Alternator Booster Diode

[120D4D]

I looked into that as well , but no-one I know has the ability to hack the can bus controller. Only way around it is to dismantle the alternator and fit a conventional regulator to the slip ring circuit.

What about the (nissan?) fix of cutting/removing the communication wire so that ECU cant 'talk' to the Alt?

[nudgebar]

[QUOTE=dBC;574733]I believe the 2.8Ls alternator is controlled by the ECU so who knows, they may one day release an update that increases the voltage for those that want it, but I've not heard of such on option as yet.[/QUiOTE]

I looked into that as well , but no-one I know has the ability to hack the can bus controller. Only way around it is to dismantle the alternator and fit a conventional regulator to the slip ring circuit.

[bobsa]

Will
I have the 3.0L
bob

[dBC]

has anyone worked out if you can use the booster diode in the 2.8
I took mine out of the 3.0 before I sold it but not game to stuff up the electrics in the 2.8

Unfortunately not. I would have happily gone that route myself. Determined to get higher charge voltages at least for the camping battery, and with no easy diode solution in sight, I went the more expensive solution of a DC/DC charger. I believe the 2.8Ls alternator is controlled by the ECU so who knows, they may one day release an update that increases the voltage for those that want it, but I've not heard of such on option as yet.

[Graydog]

has anyone worked out if you can use the booster diode in the 2.8
I took mine out of the 3.0 before I sold it but not game to stuff up the electrics in the 2.8

[dBC]

I think you're both partly right, and partly wrong. The impedance of the battery goes up as the state of charge increases, so at a fixed voltage, as the state of charge increases, the current decreases. You can see this pretty much throughout an alternator charge, and during the absorption and float stages of charger charge. The voltage is held constant and the current slowly decays away as the charge level comes up. Actually, you can also see it during the bulk stage of a charger charge. In that case the current is held constant, at 25A say, and the voltage ramps up. In all of those cases, it's because the battery's impedance is increasing with charge level.

On the other hand, at a specific state of charge, the higher the voltage you apply, the higher the current into the battery will be. Obviously the state of charge will be changing as you do that, so it's a fairly theoretical instantaneous observation.

You can't shorten charge times without increasing the current. The total charge you're putting into the battery is the product of current and time, or more correctly their integral since current is typically not constant. A x h give you Ah. If you're going to shorten the charge time (h), then you need to increase A to end up with the same product.

For what it's worth, after months of only short city trips in my 2.8L Prado with low alternator voltages (~13.4V to ~13.8V) I see my cranking battery end up with an overnight resting voltage as low as 12.2V. I've been able to resolve that by putting it on an overnight AC charger. By comparison, the camping battery which is exposed to the exact same short drive times, always rests at 12.7V (unless it's the morning after an overnight camp, of course). I've never needed to put the camping battery on an external charger. The in-car DC/DC unit seems to keep it fully charged even with short drive times.

[120D4D]

V=IR -> The R (Battery Resistance) is constant, so increasing V (Voltage), will increase I (Current).

The current a battery draws is in proportion to its state of charge. Increasing the voltage will shorten charge time but not the current going into the battery.

[Usernamewill]

Bobsa, have you got a 3L or 2.8L 150series?

Will.

[StormyKnight]

Not sure the boosting diode will help that much if you keep doing short runs, it's not really putting any more amps in. I was the same, so I put a solar panel on the roof.

V=IR -> The R (Battery Resistance) is constant, so increasing V (Voltage), will increase I (Current).

[SimpleSi]

Not sure the boosting diode will help that much if you keep doing short runs, it's not really putting any more amps in. I was the same, so I put a solar panel on the roof.

[bobsa]

I have been have flat batteries of late , check charging rates and when cold I get 13.7v and when warm 13.5v , because I am only doing short runs at the moment, I never can get enough charge,
I pulled out the alt fuse and replace it with a alternator booster diode from ARB Sidewinder
what a difference it made, now charging at 14.4v cold and 14.1v hot ,fantastic, it now starts very well
There is no side effects , I have been using it for about 3 weeks now, I have done a couple 100k runs and all good now, just running back and fro from my local and no more battery problems , love it
ps i have been checking with Fluke meter not a cheapy....