Project-Scuderia

The new Lithium Ion battery weighs in at 4.405 kg/9.71 lbs, for a weight savings of 12.440 kg/27.43 lb. This is the greatest weight savings for a single component so far on this project, which goes back to November 7, 2011.

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The new 3-D printed battery tray and kick panel weighs 1.095 kg/2.41 lb, for a weight savings of 0.860 kg/1.89 lb, which is a 44% weight reduction.

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Yes, the battery is Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePo4). Not the Samsung thermal runaway "spontaneously combust on an airplane" type of Lithium. It has a Battery Management System (BMS) that is compatible with a standard automotive alternator/generating system, with under-voltage and over-voltage protection. The under-voltage protection definitely works, because I managed to accidentally trip it by running a bunch of electric systems simultaneously with the engine off.

It also has this cool circuit breaker reset button that kicks in if (when) the phantom loads in the Scud run the battery down, so that you will have enough juice left in the battery to start the car. This car sits a lot because I travel so much, so this has happened to me more than once, and the reset has worked every time. It also came with a real battery charger, which unlike the stock paperweight battery maintainer, actually maintains and recharges the battery.

 

When I installed the new battery, I was working on a number of upgrades at the same time, as well as some general cleanup. So, it made sense to just remove everything in the cabin, down to the unibody chassis and the wiring loom. Having all that space makes it so much more pleasant to work in there, especially if you have to get under or behind the dash. And I must say, of the dozens of project cars I've worked on, the Scud is the easiest road-legal car to work on behind the dash. So much empty space.

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Before I installed the battery tray and battery, I updated the wiring harness with the components included in the battery kit. The kit included a second quick-release battery terminal clamp. The second terminal is identical to the stock terminal, with the Italian OEM brand on the part. I colored the clamp levers black and red for extra safety. I could have plasti-dipped them, but my trusty Sharpies were handy, and the ink took to the plastic pretty well.

I also added the pigtail for the battery charger/maintainer. It's the black wire with the red cap shown to the right in the photo below. I was able to mount it very close to the port for the stock battery maintainer.

The crossbar that the stock kickplate attaches to, is retained as the attachment points for the new kickplate.

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Here's the battery and tray fitted into the passenger footwell, with the battery terminals connected. In the upper right corner of the photo, you can see the connection port for the battery charger. Spoiler Alert - In the left side of the photo, you can see another upgrade installed.

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Here's a better shot of the charger port, where the battery charger/maintainer plugs in. Just a few inches away from the stock battery charger port.

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Lightweight aluminum kickplate installed. The kickplate has a diamond treadplate pattern, which is similar to the floor plates in the Scud.

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Hi Randy - Ferrari uses the aluminum mounts with rubber bushings on the Scuderia already, so the weight savings is there already. For track work, the challenge bearings improve handling, but for the roads where I live, they would make the ride quality worse.

 

Rear control arms and bushings.

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Rear Upper Control Arm and bushing.

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Front control arms and bushings.

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Front bushing with Titanium studs.

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Upper front control arm and bushing.

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It's already for sale by two FerrariChat sponsors, however you will want to read the full story before you decide to purchase. Stay tuned.