captmike13 wrote:
Sears didn't know anything about it. Bought the battery and they almost broke the panel.

CentralCoaster wrote:
Based on my 85...

She needs a 10mm open end wrench to loosen the hidden lower bolt shown in the photo, it's about 2/3 of the way towards the back of the battery panel. It screws upward, so to unscrew she has to turn the wrench towards the front of the car. Just loosen it, don't remove.

Then theres's a 10mm bolt on top near the door hinge, sometimes hidden by the rubber piece that seals to the hood. A nut driver or a socket on a ratchet work here.

There are a few torx screws going in from the fender liner. These can usually be removed with a small hex bit, or if she needs more room she'll have to turn the key on and turn steering wheel to the left. These screws use a T-30 bit. A T-27 or T-25 or even a 5/32" should also work, or even a flat blade screwdriver of the perfect size.

And lastly there's the battery hold down bolt. I think this is just a 10mm hex and is between the battery and the firewall down by the base of the battery. Remove that. I'm not 100% sure it's 10mm, I lost that bolt a long time ago.

With all that loose, tug on the panel evenly to get it loose.

And the battery terminals can be undone with an 8mm or 5/16" wrench or ratchet/socket. Remove the negative terminal first.

flyboy wrote:
I think the bottom bolt is 10mm.

BillH wrote:
Quote:

flyboy wrote:
I think the bottom bolt is 10mm.

Yep. But Mike's pannel is a bit different, it won't have the slot, just a hole and the bolt has to come out. I think it's only 85 & 86 with the hole. Most guys make that a slot when they first pull the panel.

captmike13 wrote:

From what I have been able to gather, it's the 84 and 85 that have the hole and not the slot. Could be later models too.

Mike

BillH wrote:

Yep. But Mike's pannel is a bit different, it won't have the slot, just a hole and the bolt has to come out. I think it's only 85 & 86 with the hole. Most guys make that a slot when they first pull the panel.