Defender dual battery - what will fit

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Originally Posted by drivesafe

Hi Simon, I’ll answer you e-mail questions here as I answer these questions.


First off, all my kits are set up as DIY friendly, because I find people who fit their own kits tend to do a much better job than most auto elecs do.


Next, the kit installations are carried out like a plumbing job and no electrical experience is needed and only basic tools are needed.


If you have the slightest handyman skills, then you will have no problems fitting any of my Land Rover specific kits, and most of the kits are Plug-N-Play type installations.


BUT, should you have anything arise that you are not sure of, I am just a phone call away.


Solar panels must have a solar regulator as you have stated yours are, and then they can be connected anywhere in the system and all batteries will be charged.


Not sure why you want the switch?


You can use up to a 300w inverter, which should cover all your recharge needs, and you can order specific setup modifications and I will make the kit up to suit.


One point, at this time, I am flat out and you need to allow at least 2 weeks for delivery.

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Thanks so much.

I will be in touch in a few weeks then.

Why do I want an isolation switch? In 1985 I had a Range Rover catch fire between Packsaddle and Tibooburra and had I had a isolation switch I could have killed the source of the fire and it could have been contained! It was a wire from an AMP meter to the battery where the insulation had worn through and it earthed on the firewall and thus starting the fire. So I have been very wary of electrics ever since. However since then I have covered many ten of thousands of kilometres in Range Rovers and since the early 90's Defenders and fortunately only minor electrical problems [bigsmile1]

Cheers - Simon

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Originally Posted by travelrover

Thanks so much.

I will be in touch in a few weeks then.

Why do I want an isolation switch? In 1985 I had a Range Rover catch fire between Packsaddle and Tibooburra and had I had a isolation switch I could have killed the source of the fire and it could have been contained! It was a wire from an AMP meter to the battery where the insulation had worn through and it earthed on the firewall and thus starting the fire. So I have been very wary of electrics ever since. However since then I have covered many ten of thousands of kilometres in Range Rovers and since the early 90's Defenders and fortunately only minor electrical problems [bigsmile1]

Cheers - Simon

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Traxide are easy to fit.
There is just room for 2 batteries but it's very tight.
I went a different way with the starting battery and Traxide under the front passenger seat linked with wire and twin 60 amp fuses to an AGM under the rear of my drawers in the back. This has worked very well.
If your solar panel has a regulator you can connect it anywhere. I have an Anderson plug on the rear battery. The front battery is connected to an 80 watt panel fixed flat to the roof rack. This means I can charge both batteries separately.
If you have plenty of fuses I don't see why you would need a kill switch.
Hope that helps.

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Originally Posted by DiscoMick

Traxide are easy to fit.
There is just room for 2 batteries but it's very tight.
I went a different way with the starting battery and Traxide under the front passenger seat linked with wire and twin 60 amp fuses to an AGM under the rear of my drawers in the back. This has worked very well.
If your solar panel has a regulator you can connect it anywhere. I have an Anderson plug on the rear battery. The front battery is connected to an 80 watt panel fixed flat to the roof rack. This means I can charge both batteries separately.
If you have plenty of fuses I don't see why you would need a kill switch.
Hope that helps.

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Thanks DiscoMick

Yes there is just enough room for two batteries. I have had number of Defenders over the years and all have had different dual battery configurations. My current Td5 is configured to have both batteries permanently get charge equally. That’s how the dealer had it installed when I bought it in 2000.

In this project vehicle, 300Tdi there are some relays (for roof mounted lights which I have removed) a small fuse box and some other stuff that will need to be removed or relocated to make room for a second battery. I think this is where my challenge will be.

Attachment 144365Attachment 144366

The battery is as far to the left as it can go.

So there is a bit of a tidy up to do.

Mine also has the Traxide unit and a solar regulator in there, plus some wiring and fuses, so I decided one battery was enough in there.

I have the standard battery and a deep cycle 120amp hr in the battery box under the passenger seat. Very tight fit. It’s in a puma MY13, same fitment in my 300tdi befor the puma.
Cheers