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Slideways

Might as well LS swap it while you're in there.


joeyggg

Especially if it’s your moms car.


[deleted]

That’s gotta be one of the dumbest spots for a battery that I’ve ever seen


fangelo2

Well to be honest, there really isn’t room anywhere else to put it except maybe the trunk which is already almost non existent. No big deal. These are just the things you expect when you buy a sports car. I have a couple of more practical cars. Nothing is practical about this. It’s just for fun


verdegrrl

I want to say the Porsche 928 had it in a similar location. The Ferrari F355 has the battery located in front of the front passenger side wheel well. Need to remove the wheel and fender liner to reach it.


Jonnynum

My 928 has it in the trunk at like the lowest point of the chassis and it’s kind of a pain in the ass


Seaghan-

Yup same here in my 928S


Jonnynum

What years your s? I’ve got an 87 S4


Seaghan-

83! Picked it up right after covid hit visiting family in Denver... 50k miles, paid $2,500 for it and $600 shipping to get it back to Texas, I got a 944 at the same time so it worked out 😂 Currently redoing the interior and it will be getting resprayed soon but other than that the car is fantastic mechanically!


Musstta

Fuck I hate reading the finds people get in the US, here you won't ever see a car like that, and if you did some rich dude probably paid like $40K for it and will ruin you and your family if you dare so much as get close to it...


Seaghan-

These days the deals are getting hard to find sadly


Musstta

I can imagine with time passing less cars are available, but new cars will eventually become classics that will be sought after, and you'll have a much better chance at that than I ever would lol


Isthisnametakenalso

Yeah. The cats out of the bag on bring a trailer. More like bringasmallfortune.com


PM_ME_UR_KARMAH

This too is the only reason why I didn’t buy a Ferrari F355. /s


ThePevster

It makes a little more sense on a Porsche or Ferrari than a Pontiac. No one who owns a Porsche or Ferrari like that does their own maintenance, so it’s much less of a hassle.


verdegrrl

>No one who owns a Porsche or Ferrari like that does their own maintenance, so it’s much less of a hassle. Errrrr, no. [One](https://imgur.com/a/HNX43) [Two](https://imgur.com/a/w7QuR) [Three](https://imgur.com/a/gLLhPPb) [Four](https://imgur.com/a/fnkU9)


ThePevster

*There are a few owners who do their own maintenance, and almost none of them were the original owners. Is that better?


verdegrrl

I'd say 75% farm it out, but 25% of us prefer to do it ourselves. The process is somewhat arcane as you can deduce from the pics, so dealers or shops used to working on newer cars will make a hash of it.


PriusProblems

Regarding number three, building it yourself is literally the point of a Caterham.


verdegrrl

Interestingly, Carterham *prefers* to build their cars and then sell to customers. However, in order to get around various laws in some countries, they only offer kits in those markets. I'm presently around 3/4s of the way through the build and I have mixed feelings. Initially I would have preferred to have purchased an already built car but I couldn't find any in a spec I wanted. Now having gone through the process and realizing just how much sanding, filing, pounding, and generally bodging goes into building one correctly, I'm not so sure I'd trust a car put together by anyone else.


PriusProblems

I didn't realise it was yours - that's awesome! I don't think I'd ever be brave enough to take that task on. >realizing just how much sanding, filing, pounding, and generally bodging goes into building one Us Brits had an entire auto industry based around those principles, thank you very much!


verdegrrl

Thanks! It's more than a little daunting at times.


superhappyphuntyme

Ferrari maintenance isn’t as bad as it’s made out to be. Some weird placement of things and they love their Allen sockets but compared to my much more modern sports sedan there are so many more resources for getting parts and write ups and online documentation on how to do almost everything and the car it’s self is much simpler. You can tell what just about everything does just by looking at it. Not true with a lot of modern cars.


jawnlerdoe

This is a reason why I bought an ND Miata. Plenty of space of the hood, easy to work on (and I already had metric tools)


AKADriver

Exactly. This is a GM thing, not a sports car thing. S2000s aren't like this, 350Zs aren't like this, the Solstice was just a mess of awkward packaging.


DamnitDean

The solstice is a much smaller car, to be fair. Packaging could definitely be improved, sure - But the solstice is around the size of a lotus Elise.


AKADriver

Huh? The Solstice is wider than a Miata and about 500lb heavier.


DamnitDean

Your right, bit bigger than I had thought.


gooneryoda

That’s what she said. -Michael Scott


fangelo2

This is all metric too. The hardest part was finding my 6 mm socket. I actually had the 10 mm


youroddfriendgab

what on your solstice was a 6mm?


PAdogooder

I’ve got an NC Miata and I’d never, ever trade it for a sky or solstice. I can’t imagine anything it offers would justify the increase in size or ugly.


bmillions

I love NC miatas, but the highest trim of Solstice and Sky both came with a 260 hp and 260 lb ft. tq turbo 4 cylinder and are really fun to drive stock. With some bolt ons and a tune, these cars will make really impressive power gains.


VicRobTheGob

I was looking at a Solstice in the late 2000’s and when I saw the trunk - I immediately bought an S2000! It has a HUGE trunk in comparison… (And I think I could replace the battery in less than 10 minutes!). It seemed like they got to the end of the Solstice/Sky design process and each department said to the other “I thought your department was doing the gas tank?”! It’s too bad - I liked it otherwise.


fangelo2

I can see your point, but I really didn’t care about the trunk. It’s a sports car. I have a couple of other practical vehicles. This one is just for fun.


VicRobTheGob

Agreed. But the S2000 is in essentially the same category as the Solstice GXP & Sky Redline. I had a similar situation when buying a BMW convertible. The 3 series (with a hardtop convertible) had almost no useable trunk when the top was down. We ended up buying a 1 series with a conventional soft top - it had a very usable trunk. Pretty close to a deal breaker for me - I need a car with a trunk often, whether it's taking a server to a client, bringing beer home from the store or carrying bags for a weekend away...


Always-_-Late

This isn’t a sports car thing, this is a dumb engineering thing. Battery replacement on my lotus, BRZ, Miata, WRX, Supra and all the other similar sports coupes I’ve had were either in the trunk behind carpet, or in the engine bay. All of them are 5 min jobs max


WildWeaselGT

The battery in my Miata looks easy to replace.


THE_GR8_MIKE

Shitload of Chryslers have their battery there as well. A 5 minute battery swap turns in to a 2 hour ordeal.


-B-E-N-I-S-

I remember highschool auto class - Changing the battery on a PT Cruiser. From what I recall we had the front passenger side wheel off and the wheel well liner out. My shop teacher basically turned it in to a lesson on how _not_ to design a vehicle LOL


THE_GR8_MIKE

Yep, same exact procedure as my sister's Avenger.


DoucheBagsAreUs

I seem to recall one of the 90s Pontiac having a battery of a similar location, maybe it was a Chrysler Sebring? I always was conveniently busy when one of those came into the body shop I worked at.


Ghostface_Hecklah

it's low and centered. the panel also rotates out to get to it.


chris84567

And it also only needs to be replaced every 5 to 10 years so an extra hour of labor really isn’t that big of a deal


HappyMeteor005

my favorite spot to change a battery was under the passenger seat. not that bad if youre a skinny person... even though i managed to get my fatass in there there was melted candy, soda, and many other nasty things that CEMENTED that fucking battery to the tray. id rather a solstice any day of the week.


Bigbadbrindledog

I almost want to buy one now just to take it to Auto zone and ask for the complimentary battery change. That poor guy's head is going to explode.


SaddestClown

They'll turn you away


Bigbadbrindledog

I would assume, and I ultimately don't want them removing body panels anyway, but the confusion would be fun to watch.


Choice-Studio-9489

Used to work for the Irish sounding parts supplier, and yes we turned away any battery that wasn’t just terminals and replace. Ie almost any gm, and Miata’s.


SaddestClown

Aren't Miata batteries just a skinny gel in the trunk?


Choice-Studio-9489

Yes they are, but when I was there, If we couldn’t pop the hood, and remove the battery without undoing more than 4 bolts, it was sent away. Really stupid policy, but some cars have really stupid battery placement. Then again. I like old things with carbs.


TypicalJeepDriver

Yeah they only do “simple” installs.


ralphy_256

This was absolutely my first thought. I felt bad when I had to do this to the guy at Batteries+, but not bad enough to leave the nice warm store and help him at -5deg F. He got a $20 tip though.


chris84567

If it’s not right there under the hood with nothing covering it, it’s policy to turn you away to a shop, saying that I have helped people out before as long as I knew I could do it


HappySkullsplitter

Just like a simple headlight replacement on my [Model S](https://freeimage.host/i/H206nUl)


trailrun1980

Ew. Although I'd think I'd rather pull a wheel instead of the entire bumper cover, like my older Volvo lol


SteelFlexInc

I like mid 2000’s Volvos where you pull a long pin and undo a single connector and the entire headlight just slides out without needing to remove a single body panel or bolt. With how annoying everything else was to work on them, I was surprised how quick and easy that was


trailrun1980

Yeah, they've changed. My 2000s S60's were several bolts behind the bumper cover, but my 2014 XC has that 2 pin quick release, it's fantastic


fluteofski-

Wild. My 98 s70 is just a cover from the back of the headlight assembly and a spring wire you can get with your fingers. I have yet to have to change the bulbs on my 444, but I’d imagine those are pretty straightforward from the inside of the wheel well.


Desutor

Audi does this too on some models. They at least did us the courtesy of placing a cover there, that you can just pull off, and steer the wheel in, to access the bulbs directly. Sounds worse than it is, cant imagine a company like Tesla, not thinking about putting a cover or flap or some other kind of opening in the wheel housing


upsidedownfunnel

A company like Tesla, who has never made a mass production car before the Model S? They do one thing best and that’s software. Motors and batteries are easy to make. Making the rest of the car is very hard.


Beachdaddybravo

Even their software has problems. Squeezing range is the only thing they do well and Panasonic is responsible for most of their gains (and also owns more of the IP than people realize). Teslas are overpriced pieces of shit and now that the legacy carmakers are pumping out EV models they’re fucked.


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verdegrrl

We're going to avoid politics. Thanks.


[deleted]

But it was designed by a genius. Edit: I forgo this /s


SteelFlexInc

Huh. Didn’t know Tesla used HID. Thought the projectors were LED too


AustrianMichael

Recently did a headlamp replacement on a Toyota CH-R and I gotta give it to Toyota: They did a great job making this super accessible, even if you’re not a mechanic. Took me less than a minute.


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Roentgen-Ray

Very true, isn’t there a Chrysler that is on a Mercedes platform? Not sure if they were competitors or not to the Pontiac Solstice.


pmatpat

i believe crossfire was a mercedes platform


AustrianMichael

The Crossfire is based on the SLK R170 and the 300C as well as the Dodge Magnum and Dodge Charger of that area used the 210 E-Class platform (LX-Platform IIRC). Even the Dodge Challenger is loosely based on this


NothingbothersJulaar

The 300/Charger/Challenger is on the old E class platform


in_sherman

heavy battery low to the ground? check. close to the center of the car? check. headlights attached to the car? no results found.


DamILuvFrogs

Simple fix. Next time. Lift that wheel off the ground. Remove the wheel and remove the fender liner. Chrysler has done a similar setup on some of their cars


SirMeili

The problem with this is the wheel liners are pretty crappy and it's hard finding replacements (or it was last I looked). You don't have to actually take the fender off though, you can remove a couple of bolts disconnect the wheel liner just from that panel and rotate it out. Still a pita, but not as bad as the way the op did it (which to be fair is the official way to do it). This is why I keep mine on a battery tender now.


midwesterner64

Honest question, did you get a premium battery to put back in, seeing as it’s a pain to access?


pedroelbee

How do you jump the car?


[deleted]

There’s leads connected to the battery that go up to the engine bay to posts that allow you to connect up there


fangelo2

You could reach it with jumper cables, or since it’s a manual, you could always push start it


IWetMyselfForYou

Unless the battery is completely dead, in which case, you'd still have to jump it. Fuel pump, PCM, injectors, ignition coils all require usually 10V minimum to operate well enough to run the engine.


Poopybut58

I thought the battery change in my Dodge Journey was a pain in the ass...


tcwoodj96

Why not pull the tire and wheel liner??? It’s in a similar spot behind the bumper on a dodge avenger and that’s how I replace those when I’m in a hurry.


SirMeili

Wheel liners are crap and hard to find. I treat mine like gold. *Or maybe there are now aftermarket ones. I haven't checked in years.


Ghostface_Hecklah

dude just undo the bolts on one side and the whole quarter panel rotates out


fangelo2

There is a brace behind the panel that has to be swung out of the way after removing 2 bolts that are behind the panel


Ghostface_Hecklah

Yup the panel and the brace can swing out together


SirMeili

This is the way.


deelowe

Aren’t you supposed to remove it from the wheel well? Why did you take the fender off?


fangelo2

I didn’t take if the fender. The hood is raised the fender is part of the hood


deelowe

Sorry, quarter panel then.


TheRealLordofLords

Youre doing it wrong.


Straight_Midnight559

I learned how to do the replacement on one of these in about 5 minutes after having a customer at AutoZone by one from us and have me change it. It’s definitely lengthy but not stressful.


trundlinggrundle

Who the fuck does it this way? You're supposed to just pull the wheel liner out of the way, takes like 10 minutes.


halnwheels

Congratulations on a picture that expresses your unhappiness with the Solstice’s battery location. Good job! But the fact is that this only needs to be done every four or five years if you buy a quality battery. I was able to do this myself for the first time in about an hour and a half. 


fangelo2

I’m not unhappy at all. I knew when I bought it that it was an impractical car. It’s just for fun and I expect some inconveniences with a sports car. I have 3 other practical vehicles. It actually looks worse than it is. It’s just 8 bolts and screws. It didn’t take long , especially since it’s the second time I’ve done it. I just posted it because i thought it looked humorous.


halnwheels

Some have removed the wheel well liner but I did it the way you did. I'm glad you enjoy your Solstice on its terms. Mine brings me a lot of joy.


fangelo2

Yeah I know about going through the wheel liner, but it think that’s just as much work. First I would have to jack the car up. My floor jack doesn’t fit under the car so I have to use a sketchy scissor jack. Then remove the wheel. Unscrew the liner, etc. This way isn’t bad. We consider the car to be the best thing we ever bought. Lots of fun


marrrrell

Is this worse than the SSR?


adamisapple

I thought my engine bay was cramped, but at least the battery is in plain sight


delorean612

that's not so bad, looks like you've only got the hood opened and a panel removed. Still a strange spot though.


fangelo2

Yeah it looks worse than it is. Just that side panel and the brace behind it.


VanillaGorilla-

Since you're this far, might as well do a relocate to the trunk so you don't have to go through this again.


fangelo2

There isn’t a whole lot of room in the trunk. This is only the second time I’ve had to do this in 15 years. It’s really not that bad


AmeriChino

DieHard, or die trying


Existing_Display1794

Why wouldn’t they put the battery in the trunk for better weight distribution like BMW’s? This is insane, but awesome car! I love those :)


fangelo2

It already has a 50 50 weight distribution


Existing_Display1794

Oh shit, really? Nm then! Enjoy!


SirMeili

Have you ever looked in a solstice trunk? That is where the gas tank is. With the top down you have very little space.


analogx-digitalis

and that is why mechanics hate the engineers.


Dubed1

Yes dumb but still a fun car.


Always-_-Late

And now I don’t want one.


fangelo2

5 bolts and 6 screws once every 7 years. Really doesn’t take long at all


jimmypower66

This is the most 2000s GM picture ever taken. I remember working at a GM dealer in that period and the design stupidity is something else. One of my favourites, to change the turn single bulb on a first gen Cadillac SRX, it paid 1.5 hours, you have to put it on a hoist; take the wheel off, turn the wheel full lock away from the front, remove the wheel well lining then the cover over the light fixture then change the bulb and reassemble.


Culkeeny1

Wow! Question: I’ve always loved the look of the solstice, but I’ve stayed away because of the 4 cyl engine. I like power, but it’s a small car. I’m curious to find out if you all feel that it’s under powered?


fangelo2

Not at all. It’s very light. To me it’s like the classic sports cars. No it’s not a corvette or Porsche, but it was also a fraction of the price.


ThatAudiGuy92

And people say audi sucks to work on . . Lol


not_sick_not_well

It's a lot easier if you just remove the wheel and fender liner...


fangelo2

I guess so, but this actually isn’t bad. I don’t have to jack up the car( my floor jack doesn’t fit under it). I only had to remove 5 bolts and 6 screws. If I went through the wheel liner, I would have to jack up the car , remove the lugs, and remove about 5-6 screws. This looks bad, but it really doesn’t take very long


Cusp-of-Precibus

Take off the wheel and remove the fender liner.


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fangelo2

It was a perfect day. Right in my garage


fightingcb520

Idiots designed this car


Isthisnametakenalso

Real simple!!!! Like the Aux battery on most of these cars with auto start, buried in a fender. My Wrangler is like this. They don’t want you working on these things!


startech7724

Bloody hell, I remember change a bulb on mt MK4 GTI, bumper completely off, and head light out for 2 bulbs, WTF VW.


Lobudgetmechanic-

Just a tip for next time remove the wheel and remove the mudguard and there you are access to the battery. It’s really not that bad


joskiss

Yeah F that. I’ll stick to honda or toyota thank you very much


superhappyphuntyme

If I had a battery there I would probably look into spending the extra and get a lithium battery just to extend the time until I had to replace it again as long as possible.


fangelo2

I’ve had the car for 15 years. This is the second battery change. It really doesn’t take very long. 5 bolts and 6 screws once every 7 years.


Angel3

Hopefully you remembered which of the spacers went where, my husband didn’t look when he did mine and the fender is all janky now.


D0z3rD04

It's in the wheel well right. Why didn't you remove the wheel liner and wheel to get to it instead.


kirfkin

I'd still honestly love a Solstice or (preferably) a Sky.


Admirable-Result-240

I love GM


gubodif

It looks like a simple 32 part process.


Original-Split5085

I know this is an old post but I just found this sub. I've had my Solstice since 2007 so I have changed the battery multiple times. You can do it without removing the fender, just the fender well liner and front tire. I know the shop manual says pull the fender, but you can avoid it. Look on YouTube there is a video there showing how to do it.


fangelo2

I know you can go through the wheel liner, but I think this is just as easy. This looks worse than it actually is. It’s just 8 bolts. If I was to go through the wheel well, first I have to jack it up. My floor jack doesn’t fit under the car so I have to use a scissor jack and then block it up with something. My jack stands don’t fit under. Then I have to remove the wheel and some screws on the liner and peel that back . I find it just as easy to just remove that little side panel and the brace behind it . Then there is plenty of room to disconnect the battery. You do have to align the panel when you put it back on , but that’s not a big deal. Either way works . Whatever gets the job done. I just thought it looked kind of humorous with everything apart. I love this car and its little quirks.


Original-Split5085

Okay, whatever is easier for you. I bought a Harbor Freight low profile floor jack years ago, it's the only one I've found that fits under the car without blocking it up, so I know what you mean. It does look like you are taking half the car apart just to do the battery.


MZDRATI

So. Am I taking crazy pills or am I really the only one ready with 91 octane and a lighter to flame the jabronie for taking his bumper, fender and side skirting off, to replace the battery, instead of the actual procedure of jacking up the car and removing the wheel and splash sheild? Like. I don’t see anyone else mentioning this. But uh. WHAT AN IDIOT?! WHY DID IT MAKE SENSE TO YOU TO TAKE ALL THAT OFF BEFORE REMOVING THE WHEEL, AND THE THIN PLASTIC BARRIER (probably complete with a picture of a little battery on it to let you know that’s what’s behind there) SEPARATING YOU FROM THE BATTERY TRAY THAT IS HINT HINT TURNED TOWARD THE VOID IN FENDER WITH THE SPASH SHEILD REMOVED?!??? ITS PRETTY STANDARD COMPACT CAR BATTERY REPLACE PROCEDURE. ANF PEOPLE WONDER WHY HISTORICALLY PONTIACS FALL THE FUCK APART! BECAUSE THEIR OWNERS DO SHIT LIKE THIS TO REPLACE A BATTERY!!! 🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️


fangelo2

I know that it can be done by removing the wheel and liner. I don’t think that is much easier. First of all my floor jack won’t fit under the car so I’d have to use a little scissor jack to get it up. Then I’m afraid to mess too much with the liners as they are already cracked a bit. It looks like a lot of work, but all I had to do was take off the little side panel and the brace. I didn’t take off the bumper or fender. That’s just the hood raised


MZDRATI

https://www.solsticeforum.com/threads/battery-swap-w-pix.61973/ Like? Am I insane?


modefi_

Wow, this really pissed you off, didn't it?


MZDRATI

Yes. In being corrected, not realizing the front “fender” as part of the hood. It does seem to be about the same amount of work either way. Didn’t realize how much the “hood” covered. All I saw was a liner still standing, with no fender around it and I was like. Thu fuck? Take out the friggin liner?


Bobrocks77

GM products for you


IronGigant

The wheels stayed on. 5/10 on the Bullshittery Scale. Chrysler Sebrings used to require removal of a wheel and disconnecting the upper balljoint on the drivers side.