Discovery 2 Battery Tray

**Franz** · 17th January 2009, 06:18 PM

Originally Posted by Bundalene

It is possible to fit a pretty large battery into a Series 2 Disco as shown below. This is a custom made tray - just a few bits of angle and flat bar. I had to move the alarm horn and the inertia switch which can be seen attached to the front of the battery tray, alongside the small additional fuse box. There is a bit of villa board to shield heat off the turbo. This particular battery was in this position for 6 years, after having been in a Defender for 2 years prior to this.

Excuse the dirty engine bay as this photo was taken halfway through a holiday trip.

The only downside was that I had to remove the battery when changing the TD5 oil filter.- not a big deal.

Erich.

Erich,

What sort of A/H does that battery deliver and is it AGM?

Cheers,

Franz

**Handbrake hates Camping** · 17th January 2009, 06:32 PM

Has anyone made a bracket that sits next to the compressor for those of us who have rear air, seven seats and of course rear airbags.... As this is really the only option left.... And if you are using the compressor cradle what size battery can you fit?

Sorry for all the questions, but it is this or a powertank/equivalent taking up space with the fridge in the rear.

Doc

**Bundalene** · 17th January 2009, 07:29 PM

Originally Posted by Franz

Erich,

What sort of A/H does that battery deliver and is it AGM?

Cheers,

Franz

Hi Franz, yes they are AGM, as for the amp hours,
to be honest I don't know how to decipher that information. Having said that, they run our fridge longer than any other battery we have had,
allow full charge from flat to fully charged in 1 hour and can be fully discharged (but not recommended) heaps of times.

The pic with info below is of a similar battery I installed in our Defender last year.

Erich.

McDisco · 17th January 2009, 07:42 PM

Doesnt it say its a lead acid battery? Im not expert, but I thought there was a difference between those and AGM.

Angus

**drivesafe** · 17th January 2009, 08:41 PM

Hi Bundalene and McDisco, that battery is a 68 A/H and all automotive batteries are Lead Acid.

As to how the acid is held in the battery is what makes a difference in the type of battery.

Flooded wet cell batteries are the original type of battery and as the name implies, the battery’s electrolyte, ( the combination of water and acid ), is in liquid form and spills easily.

Gel cell batteries, again, as the name implies, the electrolyte is in a gel form and even if the battery is split in half, the gel will not splash, making these types of batteries safer.

AGM Batteries or the full name, Absorbed Glass Mat and again the name says it all. The electrolyte is held in place in a tightly packed glass mat and again, the electrolyte won’t spill if the battery is damaged.

Thats the very basics and there is a lot more but this should answer your question.

**Hendrik** · 18th January 2009, 12:22 AM

Originally Posted by drivesafe

Hi Bundalene and McDisco, that battery is a 68 A/H and all automotive batteries are Lead Acid.

As to how the acid is held in the battery is what makes a difference in the type of battery.

Flooded wet cell batteries are the original type of battery and as the name implies, the battery’s electrolyte, ( the combination of water and acid ), is in liquid form and spills easily.

Gel cell batteries, again, as the name implies, the electrolyte is in a gel form and even if the battery is split in half, the gel will not splash, making these types of batteries safer.

AGM Batteries or the full name, Absorbed Glass Mat and again the name says it all. The electrolyte is held in place in a tightly packed glass mat and again, the electrolyte won’t spill if the battery is damaged.

Thats the very basics and there is a lot more but this should answer your question.

So does that mean all AGM batteries can be mounted on their sides?

**drivesafe** · 18th January 2009, 03:43 AM

Yes, they can be mounted in any position but not upside down as this blocks the vents.

**gofish** · 18th January 2009, 05:34 AM

Anyone got any pics of one fitted on the compressor cradle? Would it not be prone to damage down there? Cheers.

**green_disco** · 18th January 2009, 08:52 AM

Hi drivesafe. Thanks for the information. One further question - what are the calcium batteries that Pedro and Tombie mentioned in previous posts and are they just used as secondary batteries or cranking battery as well.

**drivesafe** · 18th January 2009, 10:19 AM

Hi Green_disco, this is putting it in very basic and rough terms but most lead acid batteries are made not of pure lead but a lead alloy.

The most common alloys used are Antimony and/or Calcium and these are used to strengthen the lead, otherwise the lead would collapse under the slightest stress, caused but overcharging, excess heat, vibration shock and so on.

There are trade offs for using these two alloys, the high the Antimony content, the quicker the battery will self discharge.

Alternately, calcium batteries hold there charge better then Antimony batteries do, but at a price. Calcium batteries do not take over charging very well so controlling the charging is more essential with a calcium battery.

Don’t ride the Antimony batteries off though, they can be discharged to lower levels and not be damaged as compered with a Calcium type battery but Antimony batteries need more maintenance.

So in the case of the batteries being posted about, Calcium batteries, which are also found in LR vehicles, make good cranking batteries, but not so good as auxiliary batteries.

There’s lots more to it and don’t go picking a battery on the info supplied above, it's just a rough comparison.

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