Pajero Owners Club of South Africa

I'm planning to do a dual battery installation. The secondary battery will be a 105ah Deltec which I understand is the best to install. Just a few questions to the wise and experienced men of our club:

Will the standard alternator, 75ah, have enough power to charge both the main and secondary battery while simultaneously powering a Fridge/Freezer, GPS, Ipod and maybe charging a cell phone or camera battery as well?

Is it better to do a permanent installation (engine bay) or a seperate battery box installation in the back of the Pajero, but which can be removed when not on an overland trip?

Thank you.

The previous owner I bought my bus off had fitted a dual battery system and had the alternator upgraded at the same time,but who did the conversion I don't know,but it works a treat.But I had both,yes both batteries fail two weeks ago,old age was the diagnosis and the cost was +/- Rond 1700.00.I have company wheels in the week so only use it now on weekends,but what a difference the new batteries make.

Sorry,I will try and get a picture of the engine bay and post it for you.

I would suggest putting the dual battery seperately in the back, it not only allows you to take it out the vehicle when not in use but you can also take it out when in a campsite. This allows you to run your fridge etc where you are sitting so you dont have to get up and walk to your car to fetch a beer If you only stopping for one night you can still run the battery from inside the car.

All the wiring is hidden behind the panels and comes out in the back where the third row of seats hinge when in use.

This is my setup.

I don't like separate battery boxes because they just take up space, although portability is an advantage. But not a big enough one for me.

Your alternator is stock standard and I have yet to be left stranded with a warm fridge. Just a note though, if you are not planning to spend more than a day of so in each location then consider what they call a high cycle battery instead.

Thanks Simon for the info & pictures of your installation. I was thinking along similar lines but was not sure how it would fit. Seems, though, as if the positions of your main and secondary batteries have been swopped to fit; is that so? If not, what is the size (aH) of your secondary batt?

elbgeo wrote:Thanks Simon for the info & pictures of your installation. I was thinking along similar lines but was not sure how it would fit. Seems, though, as if the positions of your main and secondary batteries have been swopped to fit; is that so? If not, what is the size (aH) of your secondary batt?

No, the batteries haven't been swopped around. The aircon pipes were shifted slightly to accommodate the 105 Deltec. I was told by more than one fitment centre that it could not be done to fit a 105, but Mark from (what was then LA SPort) took the time to do the installation. I supect that, as I was supplying the battery, Safari Centre and 4x4 Megaworld refused to fit it and instead tried to sell me an 85 Ah battery.