Auxiliary battery tray installation

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Introduction

This installation guide is primarily for fitting the NON-ABS auxiliary battery tray into a Jimny 3, which can be sourced from Jimnybits or other reputable sellers. This guide does not cover the ABS battery tray installation, although steps / parts may be similar.

The guide was written by forum user Siddo (with some images sourced from JimnyBits website) and transferred into this wiki by forum user Bosanek.

Applicability

This guide currently applies only to the following vehicles:

• Jimny 3;
• RHD;
• petrol M13A engine;
• non-ABS brakes;

The installation in an above described vehicle but with ABS-equipped brakes should be similar but with a different tray kit.

The installation in LHD petrol Jimnys 3 requires different relocation of the window washing fluid bottle and some extra wiring for the pumps.

The installation in the engine bay of a diesel (DDiS) Jimny 3 is outright impossible, as there is not nearly enough empty space left in it.

Required parts

Figure 01 - JimnyBits auxiliary battery tray kit

The provided kit from JimnyBits comes complete with a few separate parts:

1. NON-ABS battery tray;
   • The big metal part in the picture above;
2. Coolant reservoir platform;
   • The small metal part in the picture above;
3. Battery ratchet strap;
   • Obviously visible in the picture above;
4. Battery tray fixing cross head bolt;
   • Not shown in the above picture;
5. Vehicle washer reservoir bolts;
   • Not shown in the above picture;
6. Coolant reservoir tie wrap / cable ties;
   • Not shown in the above picture;

You will also need battery tray fixing bolts, which can be reused from the vehicle (more on that below).

Installation procedure

Recording the initial state

Figure 02 - Typical situation in an engine bay of an RHD Jimny with M13A engine

• It is advisable to take a photo or make notes of the placement of the engine bay before altering any locations of the equipment, especially the electrical connections marked in red for the window washing fluid bottle.

Removal of the engine coolant reservoir

• Loosen the ?????? holding the engine coolant reservoir to the wing.
  • If required, spray some penetrating fluid before hand.
• Remove the coolant reservoir.

Removal of the window washing fluid bottle

Figure 03 - Window washing fluid bottle removal points

• Loosen the 10 mm bolts holding the washer reservoir to the wing.
  • If required, spray some penetrating fluid before hand.
• There are two bolts one either side of the bottle.
• The visible bolt is indicated in red in this image.
• These two bolts will be reused to fix the auxiliary battery tray to the same part of the vehicle body.

• Disconnect the electrical connections for the washer reservoir.
  • Indicated in green in this image.
  • It may be advisable to disconnect the battery before doing so.
• Now remove the bottle.

Figure 04 - Empty space in the engine bay after the removal of components

• Clean the area before fitting the new tray.
• You may want to carefully cut the tape restricting the reservoir cables to ensure you have enough ‘play’ when refitting.

Installation of the second battery tray

Figure 05 - Installing the auxiliary battery tray in the engine bay

• Fit the auxiliary battery tray in place ensuring it fits with ease.
• Reuse the bolts which had been removed from the washer reservoir (shown in red) to fix the tray at the two points shown using the existing mounting holes.
• Use the cross head bolt provided to screw into the existing coolant reservoir bracket.
• A tapped hole is present, although it takes a bit of lining up.
• It is also advisable to clean and grease the hole at this point.

Reinstallation of the window washing fluid bottle

Figure 06 - Window washing fluid bottle back in a new mounting position

• Using bolts shown in green, mount the washer reservoir to the side of the new tray, using a 10 mm socket & spanner to tighten.
• Be careful not to torque too high as the washer reservoir is only plastic.

Reinstallation of the engine coolant reservoir

Figure 07 - Mounting the additional platform to hold the engine coolant reservoir

• Mount the coolant reservoir platform to the auxiliary battery tray using the provided kit tie wraps / cable ties.

Figure 08 - Engine coolant reservoir back in a new mounting position

• Rest the coolant reservoir into place, tighten the wraps and cut off any excess parts of the wraps.

Final notes

Ensure that all the components are in place and tightly fixed.

Now the installation of the second battery tray is complete and the 2nd battery and associated equipment can be fitted.

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Page last edited on 17/01/2020 by user Bosanek