Large Gauge Wire Run

[DavidLs]

Lets Say 2 gauge wire to the battery Positive wire how did you do it and do you have a photo. Ive already tested out a 2k Inverter on the battery to run equipment. I am trying to run the wire now from behind the rear seat to the battery bay under the seat. permanent mount so I don't have to attach a alligator clip every time I want to use the inverter. I may have to notch the case to the bay but if I don't have to it would be nice. I know the wizard has done it but has anyone else?? Any advice is appreciated

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[Darnon]

There's pretty good clearance in the rear of the plastic bin pieces so I just ran mine for my amplifiers up under there.

 

[DavidLs]

Darnon Can I get a photo of that. It would help immensely . Hmm cant quote

 

[DavidLs]

Darnon can I get a photo.

There's pretty good clearance in the rear of the plastic bin pieces so I just ran mine for my amplifiers up under there.

Darnon Can I get a photo of that. It would help immensely . Hmm cant quote

 

[Exranger]

Hook up with a terminal, how many amps do you need? Highly recommend a circuit Breaker at the battery side.

 

[KeithVi]

I recently read on a MTC audio thread, to not exceed 30amps (360watts) of additional draw on the Hybrid. They referenced a limit on the DC to DC converter. I am sorry I don't have the link and was curious if you new more about this?

 

[Darnon]

I recently read on a MTC audio thread, to not exceed 30amps (360watts) of additional draw on the Hybrid. They referenced a limit on the DC to DC converter. I am sorry I don't have the link and was curious if you new more about this?

The DC-DC converter can output up to 265 amps. There's a 300 amp fuse between the DC-DC converter and the underhood junction box. Additionally there's a 200 amp fuse at the battery end of the cable from the junction box to the battery.

 

[AF Blue]

I recently read on a MTC audio thread, to not exceed 30amps (360watts) of additional draw on the Hybrid. They referenced a limit on the DC to DC converter. I am sorry I don't have the link and was curious if you new more about this?

I believe I saw the same/similar post.
It was a reference to what Crutchfield recommends for Hybrid vehicles (30A).

@OP
I tried to find a video i had seen of someone doing an amp install (in hybrid) going from battery terminal to behind the seat back seat located amp .... I can't find it - sorry.

Even better than a pic .... you have a hybrid ..go look behind the seat and then from under the seat and the battery box.

You should see there is at least a half inch gap (probably 3/4-1") you could go through.
Also, standing at passenger rear door, you can see a wrapped cable coming from battery toward you ....this is probably a way to go without trimming any plastics.

 

[Lane]

I had my back seat out and in at least a half-dozen times when building my audio system. There should be no problem running any size cable you want to from the rear wall to the top of the battery box, just lying on top of the plastic trim in that area. But, if you wanted to try to run cable below the trim, it would be a challenge. All that plastic is tight against the floor's steel. I ran a flat-ish 16ga speaker wire under it that you can barely see in the top right area in the photo below (it's gray) and boy is it squashed in there good once the plastic trim is re-clipped in place. You might be able to get a thicker power cable under it closer to the passenger door somewhere, way near its edge, but I didn't look too closely at that area.

To get 8ga amplifier power cable into the battery box area, I notched a small area below the lip of the cover that's pretty much invisible when the cover is in place.

More pics from the audio install can be seen in my build thread (link in my signature), pages 4-6 or so.

 

[DavidLs]

There's pretty good clearance in the rear of the plastic bin pieces so I just ran mine for my amplifiers up under there.

Darnon can I get a pic of how you ran the wire to the battery bay? Please

 

[Darnon]

Nothing particularly exotic. It's just following the tunnel for the seat sensor.

 

[CurtisB]

I had my back seat out and in at least a half-dozen times when building my audio system. There should be no problem running any size cable you want to from the rear wall to the top of the battery box, just lying on top of the plastic trim in that area. But, if you wanted to try to run cable below the trim, it would be a challenge. All that plastic is tight against the floor's steel. I ran a flat-ish 16ga speaker wire under it that you can barely see in the top right area in the photo below (it's gray) and boy is it squashed in there good once the plastic trim is re-clipped in place. You might be able to get a thicker power cable under it closer to the passenger door somewhere, way near its edge, but I didn't look too closely at that area.

To get 8ga amplifier power cable into the battery box area, I notched a small area below the lip of the cover that's pretty much invisible when the cover is in place.

More pics from the audio install can be seen in my build thread (link in my signature), pages 4-6 or so.

I see you still have a Ford Battery. How in the heck are you running your system and not getting any "sleep" issues?

 

[colinl]

There are definitely some high-dollar hybrid trucks for SEMA and minitruck shows that have pretty big systems connected directly to the battery. The biggest ones I've seen, though, are ecoboost and have at least one add-on alternator.

Changing topics, slightly -
I'm not going to bother looking for it now, but several years ago I advocated for connecting the power wire to the positive jump point under the hood. My rationale is that a high current fuse in the passenger compartment is a lot less desirable than a high current fuse under the hood. Basically, treat that point as if it were the 12V battery in a traditional vehicle.

I now realize that would put a lot of extra current on the cabling between the battery and jump point, which is probably a bigger fire hazard than directly attaching the power wire to the 12V battery under the seat. The cabling between the jump point and battery obviously is capable of a heavy load but I just don't think the tradeoff is worth it. The power wire can be so much shorter when it's directly on the hybrid battery.

What is critical is using the right gauge power wire, with the fuse holder or circuit breaker as close to the battery as possible and *NEVER* use a fuseable link that is higher rated than the power wire gauge and length being used. Be careful with copper clad aluminum as it carries a lot less current than oxygen free copper.

 

[Lane]

I see you still have a Ford Battery. How in the heck are you running your system and not getting any "sleep" issues?

A class-D amplifier uses very little current compared to what a lot of what people think of when they think about car audio (headlights dimming in the old days, as an example). My Alpine has a 40 amp fuse so current usage isn't going to exceed that. In addition, 99.9% of the time at mid to moderate volumes, the audio system is using a few amps constant at most. Music is dynamic & transient. The system, even when listening at a good volume, probably uses less current than your blower fan motor when the air conditioning is on high or your headlights when they're on.

I've read about all the sleep issues. My Mav gets driven every few days. I do not have the Ford Pass app installed/enabled and have the radio's wifi turned off. If there were any other "phone home' options in the radio's menus that I came across, I'm sure I turned those off as well. Don't know if any of that helps but I haven't had an issue.

 

[DavidLs]

Thank you that is exactly what I needed to see. That looks like 2 Gauge an I right? I will be knocking my project out now Thanks

Nothing particularly exotic. It's just following the tunnel for the seat sensor.

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