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I've been planning this dual battery install for quite a while and finally got started. For the last month I've been researching various dual battery installation resources; pradopoint member installations, various resources on the internet and consultation with various local and interstate auto electricians/engineers. I will list these resources once the install is complete.
At the end of my research I then chose the components I thought were best for the install and proceeded with purchasing each item, the main items include:
Redarc Smart Solenoid
There are many smart solenoids out there on the market, I chose the updated Redarc model (SBI2) that dealt with the charging/ECU voltage issue experienced with the V8 100 Series Land Cruiser and other newer model (2003+) Prado's; issues relating to the Prado are documented in various threads in this forum.
Piranha Battery Tray
A heavy battery requires a good base and with some reports of damaged wheel arches I wasn't going to compromise on this. I chose the Piranha because it was a solid construction with ample mounting points.
Wiring
Choice of wire is an extremely important topic when it comes to dual battery systems and running appliances within the vehicle. Without going into too much detail I selected 6 B&S (13.mm2) wire for the charging circuit (connection between aux and cranking battery) and a twin core solar grade wire rated at 60Amps for the accessories circuit. I chose a twin core wire so that I could run the negative back to battery (in the hope of minimising voltage loss). I have selected to fuse the accessories circuit at the aux battery with a 20Amp fuse as this is the carrying capacity of the hella/merit style socket.
In order to understand the circuitry with the install I drew up a simple schematic to outline which gave me a brief plan of how I was going to wire up the charging and socket circuits:
Installation of battery tray:
For the installation of the battery tray I followed MUMSRIG's "Step by Step TD 120 Dual Battery Instal with pics. Finished" thread:
http://www.pradopoint.com/viewtopic.php?t=1335
Only deviation to this was that I installed the bracket (mounted to the inside of the wheel arch) against the plastic mould rather than underneath it. This required longer M6 bolts (20mm) with appropriate washers that I purchased from Supercheap. I found that mounting the bracket to inside of the plastic mould created a bit of a gap that could be prone to build up of dust and mud which may be fairly difficult to get out.
Once installed I found that this tray is an extreme improvement on the standard tray used for the cranking battery. One could say that it is over engineered!
The installation of the Redarc smart solenoid is another story in itself. I found that most dual battery installations documented by pradopoint members were for petrol or the old (pre D4D) diesel engines. The difference between the D4D and these engines are that there is a larger air filter and other additional components (yet to be identified) located next to the fuel filter.
Working with these constraints and trying to avoid drilling extra holes I tried multiple mounting points. Installing it next to the aux battery was out of the question due to lack of space (primarily occupied by the air filter). Installation close to the fuel filter was also avoided as the terminal mounting points on the solenoid were too close to the fuel filter. I ended up deciding to install it onto two threaded bolts sticking out of the firewall located near the fuel filter.
This required drilling two 8mm holes on the mounting bracket of the solenoid and installing it using M6 loctite nuts with washers before and after the bracket. Once installed the solenoid seemed extremely stable and didn't budge one bit if I tried to move it.
Thats the install so far, next steps are:
* install battery and wiring necessary for charging circuit,
* install wiring necessary for accessories circuit
At the end of my research I then chose the components I thought were best for the install and proceeded with purchasing each item, the main items include:
Redarc Smart Solenoid
There are many smart solenoids out there on the market, I chose the updated Redarc model (SBI2) that dealt with the charging/ECU voltage issue experienced with the V8 100 Series Land Cruiser and other newer model (2003+) Prado's; issues relating to the Prado are documented in various threads in this forum.
Piranha Battery Tray
A heavy battery requires a good base and with some reports of damaged wheel arches I wasn't going to compromise on this. I chose the Piranha because it was a solid construction with ample mounting points.
Wiring
Choice of wire is an extremely important topic when it comes to dual battery systems and running appliances within the vehicle. Without going into too much detail I selected 6 B&S (13.mm2) wire for the charging circuit (connection between aux and cranking battery) and a twin core solar grade wire rated at 60Amps for the accessories circuit. I chose a twin core wire so that I could run the negative back to battery (in the hope of minimising voltage loss). I have selected to fuse the accessories circuit at the aux battery with a 20Amp fuse as this is the carrying capacity of the hella/merit style socket.
In order to understand the circuitry with the install I drew up a simple schematic to outline which gave me a brief plan of how I was going to wire up the charging and socket circuits:
Installation of battery tray:
For the installation of the battery tray I followed MUMSRIG's "Step by Step TD 120 Dual Battery Instal with pics. Finished" thread:
http://www.pradopoint.com/viewtopic.php?t=1335
Only deviation to this was that I installed the bracket (mounted to the inside of the wheel arch) against the plastic mould rather than underneath it. This required longer M6 bolts (20mm) with appropriate washers that I purchased from Supercheap. I found that mounting the bracket to inside of the plastic mould created a bit of a gap that could be prone to build up of dust and mud which may be fairly difficult to get out.
Once installed I found that this tray is an extreme improvement on the standard tray used for the cranking battery. One could say that it is over engineered!
The installation of the Redarc smart solenoid is another story in itself. I found that most dual battery installations documented by pradopoint members were for petrol or the old (pre D4D) diesel engines. The difference between the D4D and these engines are that there is a larger air filter and other additional components (yet to be identified) located next to the fuel filter.
Working with these constraints and trying to avoid drilling extra holes I tried multiple mounting points. Installing it next to the aux battery was out of the question due to lack of space (primarily occupied by the air filter). Installation close to the fuel filter was also avoided as the terminal mounting points on the solenoid were too close to the fuel filter. I ended up deciding to install it onto two threaded bolts sticking out of the firewall located near the fuel filter.
This required drilling two 8mm holes on the mounting bracket of the solenoid and installing it using M6 loctite nuts with washers before and after the bracket. Once installed the solenoid seemed extremely stable and didn't budge one bit if I tried to move it.
Thats the install so far, next steps are:
* install battery and wiring necessary for charging circuit,
* install wiring necessary for accessories circuit
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