Signed, sealed, delivered battery boxes

The fit between the battery boxes and the frame was not 100% so I had to seal the spaces with sealant. As can be seen in the image below the shields of the battery cables are now grounded to the battery box. All battery and motor cables are shielded to reduce the electromagnetic radiation that appears due to the motor controller.The light grey cable in the middle is the thermistor that senses the battery temperature. The charger uses this information to stop charging if the temperature goes below freezing.

Grounded battery cable shields and thermistor

Battery boxes with lids

Battery boxes

I had the battery boxes manufactures by IB Svets in Umeå. This is a small welding company specialized in aluminum welding. The boxes are made of 3 mm aluminum which makes them very sturdy.
I will glu and rivet the boxes to the frame. This way I will not compromize the frame by welding, and the combined glue and riveting will hold for accelerations of 44 g vertical and 210 g horizontal! This is a factor 10 compared to the requirements. Of course the accelarations to accomodate for are not achived by the motor, but from braking and rolling the car in case of a crash.

The battery boxes are insulated with 10mm foam (camping mattress) to reduce the cooling in the winter.

First test mount of the rear battery boxes

The rear seats still fit!

And the trunk space is preserved

Time to grind the surfaces of the frame where the boxes will be glued

The boxes with insulation, connections and battery cells

The battery cables are kept in protective tubes. These are ordinary construction tubes painted orange.

The "drive shaft tunnel" has lots of space for the battery cables. The short black tubes are heat shrink that will eventually cover the cable glands