than me could help you. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hifonics Posted November 8, 2014 Report Share Posted November 8, 2014 Did you talk to Mike Singer about an alt? He can usually help out with a custom unit. If you can't find an alt, you have to pick up the phone and call these companies (mechman, dcpower, singer, etc...) to find out if they can build you one. They don't always have their whole inventory/product list online. You're gonna have to pay more than $300.... you get what you pay for + you gotta pay to play. I googled "Mini cooper high output alternator" and found some........ Not the brand names, but still..... As a starting point, I say upgrade the stock battery, or add one as a secondary wired in parallel, and do the BIG 3. Also, start calling alt companies. 2010 F150 FX4-18" AA Mayhem-Crescendo BC3500d-Pioneer GM-D9500F 4-channel-2 Crescendo FT1 -2 Crescendo Neo Forte 6.5 -Pioneer AVH-P3300BT-6000K HID Headlights/Fog lights-All LED interior lighting-20% tint on front windows, 1% rear windows, 5% windshield strip-Big3 (XSFlex 0ga) -DC Power 270XP -Group 65 NorthStar AGM battery Coming soon/plans: -Build log-Blacked out mirror reflectors-Tinted tails/3rd brake light Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentandbroken Posted November 10, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 10, 2014 Did you talk to Mike Singer about an alt? He can usually help out with a custom unit. If you can't find an alt, you have to pick up the phone and call these companies (mechman, dcpower, singer, etc...) to find out if they can build you one. They don't always have their whole inventory/product list online. You're gonna have to pay more than $300.... you get what you pay for + you gotta pay to play. I googled "Mini cooper high output alternator" and found some........ Not the brand names, but still..... As a starting point, I say upgrade the stock battery, or add one as a secondary wired in parallel, and do the BIG 3. Also, start calling alt companies. I agree with the "pay to play" part. And I know that $300 for electrical upgrades isn't enough to get it all perfectly, but i'm trying to get it all up and running safely. I will do my alternator as soon as I can. So 0 gauge and battery for now. Alternator soon. I'll keep yall updated. Life's a trip. . . Don't fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentandbroken Posted November 17, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2014 Talked to Singer and he has a 210 amp alt at a decent price. The issue is that I do like to drive hard on occasion (to 7500rpm) and i have seen where some people mentioned that custom alts don't do well at high RPM. Anyone have any experience with this that could weigh in? Life's a trip. . . Don't fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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