This is a simple, but effective mod I am in the process of doing that will make my life a lot easier and may help one or two members who are in relatively the same boat.
With the nitrous bottle going in soon, along with a 12 inch sub in a prefab box, I did not want to be in a position to always have to move those items in order to access the battery.
With that said, here are some pics of my answer to that obstacle. In short, a new spare tire cover with a hinged door for the battery area was made. A 1/2 sheet of 1/4 in plywood was used. 1/2 inch could be used but I was a bit concerned with the oem handle being able to hold that weight in it's "up" position. Initially, as you will see in pic 3 , we were only going to make the door for just the battery area but after thinking a bit it only made sense to make it longer in order to grant full access to the battery as well as the fuse box. At the bottom of the last pic, you will see marks on the brace where we were about to cut so that the front lays flush as the oem cover did.
It's is basically done except to lay 2 more braces, install a small handle for the battery door as well as spray some adhesive down and reapply the oem carpet. I can attest that it does lay as flush as oem and is will be very supportive of the weight without "bowing". The door opening is 21 and 1/4 inches long by 11 5/8 inches wide.
Hope you enjoy....
With the nitrous bottle going in soon, along with a 12 inch sub in a prefab box, I did not want to be in a position to always have to move those items in order to access the battery.
With that said, here are some pics of my answer to that obstacle. In short, a new spare tire cover with a hinged door for the battery area was made. A 1/2 sheet of 1/4 in plywood was used. 1/2 inch could be used but I was a bit concerned with the oem handle being able to hold that weight in it's "up" position. Initially, as you will see in pic 3 , we were only going to make the door for just the battery area but after thinking a bit it only made sense to make it longer in order to grant full access to the battery as well as the fuse box. At the bottom of the last pic, you will see marks on the brace where we were about to cut so that the front lays flush as the oem cover did.
It's is basically done except to lay 2 more braces, install a small handle for the battery door as well as spray some adhesive down and reapply the oem carpet. I can attest that it does lay as flush as oem and is will be very supportive of the weight without "bowing". The door opening is 21 and 1/4 inches long by 11 5/8 inches wide.
Hope you enjoy....