Dual battery?

[discojools]

Anybody done a dual battery yet?

[zilch]

Anybody done a dual battery yet?

Tate Needham who is on the Australian and global "All New Defender owners group on Facebook as completed this. I just had an anderson plug ffitted or
connecting/charging batteries in the trailer. If you search on those FB groups you should find Tate's post on how he completed the work..

Cheers

Jim

[laughto]

I just had an anderson plug ffitted or
connecting/charging batteries in the trailer. If you search on those FB groups you should find Tate's post on how he completed the work..

Cheers

Jim
Hi Jim, where did you have this done (I am assuming you are in Sydney)? Have just ordered a 110 SE D300 and will need to set up for towing our van when it arrives - early next year!

[zilch]

Hi Jim, where did you have this done (I am assuming you are in Sydney)? Have just ordered a 110 SE D300 and will need to set up for towing our van when it arrives - early next year!

Walkers Electrical in Brookvale, they do all LR Northern beaches work apparently. They fitted the Redarc
pro elite also, basically two cables and the auto setup button as well. The Anderson is a bit of a pig as the cable
has to be run from under the front seat battery compartment through to the rear door, and then pops out into the tow area..
so a lot of interior trim has to come out.

[Garfield]

Hi Jim,

Just wondering with regards to the Anderson plug, could they have not run this from the + and- terminals ( what ever they call them ) in the engine bay ? Sorry if this seems a silly question as I'm not good with electrical. Did you get a voltage sensing relay fitted as well with the Anderson plug ?


Walkers Electrical in Brookvale, they do all LR Northern beaches work apparently. They fitted the Redarc
pro elite also, basically two cables and the auto setup button as well. The Anderson is a bit of a pig as the cable
has to be run from under the front seat battery compartment through to the rear door, and then pops out into the tow area..
so a lot of interior trim has to come out.

[zilch]

Hi Jim,

Just wondering with regards to the Anderson plug, could they have not run this from the + and- terminals ( what ever they call them ) in the engine bay ? Sorry if this seems a silly question as I'm not good with electrical. Did you get a voltage sensing relay fitted as well with the Anderson plug ?

Yes they fitted a Redarc smart start isolator, that is why i think he installed next to and ran from the battery compartment which
is under the drivers seat. Not sure if you could do if direct from the terminals in the engine bay to be honest, most installs
i have seen on the book of faces seem to favour the battery compartment

[Garfield]

With my D4 the sparky connected the VSR to the battery in the engine bay and then ran the Anderson plug through the under carriage ( through flexible conduit ) to the rear and put a Anderson plug on, that has a led light that aluminates when current is available ( VSR is open ). Just thought it maybe easier than pulling out the interior to get the lead to the rear bumper.

I guess also I would like to keep the interior of the vehicle waterproof, it will do river crossings.

Thanks for the info Zilch [smilebigeye]


Yes they fitted a Redarc smart start isolator, that is why i think he installed next to and ran from the battery compartment which
is under the drivers seat. Not sure if you could do if direct from the terminals in the engine bay to be honest, most installs
i have seen on the book of faces seem to favour the battery compartment

[DiscoJeffster]

With my D4 the sparky connected the VSR to the battery in the engine bay and then ran the Anderson plug through the under carriage ( through flexible conduit ) to the rear and put a Anderson plug on, that has a led light that aluminates when current is available ( VSR is open ). Just thought it maybe easier than pulling out the interior to get the lead to the rear bumper.

I guess also I would like to keep the interior of the vehicle waterproof, it will do river crossings.

Thanks for the info Zilch [smilebigeye]

I did the same and my mechanic didn’t complain when they did a body off, but it does add another complication to the body removal procedure. If you keep the cables inside the vehicle the cabling doesn’t impact the body removal

[TB]

I did the same and my mechanic didn’t complain when they did a body off, but it does add another complication to the body removal procedure. If you keep the cables inside the vehicle the cabling doesn’t impact the body removal

There's no such thing as "body off" with the new Defender. It's a monocoque.

[DiscoJeffster]

There's no such thing as "body off" with the new Defender. It's a monocoque.

I’m aware. Sorry, the comment was in reference to a D4 comment which I guess you didn’t pick up on. Thread diverted.

[zilch]

With my D4 the sparky connected the VSR to the battery in the engine bay and then ran the Anderson plug through the under carriage
Thanks for the info Zilch [smilebigeye]


Same with our MY10 RRS, runs along the bash plates to the rear from the engine compartment..

[laughto]

Walkers Electrical in Brookvale, they do all LR Northern beaches work apparently. They fitted the Redarc
pro elite also, basically two cables and the auto setup button as well. The Anderson is a bit of a pig as the cable
has to be run from under the front seat battery compartment through to the rear door, and then pops out into the tow area..
so a lot of interior trim has to come out.

Perfect, thanks for the info. Did you need the Brakeaway indicator fitted as well?

[zilch]

Perfect, thanks for the info. Did you need the Brakeaway indicator fitted as well?

no, assume the rear of the cabin will become a lot lighter when the caravan goes it’s own
way [bigwhistle]

[laughto]

no, assume the rear of the cabin will become a lot lighter when the caravan goes it’s own
way [bigwhistle]

Umm, I understood it was a legal requirement in NSW, although only for vans > 2T (which I assume is gross). May have used wrong terminology. Breaksafe monitor.

[zilch]

Umm, I understood it was a legal requirement in NSW, although only for vans > 2T (which I assume is gross). May have used wrong terminology. Breaksafe monitor.

the van will have a break away switch to activate the brakes, I was not aware there was a
requirement for anything on the tow vehicle

[laughto]

the van will have a break away switch to activate the brakes, I was not aware there was a
requirement for anything on the tow vehicle

I was advised when I set up my Disco in 2015 that the monitor was needed and had it installed. It only applies to trailers registered in NSW, and not trailers from other states traversing NSW.

In trying to find info on the RMS web site, all I can locate is a bulletin from from the then RTA dated 2007 171363.

So I might do a bit of ringing around on Monday to see if I can ascertain a definitive answer as to whether or not this is still a requirement.

This is the type of device I am referring to - Break-Away Controller Remote Monitor - RM6000 | REDARC Electronics (https://bit.ly/3ijwBRo)

[laughto]

From my reading, it is no longer a requirement in NSW to have a Breakaway Battery monitor fitted. Unfortunately the definitive RMS document (VSI22 - see Vehicle standards information sheets - Vehicle standards - How to register a vehicle - Vehicle registration - Roads - Roads and Waterways – Transport for NSW (https://roads-waterways.transport.nsw.gov.au/roads/vehicle-registration/how-to-register-a-vehicle/vehicle-standards/information-sheets.html)) is currently under revision and not available, but other documents on the RMS web site seem to support this e.g. https://myrta.com/ebus/docs/is/AIS_Notice_31_-_Light_trailers_with_breakaway_brakes_.pdf.

[TB]

One of the things that is bugging me about my Defender is its profligacy with the contents of the starter battery, especially in a camping scenario. You so much as breathe near the vehicle and it activates all the computers and fuel pumps and god knows what else is going on. And because it's a Euro 6 emissions compliant vehicle it only keeps the battery about 85% charged to start with. This means you can get a "low battery – please start engine" warning before you even go to bed on your first night of a trip.

So unless LR sends us an update with some kind of camping mode feature (please!) I'm thinking about my aux battery options with all that as a background. And I'm really liking the sound of the CTEK D250SE charger and Smartpass 120S isolator thingy, for a couple of reasons.

The D250se is a 20A DCDC with an MPPT for solar input and it has a lithium battery profile. Once the aux battery is fully charged, it'll use the solar panel to trickle charge the starter battery. That sounds super handy for camping with a Defender. The Smartpass 120S is basically a set of voltage comparators controlling some switches to control the connection of your car's 12V circuit, your aux battery and a consumer circuit in any combination.

So in a vehicle like the Defender with a smart alternator, this pair allows you to ensure *at least* 20A is available to charge your aux battery when the smart alternator is in a low voltage mode, and up to 140A when the alternator flicks into a high voltage mode. In the low voltage scenario the consumer circuit is attached only to the car circuit, so none of the 20A from the DCDC is diverted to keep your fridge running, it all charges your aux battery.

The 120S also uses your aux battery to trickle charge your starter. And if your starter for some reason still gets so drained that it drops below 6V during an engine start, the 120S will automatically flick into jump start mode and shunt power from your aux battery into the starter battery and starter motor for 10 seconds.

There's no equivalent to the Redarc Manager 30 kind of arrangement but I think a DCS lithium battery with its onboard BMS and bluetooth app will cover a lot of the need, plus a second bluetooth monitor on the starter battery. The rest is just switches, wires and sockets and there's plenty of options to choose from there.

Will share details on whatever I eventually do.

[laughto]

One of the things that is bugging me about my Defender is its profligacy with the contents of the starter battery, especially in a camping scenario. You so much as breathe near the vehicle and it activates all the computers and fuel pumps and god knows what else is going on. And because it's a Euro 6 emissions compliant vehicle it only keeps the battery about 85% charged to start with. This means you can get a "low battery – please start engine" warning before you even go to bed on your first night of a trip.

So unless LR sends us an update with some kind of camping mode feature (please!) I'm thinking about my aux battery options with all that as a background. And I'm really liking the sound of the CTEK D250SE charger and Smartpass 120S isolator thingy, for a couple of reasons.

The D250se is a 20A DCDC with an MPPT for solar input and it has a lithium battery profile. Once the aux battery is fully charged, it'll use the solar panel to trickle charge the starter battery. That sounds super handy for camping with a Defender. The Smartpass 120S is basically a set of voltage comparators controlling some switches to control the connection of your car's 12V circuit, your aux battery and a consumer circuit in any combination.

So in a vehicle like the Defender with a smart alternator, this pair allows you to ensure *at least* 20A is available to charge your aux battery when the smart alternator is in a low voltage mode, and up to 140A when the alternator flicks into a high voltage mode. In the low voltage scenario the consumer circuit is attached only to the car circuit, so none of the 20A from the DCDC is diverted to keep your fridge running, it all charges your aux battery.

The 120S also uses your aux battery to trickle charge your starter. And if your starter for some reason still gets so drained that it drops below 6V during an engine start, the 120S will automatically flick into jump start mode and shunt power from your aux battery into the starter battery and starter motor for 10 seconds.

There's no equivalent to the Redarc Manager 30 kind of arrangement but I think a DCS lithium battery with its onboard BMS and bluetooth app will cover a lot of the need, plus a second bluetooth monitor on the starter battery. The rest is just switches, wires and sockets and there's plenty of options to choose from there.

Will share details on whatever I eventually do.

Did you go ahead with this set up?

[TB]

Did you go ahead with this set up?

No, I keep putting off making any changes to the Defender. The payload problem has got me focusing on light weight for now and potentially a changeover to a Grenadier in a few years time, so I'm reluctant to make any mods that could impact resale value.

In the meantime I'm using a Dometic PLB40 to run the fridge on short trips and carrying a Noco GBX45 to hopefully save me from a flat starter battery scenario.

[scarry]

Same with our MY10 RRS, runs along the bash plates to the rear from the engine compartment..

Ran ours inside the D4, behind the trims,once through the firewall,its not difficult to do.

All hidden and out of the way.

[one_iota]

No, I keep putting off making any changes to the Defender. The payload problem has got me focusing on light weight for now and potentially a changeover to a Grenadier in a few years time, so I'm reluctant to make any mods that could impact resale value.

In the meantime I'm using a Dometic PLB40 to run the fridge on short trips and carrying a Noco GBX45 to hopefully save me from a flat starter battery scenario.

I'm in total agreement with the "let's-go-light" idea. My current Defender can afford to have stuff bolted up to it. The new one will be frugal. So 12kg of 100aH Lithium Battery won't be an issue given that one of the travelling luxuries is running a fridge. A winch hasn't factored in my calculations either mass or resale.

[one_iota]

Ran ours inside the D4, behind the trims,once through the firewall,its not difficult to do.

All hidden and out of the way.

I'm not sure how the wiring will find its way from the battery under the driver's seat in the new Defender to the rear space behind the rear seats...do you have any ideas?

[Sweetpea]

Big discussion on FB group, but this is where it got to with the guy doing a ytube post of using the mild hybrid connections to connect a portable battery to the defender battery

Dual Battery Wiring Landrover Defender D300 MY22 - YouTube (https://youtu.be/uZibbQW3S7s)

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