Thread: Trailer plug in '91 & battery isolator setups..

Hi,

Doesn't your 91 have the aux battery tray in the engine bay right at the front on the passenger side? Maybe not.

I have a Redarc, works fine.........one thing to watch is to make sure both batteries are the same type. Have just replaced a Willow calcium cranking battery (10+ years old) and an Exide lead acid aux with two new Willow calciums.

The Redarc spec sheet suggests using the same type of batteries in dual installations.

A lot of people use Drivesafe's isolators with good results as well.

cheers. DL

In relation to the trailer plug, I would just solder on an extension, but stagger your joins so they are not all together as it can make the loom very thick in one spot. Just leave the joins and inch or two apart and use heat shrink over each join.
About the two plugs, I have just made up adapters, get a male plug for your small 7 pin with about 6 inches of wire to a female socket of the large 7 pin.

For battery isolators, I use the Piranha brand and haven't had any trouble in the last 15 years. I have the older 150amp that I just pulled out of my troopy and installed in my Disco and is working as normal
I also have one of the new 180 amp units in my bush truck.

There are so many it is totally up to you

Good luck and merry xmas to you and yours

Hi Mercguy, do you have any specific idea of how you intend to put your dual battery system to use.

For a starter, your RR has a constant operating voltage of 14+v so this rules out the need for any form of DC/DC device. Your alternator can easily charge any type of battery quicker than a DC/DC device can.

If you have a winch or plan to fit a winch then you should look at being able to link batteries while winching.

If you want accessories power ( for running a fridge and or lights ) while free camping then you need to get the maximum battery capacity you can, to run your accessories for as long as you need.

Let us know what you need.

drivesafe, apologies for not being more specific -

Can't fit 2nd battery in the engine bay. the AFM & aircleaner assembly take up the space in the front passenger side. I believe this is where the aux battery in the older 3.5's were located.

Also, The batteries I have already chosen (use in boat) are N31 Deka intimidator AGM units. These have proven to be dead reliable and powerful. I've used odyssey and optima and calcium units before, both in vehicles and the boat - none have provided reliable life for the cost outlay. Keeping the battery out of the engine bay is also important to me. (heat = shortened lifespan)

3 main requirements:

1st requirement Aux battery will primarily be used for supplying power in engine-off situations: i.e. freezer/fridge for fishing trips. external plug for aux lighting (LED) on camping trips.

2nd requirement will be as a backup cranking battery. This is quite important from a functionality aspect. Also plan on fitting an anderson plug to the rear so I can jumpstart other vehicles easily, and provide power for other purposes.

3rd requirement is aux power for winching / stereo. Winching is not a primary requirement, as I've moved on from destroying vehicles or placing them in precarious positions. but a winch I see as being quite handy and a sensible backup for helping others out of difficult situations or getting out of difficult boat ramps (yeah been in that situation before too). Still examining the winch issue, as I believe the ARB bar I have on the front of the vehicle requires a low mount winch and a cradle to fit to the RRC. It may be next to impossible to find one these days... I hope this is not the case. (anyone with more info on this - I'd appreciate the input)

Primary use of the vehicle will be for remote fishing trips & towing a boat. I'm not contemplating any extreme offroad activities, I'm much older & wiser now. However, I'm not unfamiliar with having to launch boats off beaches & rock ledges and in swampy areas too. So the idea is to keep the vehicle capable, without doing the extreme offroad modifications some choose. I've never needed to run 35" mud terrain tyres or 4" lifts in the past, and intend to keep it that way.

Would be nice if the RRC had a PTO winch but it doesn't, so I'm looking at warn lowmounts and a healthy spool full of dyneema.

Planning to upgrade the stereo also. Replaced the headunit already, just working out the best place to place the amps (possibly a false floor) but all that leads to is a reluctance to use the rear for cargo. So that is on hold for the moment.

Hi again Ranga, thanks for the additional setup info.

Have you decided on the cable size to connect to the second battery?

I have plenty of 0 & 00 ga. cable & terminals here, as well as the usual 2/4/8/10/12ga stuff for wiring stereo's etc.
The main issue was to find the most appropriate location for the aux battery, It seems if I wish to retain the rear cargo space & the ability to roll seats forward, then I need to use the RHS rear qtr panel recess behind the wheelarch to minimize the encroachment.

Not 100% familiar with the wiring on the RRC, so I was figuring I'd run the cable along the inside sill panel or somesuch.

A second panel for any switched outputs and locating additional relays etc in the rear would be beneficial I think. Also that would be a shorter run to any rear mounted plug etc for external devices to be supplied via the 2nd battery - with the exception of the winch.

Still... the winch is a bit of a moot ppoint at this stage as I cannot determine if I need the cradle. If I do, then it's probably going to be some time before I find one. But that is OK - it will give me more time for the bank a/c to recover.

Originally Posted by Mercguy

Can't fit 2nd battery in the engine bay. the AFM & aircleaner assembly take up the space in the front passenger side. I believe this is where the aux battery in the older 3.5's were located.

The air cleaner can be moved slightly & the trumpet either cut off or modified for clearance. I modified mine for a snorkel anyway.
Then you just need to modify the PAS reservoir bracket to get that out of the way & a battery will fit in there.

Yes, I understand that. However I have no intention of modifying / moving the aircleaner or AFM etc at this stage. Everything functions as intended and I like to leave it that way until it fails.

Also an N31 is far too large to fit in that space, so not suitable for me as I mentioned earlier.