I just changed the battery in my Gallardo. For those who were mis informed by their dealers, it is a very simple (10 min) project. Getting to the battery requires 4 very simple steps. 1. Remove the weather stripping around the luggage compartment. It is not glued and pulls off very easy. 2. Remove the 4 allen screws on the bottom. 2. Pull out the compartment light and disconnect or run it back through the hole. 4. Pull out the luggage compartment. This took me only 5 minutes. The battery that can be used is a Interstate MTP 91 or any group size 91 battery. After you reinstall the new battery, just reverse the steps above. I finished this in less than 15 minutes. I was told by the dealership and another repair shop that this required over 2 hours of labor.

__________________
Tobin Tracy
www.clearalternatives.com

Wow, thanks for the info - I just bought a Braille lightweight battery and was contemplating how I was going to tackle putting it together. Your post helps a lot (I'm glad you did it yourself too! - 2hours for this, ridiculous!)

__________________
M. H.
Italian Car & Bike Enthusiast
-------------------------------

'05 Silver/Black Gallardo
MV Agusta F41000
MV Agusta Brutale 910R

Okay, folks, here's an update for my post above. I took the Braille battery to the San Francisco Lambo Dealer, and they said that installing this battery could possibly cause grounding & electrical issues with the car. Apparently the battery contacts are not very large on this lightweight Braille battery, and could cause grounding problems somehow, since the aluminum spaceframe in the Gallardo's are hard to ground to start with. Anyway, end result is that the battery was not installed, now I'm returning it. So be careful installing any battery that is not the right size for the car, it's probably not work electrical faults later!

__________________
M. H.
Italian Car & Bike Enthusiast
-------------------------------

'05 Silver/Black Gallardo
MV Agusta F41000
MV Agusta Brutale 910R

Strange.. Grounding problems compared to normal batteries? Sounds like a joke.

As for the ridiculous "two hours" I'd say they saw you with a Lambo and thought "How can we wet our beaks?"

I looked at that battery, and I'm not sure what's wrong with it but something is. You just can't get what they claim with that light weight. They're compromising something. I did notice, "don't use with large displacement motors, in cold climates, or for storage".

The compromise is cranking power and they tend to lose their charge easier than traditional batteries. The little batteries are good for 4 cylinders and other small displacement cars where there is no tq = weight reduction is needed. Think Lotus Elise.

I'd probably buy an Optima yellow top for a Lambo.

yes, thats right...it was also the issue of "cold crank amps", meaning the battery was lower spec than lamborghini recommends for starting up in colder weather. It could not generate enough torque in the starter motor if the engine was below a certain temp.

Also, the grounding issue is real, as apparently the aluminum frame doesn't ground well to begin with. Anyway, its not worth the chance of an electrical fault down the road, which could cost more $.

__________________
M. H.
Italian Car & Bike Enthusiast
-------------------------------

'05 Silver/Black Gallardo
MV Agusta F41000
MV Agusta Brutale 910R

Thread back from the dead...

I just replaced my battery and feel like a moron, but for the life of me can't get the weather stripping back on??? Is there a trick or am I missing something? Thanks in advance!

Don't know if this is still true on the LP5XX's, but the weatherstrip on the 1st generation Gallardos had an "M" cross-section - that is, there is a center rib that needs to fit into the gap between the tub and the sheet metal. As you install the weatherstrip, make sure this center rib is properly seated. You may need to nudge the tub away from the sheet metal a bit to create a gap to get it started.

Also, mine seems to have taken a "set" to the curvature of the opening. It likes to go back in the same orientation in which it was removed. I orient the seam (where the two ends are glued together) at the top center (under the center of the windshield). Yours may be different.

I changed the battery just a few weeks ago to get ready for the winter storage. It is NOT as easy as it sounds and definitely not a 15 minute job. Especially if you have a CD changer in the trunk. Removing the CD changer is a PIA because the screw is hidden underneath the changer. Secondly, pulling off the water seal around the side is easy, putting it back is almost impossible unless you have the tool to do that.