Auxiliary battery type

[grenadierboy]

After posing a question if the Auxiliary battery option is lithium - INEOS responded to me yesterday that it will be of the Lead Acid kind.

 

[Paachi]

That’s good to know and disappointing to know. They are over charging for the lead acid battery. 

 

[Sandman]

I agree. I can't believe that a lead acid/AGM battery would be used for the aux. That's cheap and yes disappointing

 

[DenisM]

Maybe "Not really" .... it's what the auxiliary  lead acid battery option includes perhaps? The 'heavy duty' lead acid batteries for the latest stop/start vehicles are very expensive (x3 for normal start battery)  plus I'm assuming that there are additional electronics included in the aux. battery option.

 

[emax]

That's right. It's not only the battery but as well charge management, overload balancing, fusing and wiring.

I first thought about doing it myself. But the thick cables, massive fuses and other things leave a lot of room for mistakes. I have some skills regarding electronics, but such power installations really require experience, in particular in a car which drives on bumpy roads, has vibrations and a wide operation temperature range.

I would not feel comfortable with such an energy pack not being wired and installed by somebody who knows what he's doing (me, for example...).

I agree that the aux battery is expensive. But if you chose a DIY solution you'll hardly save much with all the high-quality components needed. For a saving of maybe 200€ I'd consider this too risky.

 

[Tazzieman]

Nothing wrong with a quality AGM battery. More the problem is people who want to take home luxury electricals on their "rugged" travels.

 

[Sandman]

An AGM battery is better than nothing but it won't be long before you'll need to replace it, (3- 4 yrs) depending on usage. If you are just running some lights then ok but start using inverters or other power hungry device, well that's a different story . And how is it getting charged? DC to DC charger or just using a voltage sensing solenoid. AGM batteries don't like high charge/discharge currents. And they weigh about 3 x more too
  When the time come to replace it, put a lithium in with a proper charger. It will be cheaper in the long run.
And if you don't know what you are doing, then DIY is not worth it. Try save some $$ and end up burning your car down

 

[Tazzieman]

I mainly use it for a high quality fridge that doesn't use much power.Obviously AGM deep cycles have their limitations , as do Lithiums. Knowledge is power ;&lt?

 

[bnebenda]

I got information directly from INEOS that the aux battery will be a Moll AGM 12V, 105Ah. I looked up the product line up at Moll and believe it is the Part No. 81105

 

[Ferrugenfish]

[QUOTE username=Sandman userid=8987369 postid=1332708728]
I agree. I can't believe that a lead acid/AGM battery would be used for the aux. That's cheap and yes disappointing[/QUOTE]

For the price I'd definitely prefer a litium battery... especially since the rig is already really heavy and AGMs weigh way more than lithium batts.  And that price is without years of financing it...I could have sworn I read that something else comes with the battery, not just the spare battery.  But I can't remember what it was.  Maybe more outlets?  I could be imagining this....?

 

[WhiteBear]

It was an inverter for 230V.

Moll is a very reputable company from Germany. They make batteries in OEM quality for some german car manufacturers. I once had one in my Landy as second battery, it lasted 8 years, which is good.

 

[DenisM]

One of the frustrating things about the various brochures is that there is minimal technical description of what the options actually entail. Getting meaningful information is very difficult. Supposedly, the additional battery comes with a high power inverter which will "...run a coffee machine" ..this might explain the AGM rather than a LiFePO4 of similar AH capacity, especially if it can be used as a second start battery. Of more interest to me is what extra switches etc are included with the battery option vs the heavy duty wiring in the overhead panel. In the end I just decided not to option up and take the standard Grenadier SW with ext. elec mirrors, the Rough Stuff (diffs and  tyres), a rear towbar, and dark windows (I live in the tropics so safari windows are a non-necessary luxury). I'll worry bout the rest later.

 

[bnebenda]

There is definitely and inverter coming with the electrical package. I don't know yet how much power this delivers. Rumors say it delivers 2 kW with and 500 W without the aux battery. This has not been confirmed nor denied by INEOS so far.

 

[CountyV8]

I think I might let them do the connections if the cables are that thick.

 

[WhiteBear]

More pictures.

           

 

[CountyV8]

Great Pictures Karl  What do we think this is I presume a relay can anyone see if its a B2B set up?  

 

[emax]

Why B2B? I don't think this makes a difference.

...

This is the type of work I really like to do my self. But in that case, I have decided to let this at Ineos. It's a fat power setup, and mistakes (frayed cables due to vibrations, dysfunctional safety power-down, an insufficient heat-monitoring and the like) can get expensive.

And the thickness of the cables indeed calls for somebody who is used to handle such installations. I have some doubts to be the right one for this.

 

[Paachi]

There are three line items in the Power setup per the price brochure

1. Auxiliary Charge Points
2. High Load Auxiliary Switch Panel & Electrical Preparation
3. Auxiliary Battery

I was under the assumption that the Electrical preparation would include all the wiring, solenoid/ dc-dc charger etc. and the aux battery price was only the price of the battery. If the aux battery price includes the charging, potentially the 2k inverter and the fat 0/1 awg cabling then it’s actually a fair price; £570. Makes me now wonder what the High load aux panel and electrical prep entail to charge £1000+
Well we’ll see when we get some delivered vehicles

 

[emax]

> then it’s actually a fair price

Considering the installation and the necessary installation material (which is for that power not cheap) that was pretty much a bargain.

I ordered the second battery in the assumption that there is no inverter included, and was not happy about the price.  But I accepted it finally because of the wiring, the installation and included charge management.  It it had a converter as well, this would now be kind of a gift to me.

> Makes me now wonder what the High load aux panel and electrical prep entail to charge £1000+

A flux compensator may be ... ?

 

[Sandman]

Power pack might end up being good value, it's hard to know with the info you are given. It's all guess work.
I was just going to get it anyway. If there is something I don't like, I'll just upgrade it myself. 
It is easier to upgrade if necessary rather than wiring all from scratch.
BTW Thanks for the great pictures.