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Thread: 1999 Dakota Battery relocated under bed

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    Default 1999 Dakota Battery relocated under bed

    I put the battery behind the right wheel of this truck at least 10 years ago. I had to replace the battery, so I thought I would post up some pictures of how I did it.

    This is the battery box, made out of two of those heavy-duty shelf brackets (usually white), than you can find at the Home Depot for about $5 each. I also used some sheet steel that used to be the front cover of an old gas grill.



    And side view



    I welded a couple of pieces of angle steel (from an old bedframe) into the frame behind the right rear wheel. You can see the rear of the leaf spring at the bottom of the picture.



    Battery box in place. I drilled a couple of holes, and bolted the box to the angle steel with 3/8 X 1 inch bolts and nuts.



    Closer look, with battery in place.

    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

  2. #2

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    How is the battery held in?


    "The journey is more fun than the destination"

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    Pressure. And I have a hand made bracket that bolts into the hole circled in this picture. Just an L shape. I don't have a picture of it handy, but you can imagine.

    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

  4. #4

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    What you building with the Turbos in the background?
    1998 Dakota R/T
    https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-5Qwt4vRdHrM/UqZdWhLt2tI/AAAAAAAAAB8/WtseaWnGPTM/w732-h549-no/1384281_10151646266675723_1560687758_n.jpg

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    ironsport1000's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 99DakotaRTCC View Post
    What you building with the Turbos in the background?
    Doesn't matter! It's Gods motor. He don't need no stinking turbo.

    BLACK '02 RC R/T (BLACK N BITTER) 12.5 @ 109 mph. Under the knife again.
    '99 IB RC R/T (Sabrina's truck) 13.8 @ 96 mph SOLD!
    '10 B5 blue pearl Challenger R/T Classic edition. Totaled!!! FML!!!
    '98 CC R/T Bought wrecked. Restoring it.
    '05 WRANGLER (DD)
    '05 HARLEY FXDCI

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    ironsport1000's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by WhiteRT View Post
    How is the battery held in?
    Wing nuts and gravity?


    BLACK '02 RC R/T (BLACK N BITTER) 12.5 @ 109 mph. Under the knife again.
    '99 IB RC R/T (Sabrina's truck) 13.8 @ 96 mph SOLD!
    '10 B5 blue pearl Challenger R/T Classic edition. Totaled!!! FML!!!
    '98 CC R/T Bought wrecked. Restoring it.
    '05 WRANGLER (DD)
    '05 HARLEY FXDCI

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    Quote Originally Posted by BLKDAK View Post
    Yeah it's Gods motor, needs turbos to make power, otherwise shitbox engine.
    Yeah, real shitbox engine. What do you run?
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    [QUOTE=ironsport1000;444234]Wing nuts and gravity?

    I am sure you "Dunno".
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    A couple of close ups of the motor in the background. Actually, it is a foam block. I was fooling around with welding stainless steel.

    Using all stainless LS7 exhaust manifolds, and a couple of cheap chinese turbos









    Let's get this party started. 16 pages this time. Please.
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    stevenz1inoc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by casias View Post
    A couple of close ups of the motor in the background. Actually, it is a foam block. I was fooling around with welding stainless steel.

    Using all stainless LS7 exhaust manifolds, and a couple of cheap chinese turbos









    Let's get this party started. 16 pages this time. Please.
    Less heat and more shielding, (move slower), and you'll get a better finish to your stainless weld. Stainless is my most favorite metal to weld, well titanium is too, lol. When your heat and shielding are correct you will end up with a beautiful silver to light golden color finish to your stainless weld. The other thing that will affect finish is a lack of purge on the back side. The weld will actually pull air in from the backside if you didn't purge and that will cause issues in the weld/finish on the front side.

  11. #11

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    LS power!!!!!

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    DRTC #311

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    i did mine in a similar way a few years ago. I cut out part of the spare carrier to get it as high as I could, and boxed in the frame to bolt the whole thing to. i don't think it would pass a good tech but I haven't had a problem.


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    Quote Originally Posted by BLKDAK View Post
    408 with max investment under 2k, but for you and your other frugal ass LS nutswingers that have no sense of individuality, do what you got to do.
    Cost of 5.3 LS at local junkyard, $350.
    Cost of 5.7 Hemi at local junkyard, $1000+
    Cost of having something different that everyone else and their mother doesn't have? Priceless!
    Smokng modded LS2 GTO's in a $7000 Dakota with a weight of 4000#+ on motor and having them say "what the fuck you got in that thing" well I am sure you can come up with a response.

    So tell me what does your investment yield you? How fast are you running?
    That's pretty sad for a 408. But be proud of that money spent. My 6.0 is

    1) Different
    2) Able to make what your 408 makes......with a cam.
    3) Able to make about 100 HP more than your 408 will make with a few supporting mods
    4) Ran 13.4 with a 2.094 60 ft time, on:

    Vehicle: 1999 Dakota club cab
    Engine: LY6 with variable valve timing from 2007 GMC Sierra, 130k miles, some bearing wear.
    Transmission: 6L90
    Tuner: Diablosport handheld.
    Chassis mods: none
    Tires: Federal 255/55-17 @ 30 psi all the way around
    Fuel: 93 octane
    Weight: 4200?
    Temperature: about 78 degrees, sunny with light wind down the track

    And, if I have to replace a whole long block......$800. Aluminum cylinder heads that flow about 330 CFM? About $250 each, used. Want to go all aluminum with the block also for weight savings?....About $400.

    Tune your own truck....sure. Diablosport or any other handheld does well. Learn HPT and tune to your heart's content.

    And believe me, there is nothing unique about a 408 in a Dakota. I had one. So has everyone else if they had the money. I think the thread count on this site for 408 is probably second only to "Should I get an M1 intake?".
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Pete102580 View Post
    i did mine in a similar way a few years ago. I cut out part of the spare carrier to get it as high as I could, and boxed in the frame to bolt the whole thing to. i don't think it would pass a good tech but I haven't had a problem.

    Nice work. Looks a lot more substantial than my set up. Now that I think about it, I did trim the spare tire carrier in exactly the same place you did.

    I have run on the track a few times, and never had anyone ask about it. I don't think tech comes into play much unless you run really fast, or in a class. Test and tune is "run what you brung", in our area.

    Edit: is that a pre-fab battery box from summit or Jegs? Some people may like to know where you got it.
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    Our idea is not much different from the solution Chrysler engineers came up with for the Dodge Viper.

    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

  16. #16

    DRTC #311

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    I think I got the large one:

    https://www.southwestspeed.com/?sec=...s,%20!!Bolt-On

    It was a pain in the ass to install because our frame is open on the inside and there was nothing to secure it to. sometimes ya just gotta get busy with a sawzall and angle grinder though. i cut and bolted some very thick "L" channeling to the inside of the top and bottom of the frame that you can barely see in the pictures.

    if I did it again I'd put a hinge mechanism in so the assembly tilts down. I have to disassemble most of it to change the battery as it is. live and learn. Maybe I'll get another r/t someday and do it right lol

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    Here is a stock LS3 crate motor making 566 HP with a beautiful torque curve, and > 500 Tq at 4300 RPM on. This cam never makes below 440 Tq anywhere in the range. Certainly adequate for street driving, which is always my goal. And, as we all know with the LS engines, this combo is tried and true. Verified many times over. High HP Magnum 408 engines, on the other hand, are always the stuff of legend. When you actually see the dyno graph, the torque curve looks like it fell off of a cliff.

    I just don't believe that you have a 550 HP 408. Sorry.

    As for 650 crank HP. Of course it is possible with top end as you describe. Less streetable, of course. But everything combination has compromise.

    http://www.superchevy.com/how-to/eng...ick-boomerang/

    Post your recipe for your 550 HP Magnum. I would like to see it.
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    KyleDedrick's Avatar
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    People just like following crowds, doing easy things, and trying to be different (when their really not).

    You fucked a dakota by putting an ls in it. I don't care what brand you have but mixing them is just retarded.
    1998 Silver RC SLT - Hughes 2.02 Heads, Mopar M1 4bbl Intake, Mopar 4bbl TB, 230/236 .515/.515 on a 110, 1.6 Roller Rockers, 4.10's, Spintech Headers, 3" Duals, X Pipe, Chambered Mufflers, 4/4 Drop, 727 Full Manual w/Transbrake, PTC 4500 Stall


    12.90 at 104mph

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    Quote Originally Posted by BLKDAK View Post
    You are talking crank because your dyno link was all crank HP. My buddy just did a MS4 cam swap with long tubes and full exhaust in a 06 GTO. Little over 400 at the tire.
    550 HP Magnum 408 is easy. Going thru a 46RE yields about 425-450 RWHP, very common with a built 408 and a good tune. This shit ain't rocket science.
    Funny how he doesn't want to run against my truck anymore.
    Not saying the LS engine has the potential to make more HP than a Magnum but compare apples to apples, install a HEMI swap and be different or do a LSdouche swap and be exactly that. Now how about comparing the LS1 to a Hemi, instead of talking shit about the magnum. The magnum is a age old design, like a LT1 SBC.
    Why are you bringing up the LS3, what is the buy in on that before the cam swap? 7-8 grand or so? Also the link made 500 at the crank for the baseline run, WITH longtubes, a fuel system, and tuned to perfection with the Holley Performance HP EFI system.
    AGAIN not stock and nothing you can't do with a Hemi.
    Well, first, you haven't posted any evidence that your motor exists. No data, no pictures, no video. So it is currently a legend in your mind.

    Second, the current motor in my R/T is closest to an LS3. LY6 is a gen iv. The only thing the LS3 has that mine doesn't is .2 liters size, lighter weight valves, aluminum block and one point compression. And the valves really don't come into play at 6300 rpm. So take away 15 or 20 hp for size and compression, and.....I can buy LY6 longblocks all day long for about $1200.

    I like the Hemi. I think they cost too much, and don't fit very well in the Dakota. And they also fall far short of the LS platform. Also wiring, lack of aftermarket support and lack of general interest in the performance world relegate the Hemi to a "almost was".

    No secret why so many fast cars are powered by LS platform. The fastest car in the world, currently, the Hennessey Venom GT, is a LS-swapped Lotus Elise.

    So, if your motor is so bad-ass, where is your proof?

    Edit: Photo added.

    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    Quote Originally Posted by KyleDedrick View Post
    People just like following crowds, doing easy things, and trying to be different (when their really not).

    You fucked a dakota by putting an ls in it. I don't care what brand you have but mixing them is just retarded.
    That's a lot of work for those track times. Yikes.
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

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    So you still don't have shit. Just another burnout video. And the video is sideways. What an ass.
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

  22. #22

    KyleDedrick's Avatar
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    Fuck that things sounds healthy
    1998 Silver RC SLT - Hughes 2.02 Heads, Mopar M1 4bbl Intake, Mopar 4bbl TB, 230/236 .515/.515 on a 110, 1.6 Roller Rockers, 4.10's, Spintech Headers, 3" Duals, X Pipe, Chambered Mufflers, 4/4 Drop, 727 Full Manual w/Transbrake, PTC 4500 Stall


    12.90 at 104mph

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    Quote Originally Posted by BLKDAK View Post
    So my GF is an ass. Thanks
    I don't know your GF.

    What I know is this..... Your motor doesn't make anywhere near your claim. Period.
    1999 Dakota LS-swap. Fastest NA 5.9/6.0 full-weight CC. 12.76 at 109.9.
    2000 Durango ZL1 AWD.

  24. #24


    krs1r/t's Avatar
    want more inchs STROKE IT

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    Quote Originally Posted by casias View Post
    I don't know your GF.

    What I know is this..... Your motor doesn't make anywhere near your claim. Period.
    Mine does

    Bad Luck Truck
    Current setup
    „R„block 429ci W5 heads 700hp N/A
    1/8 mile #'s 6.47@105 1.37 60’ 10.23@131

    Old 1/4 numbers below with 408
    Fastest N/A 2010,2011,2014
    477-RWHP ?-RWTQ

    11.244 ET @ 119.71mph N/A
    FOXHOLE RACING
    "If you like me good, if you hate me, even better!"
    Chris

  25. #25


    krs1r/t's Avatar
    want more inchs STROKE IT

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    Quote Originally Posted by BLKDAK View Post
    360 block .030 over.
    Forged Eagle crank and Eagle H-beam rods.
    SRP pistons 10.6-1 CR
    Comp 236/242 @.050 cam .590/615 lift 110 LSA
    Ported Eddies with 1.7 Comp rockers.
    Ported M1 4 bbl with a little short dicked turtle named Casias.
    58mm F&B
    FRP tuned.

    This is a very common 408 build, typical RWHP numbers for equal builds is 425-450, that has been proven over and over.
    What did your heads flow after the port job?

    Bad Luck Truck
    Current setup
    „R„block 429ci W5 heads 700hp N/A
    1/8 mile #'s 6.47@105 1.37 60’ 10.23@131

    Old 1/4 numbers below with 408
    Fastest N/A 2010,2011,2014
    477-RWHP ?-RWTQ

    11.244 ET @ 119.71mph N/A
    FOXHOLE RACING
    "If you like me good, if you hate me, even better!"
    Chris

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