Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

Thanks Peter!

Much higher = engine bay temps?

No loss of life up to 70 degrees C (as opposed to 35 deg for lead acid).

Don't know what your engine bay's temps are?

Sounds great.

Are you guys running the 70 or 90 amp deltec lead crystal batteries?

Went into deltec today - R2,600 for the 70 and R3,200 for the 90.

A lot of money for a battery.

Would you not just be better off with standard battery and a portable solar charging kit for extended periods of stationary camping ? From what i see, solar technology is like computers/cell phones - we pay less and less for more and more capability.

Here is another idea, going along the lines of solar. Yeah the normal deep cycle is i'm sure a lot cheaper. I've had my Energizer deep cycle battery for about 2 years and so far not a bit of hassle. I also have to still do some heat shield for it too.

I had some sort of solenoid system which was $#@%.... I threw this out and fitted a CTEK 250S dual system. All you do is connect this box to your main battery, and your 2nd battery gets charged from there. You also have the facility to simply connect a solar panel to that. That CTEC is not cheap but is worth every cent for me, as my 8 year old son could have connected it up its that easy and it just lays on top of my fuse box. It also will not drain the main battery when charging the 2nd battery.

If you have a solar panel fitted it will regulate the whole thing for you.

Yeah the heat issue can be problematic, but for me personally I don't like the thing of having a battery inside the cabin.... just my opinion.

see here

http://www.ctek.co.za/gb/en/chargers/D250S%20DUAL

I don't yet have a lead crystal, I am still ruunning a deep cycle. But after four years it is tired now, which is why I have been investigating.

Now because I travel with four people in the car, I have a huge space issue. During December I towed a trailer (a little Venter) and my fuel consumption rose from about 5km/l to 3.5km/l, and for this reason I am not prepared to try that again.

Therefore, the battery must live in the engine compartment, and bulke solar panels are problematic as well. Anyway I tried one of those in december too, and it was not even nearly enough (although my half-dead battery probably contributed).

But the lead crystal will last longer (ti should do about twice to three times as many charges as a dep cycle under normal conditions, and even more when abused) so I think it is worth the money.

Solar power will help, but I feel it is still too expensive and fragile. They also don't last forever, and show a fair amount of degradation themselves.

Just to comment on Big Red with the alternator problem
don't let the "mechanic pull wool over your eyes...there are many other options to go
David in bela bela
Graham in Valhalla
bogertman can also maybe help with aftermarket model

I'm going to bump this thread as my alternator is starting to make a whining noise. And I'm starting to get a little gatvol of the temperamental regulators. I think this is the fourth time I need to service an alternator... :(

Does anybody have a part number for a swap-out, generic after-market alternator ? Preferrably one with the bosch-style regulator that one can just swap out without having to strip the entire alternator assembly ?

If not, I'll carry on with the research, find a model that fits and I'll post the details here when I'm happy.

Hallo Ian die bosch type alt waarvan jy praat gebruik die 090 regulator hy regulate op 13.7 volts waar die hitachi alt wat jy nou op het regulate op 14.7 volt teensy jy n bosch kc alt try maak pas daar hy gebruik die foom tipe regulator wat op 14.5 volt regulate en die ou tipe alt wat bes moontlik daar gaan pas gaan n 90amp alt wees jy kan jou stator laat rewind na 110amp toe maar die probleem is die ou tipe bosch se slip ring waar die borsels hardloop is te groot jy sal hom moet hoog rev om genoeg rpm te kry om die 110amp stator te laatwerk jou beste alt is maar die hitachi waarmee jou kar gekom het. En die kc alt het n 5 of 7 pin regulator wat key on nodig het om te kan werk met n paar earth punte.

I've got a suspect alternator sitting here waiting for a rebuild. If you do go ahead with another refurbishment please post info on part numbers and supplier etc. Thanks. Last time I did a search for parts for a rebuild it didn't seem economically viable and I bought a replacement unit from Ant instead