My fuse box doesn't fit anymore
Discussion
My heater /AC box was leaking due to a crack in one of the corners. Had it all taken out by a great AC guy here (let him do that whole contortionist thing in the footwell instead of me this time) and as a result he built a wonderful new curved undertray complete with a super sized drain and hose and was so pleased to show me what a wonderful job he did.
And it is, very nicely done.
Thing is he told me that the fuse box does not fit in its original place any more (recess behind the front wheel) unless I move it further down towards the floor by about 7cm. The battery is in the boot but moving it down means it coming further out and being directly behind the passengers feet, not only pushing the foot board back into the footwell but one stamp too hard and the fuse box will be damaged.
It will also mean finding somewhere for the ecu as that won't fit there either with the fusebox moved down.
What do my options look like, cut the fuse box down and risk messing up the wiring or moving it entirely behind the passenger seat?
The ecu, I'm going to try wedging it above the 'glove box' but looking at a couple of pics of those that managed to unravell their looms fills me with dread to be honest.
Is it as tricky as it looks and does the fuse box as it is fit into the cubby hole without modification or do I need to chop it up there as well?
Will it also mean messing about with bits of fibreglass and fabrication to get right as that is also something I'm not sure I have the skills to do.
Any advice much appreciated
And it is, very nicely done.
Thing is he told me that the fuse box does not fit in its original place any more (recess behind the front wheel) unless I move it further down towards the floor by about 7cm. The battery is in the boot but moving it down means it coming further out and being directly behind the passengers feet, not only pushing the foot board back into the footwell but one stamp too hard and the fuse box will be damaged.
It will also mean finding somewhere for the ecu as that won't fit there either with the fusebox moved down.
What do my options look like, cut the fuse box down and risk messing up the wiring or moving it entirely behind the passenger seat?
The ecu, I'm going to try wedging it above the 'glove box' but looking at a couple of pics of those that managed to unravell their looms fills me with dread to be honest.
Is it as tricky as it looks and does the fuse box as it is fit into the cubby hole without modification or do I need to chop it up there as well?
Will it also mean messing about with bits of fibreglass and fabrication to get right as that is also something I'm not sure I have the skills to do.
Any advice much appreciated
I tried moving mine to behind the seat but the wiring wouldn't quite reach and I didn't want to extend it. It looked as if it would have just squeezed in there without any fibreglass work.
The ECU should easily reach to behind the drop down glovebox flap, mine did easily with very little messing with the loom.
I would look at the easiest option first and drop it down slightly, gives better access to it too.
I remember someone selling a nice metal enclosure to house the fusebox, can't quite remember where it was though.
The ECU should easily reach to behind the drop down glovebox flap, mine did easily with very little messing with the loom.
I would look at the easiest option first and drop it down slightly, gives better access to it too.
I remember someone selling a nice metal enclosure to house the fusebox, can't quite remember where it was though.
Edited by Belle427 on Monday 8th July 19:44
The thought of getting stuck in that footwell again, perhaps I will get them to fit it lower down rather than have to fold all 6ft 4 of me into that hell hole.
LOL
What possessed them to stick in there in the first placd though, directly under an AC box full of water, next to a rubber hose that carries condensate to the underside of the car, and a few inches from the heater pipes.
I like the idea of moving the fuse box to they cubby hole but the thought of unravelling all that loom and then finding it's too short will be a nightmare.
LOL
What possessed them to stick in there in the first placd though, directly under an AC box full of water, next to a rubber hose that carries condensate to the underside of the car, and a few inches from the heater pipes.
I like the idea of moving the fuse box to they cubby hole but the thought of unravelling all that loom and then finding it's too short will be a nightmare.
jazzdude said:
The thought of getting stuck in that footwell again, perhaps I will get them to fit it lower down rather than have to fold all 6ft 4 of me into that hell hole.
LOL
What possessed them to stick in there in the first placd though, directly under an AC box full of water, next to a rubber hose that carries condensate to the underside of the car, and a few inches from the heater pipes.
I like the idea of moving the fuse box to they cubby hole but the thought of unravelling all that loom and then finding it's too short will be a nightmare.
Its not difficult as all the slack is just tucked up under the dash so minimal fiddling needed. LOL
What possessed them to stick in there in the first placd though, directly under an AC box full of water, next to a rubber hose that carries condensate to the underside of the car, and a few inches from the heater pipes.
I like the idea of moving the fuse box to they cubby hole but the thought of unravelling all that loom and then finding it's too short will be a nightmare.
I thought about putting it under the dash top as i can get mine off now in a few minutes, problem is i cant see it fitting there without disconnecting which would be a nightmare.
Is there no way it would fit under the glovebox flap somehow, ive not tried.
glow worm said:
I had my fuse box and battery moved , much more accessible. The ECU now sits on the lower dash. The wiring loom just reached with some tidying.
As posted above, a very tidy jobMoving the fusebox to the rear seat area is your best option
The fact that the fusebox can be unplugged from the wiring harness does make the job very uncomplicated
Terminals can also be removed from plugs and this helps in tidying the wiring run rather than having a tangled up mess
Length of the wiring harness is a deciding factor in how to go about the job, the Chimaera fusebox harness looks to be 1 to 1.5 meters in length and this is a big advantage when wanting to move it (See Below)
When moving the fusebox you might have several cables that are too tight, if the harness was a very short one it would be impossible to cut and extend cables while keeping the joints staggered (joints in the same place are bulky and can short out to each other over time), a new longer harness would need to be made
Any tight cables in the TVR Chimaera fusebox wiring harness that are too tight to neatly reach the rear seat area can be safely cut and extended using solder and adhesive type heat-shrink sleeving at the extended lengths of cables joints
There shouldn't be many tight cables and there is plenty length of loom to extend cables as required with staggered joints
I suggest you move the box to the rear, there is nothing difficult about the job and I will gladly advise you but I doubt you'll need any advice as the job is very straight forward
Please don't hesitate to ask about anything you're unsure of. As you already know, there are others that have done this modification that will also be able to help you if needed
Penelope Stopit said:
As posted above, a very tidy job
Moving the fusebox to the rear seat area is your best option
The fact that the fusebox can be unplugged from the wiring harness does make the job very uncomplicated
Terminals can also be removed from plugs and this helps in tidying the wiring run rather than having a tangled up mess
Length of the wiring harness is a deciding factor in how to go about the job, the Chimaera fusebox harness looks to be 1 to 1.5 meters in length and this is a big advantage when wanting to move it (See Below)
When moving the fusebox you might have several cables that are too tight, if the harness was a very short one it would be impossible to cut and extend cables while keeping the joints staggered (joints in the same place are bulky and can short out to each other over time), a new longer harness would need to be made
Any tight cables in the TVR Chimaera fusebox wiring harness that are too tight to neatly reach the rear seat area can be safely cut and extended using solder and adhesive type heat-shrink sleeving at the extended lengths of cables joints
There shouldn't be many tight cables and there is plenty length of loom to extend cables as required with staggered joints
I suggest you move the box to the rear, there is nothing difficult about the job and I will gladly advise you but I doubt you'll need any advice as the job is very straight forward
Please don't hesitate to ask about anything you're unsure of. As you already know, there are others that have done this modification that will also be able to help you if needed
After reading this, it is now tempting to do this as really, I have never liked having the fuse box under the heater box.Moving the fusebox to the rear seat area is your best option
The fact that the fusebox can be unplugged from the wiring harness does make the job very uncomplicated
Terminals can also be removed from plugs and this helps in tidying the wiring run rather than having a tangled up mess
Length of the wiring harness is a deciding factor in how to go about the job, the Chimaera fusebox harness looks to be 1 to 1.5 meters in length and this is a big advantage when wanting to move it (See Below)
When moving the fusebox you might have several cables that are too tight, if the harness was a very short one it would be impossible to cut and extend cables while keeping the joints staggered (joints in the same place are bulky and can short out to each other over time), a new longer harness would need to be made
Any tight cables in the TVR Chimaera fusebox wiring harness that are too tight to neatly reach the rear seat area can be safely cut and extended using solder and adhesive type heat-shrink sleeving at the extended lengths of cables joints
There shouldn't be many tight cables and there is plenty length of loom to extend cables as required with staggered joints
I suggest you move the box to the rear, there is nothing difficult about the job and I will gladly advise you but I doubt you'll need any advice as the job is very straight forward
Please don't hesitate to ask about anything you're unsure of. As you already know, there are others that have done this modification that will also be able to help you if needed
The bit I didn't understand is where you say there is 'plenty length of loom' to extend cable with staggered joints. By that do you mean that along the length of the gearbox tunnel, there are enough locations to splice an extra wire in and stagger the joints as opposed to extending them all from the same place?
Looking at the photo, I am sure the original fibreglass box around the fuse box does not have holes facing upwards which is why I was not sure if that box was the original one.
Does anyone have a shot of the fuse box in the cubby hole with the original box?
jazzdude said:
That is a great install there.
Without unraveling the loom is it possible to see if it is long enough to reach the cubby hole or don't they work like that?
Not really , I got my TVR boys at X-Works to do mine. It was only with the central section removed that we found out it would stretch and it was tight. In fact , so tight the loom had to slighty cut the corner and be trimmed so you can't see it. But I didn't need to extend it. I think the best route is up the centre panel not sure if others have taken it along the door footwell side. Pretty sure nothing was ever disconnected/reconnected , but you need to speak to Heath at X-Works ( It was 2014 when mine was done )Without unraveling the loom is it possible to see if it is long enough to reach the cubby hole or don't they work like that?
Edited by glow worm on Wednesday 10th July 09:11
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