66 Lincoln Battery HoldDown

[455hota]

To resurrect this post:

I am looking for a source for the correct battery hold down clamp for my 1966 Continental. Used parts are totally fine, doesn’t have to NOS, but would be nice also!

Dan’s pic of his hold down bracket appears to be correct for my battery tray setup:

This is a pic of my battery tray. It is very rough to say the least. I would like to find a nicer one of these as well. But first i need to get the rusted bolts out and remove the old tray.

This is the same pic but marked up. The upper left and right circles show the two mounting points for the battery hold down bracket, the right side (reference the pic) uses the long threaded rod with a hook on it. The left side uses the bolt that you see and screws into the installed clip. But the lower circle shows a long threaded stud that has a rubber insulator on it. Dows anyone know what this would be used for? I cant find a reference for it in the service manual.

Can someone post a couple pics of an original 66 battery tray and hold down brackets? This will help me out a lot. Thanks again... Steve

[Lee]

Never seen one before. My guess: owner had no original hold down, and used that bolt to keep the battery from shifting forward.

PS, if you find the one at Lincoln Old Parts, I don’t know if it’s correct for 66. At least the clamp isn’t. Should work 61-65, though.
https://www.lincolnoldparts.com/battery ... -3222.html

[Dan Szwarc]

PS, if you find the one at Lincoln Old Parts, I don’t know if it’s correct for 66. At least the clamp isn’t. Should work 61-65, though.
https://www.lincolnoldparts.com/battery ... -3222.html

Not correct for 66-69. Different tray design.

[TonyC]

Steve,

Good luck in removing the bolts. They look in much better shape than mine so it may be possible; I recommend hitting them with PB Blaster before you try removing them.

My tray looks just as bad, but the bolts are in far worse shape. The heads had been so eaten away that it's impossible to undo them. I placed an aftermarket battery tray on top of the old tray, drilling new holes in the old tray to anchor the new one down; then I used one of the aftermarket holding kits. It isn't exactly the prettiest setup, and one of the wing nuts butts up against the upper radiator hose; but it does help keep the battery in place.

Hopefully you can get a good setup, or at least a non-stock arrangement that's better than mine.

---Tony

[Dan Szwarc]

These are on eBay. The left tray may be correct for 1966-69. The right tray is only 61-65.

Pricey, and generic plastic ones may be available that work, but that’s your call.

As for bolts, grind, cut, and drill. Make new holes if you have too. This area is often very rusty due to battery acid.

[455hota]

Yes the dreaded rusty battery tray syndrome. Just once it would be nice to have a good clean original one!!

Yes PB Blast first over night on the bolts and nuts. Then some heat from my plumbing MAP gas torch, then gently but firmly try to loosen, if it moves a wee bit then tighten it back a wee bit, then try loosening again. More PB Blast and heat and take your time! This has been a pretty successful process over the years for me, but sometimes it is not successful.
I just did this process on the front bucket seat nuts for my 67 Tbird. They were the worst ones i had done in a while, but i got them all off. Also used my battery impact gun to assist!!!

So i see two bolts from the top down onto the battery tray. Also i see a stud welded ro thw battery tray with a nut on it from the underside. Is this all that mounts the tray? I see the small screws holding the battery tray side cover to the inner fender structure. These will be removed hopefully as well.

[Dan Szwarc]

These bolts go through the inner fender and the ends can be accessed from underneath. Cut any exposed threads off. Jack up the car and look under to find them. Hit them with a blowtorch and if there’s enough meat on the heads for a socket to stick, they will come out much more easily.

I learned this technique disassembling my 1970 Mercury. I noticed that bolts loosened, but when the rusted and expanded exposed threads entered the fastener, nut, or clip, they seized then would break.

By cutting off the exposed threads, they came right out once broken free.

Here’s an example:

[CaptainDave]

Hard to find the exact match in a new/repro. I finally just had my old one sandblasted and powder-coated for my 1966 'vert. Here's a photo of one I ordered and the original. The correct battery (Group 29) didn't fit on the repro. 29s are also hard to find and many people use Group 27s, which may fit.

[Dan Szwarc]

The original is the one on the right?

[455hota]

Yes Dan the original is on the right.

I was successful this afternoon, and was able to remove my original battery tray (two bolts, and one nut). However i am pretty confident that after a trip through my glass bead cabinet, 30% of whats in the pic below will be gone...

The metal shield/wall came off fairly well also, with no broken fasteners. But it very crusty and rough as can be seen in these two pics:

And finally here is the inner fender area under where the battery tray is mounted. Again very rusty with allot of rust perferation:

Has anyone repaired their cars in this area? Any suggestions on parts, or is this a metal fabrication exercise??

I would prefer to get a better battery tray, and then maybe remake the shield/wall, and make a patch for the inner fender. Ideas are always welcomed and greatly appreciated!!

BTW I really really HATE battery acid…

[Dan Szwarc]

I repaired this area on a few cars with POR15 and fiberglass patch.

I also did some welding on this and other areas, so that means you can, too, because I suck.

[frasern]

I salvaged this from my parts car to put in my '67, but it is a lot of work to cut those welds without damaging it, so I may just try to fix what I have first.

You may be able to find something from a car with a wrecked front end, in a dryer state, some wreckers will even cut it out and ship, but It will be costly.

[455hota]

I would love to have a piece like that!!!

Anyone know a good rust free donor car that i could get the parts out of ???

This seems to be the only really bad rusty spot on the car from what i can tell, but i need to get it up on one of my hoists to know for sure.

[frasern]

I have been thinking about this, and I may be able to part with that one, but not for cheap, I have put a lot of work into it. I measured them on my other cars, and they appear the same on my '62s, and both are good so I will still have one If I need it. I will want $250 + shipping, if you are interested, I can PM more pictures.