Samm's SR5 Black Manual DC

[taresk]

Looks good, great list of accessories. Is there a reason you left the wheel arch liners intact?

[sammbo80]

Looks good, great list of accessories. Is there a reason you left the wheel arch liners intact?

haha I knew someone would notice that at some point! This was a photo just before I cut them off, it wouldn't be driveable otherwise!

[sammbo80]

looking good man !! got a fair list to get through can't wait to see it all finished

Thanks mate, I think it'll be a few years before it is all finished. Just getting all the essentials done first!

[sammbo80]

Installed the 9" LED Spotlights yesterday. The mounts required modification in order to fit the holes on the ARB bar but nothing too difficult.

[sammbo80]

Started working on my dual battery setup and wiring for all my accessories etc.

Decided on using a CTEK D250S DUAL charger and SMARTPASS combo. I am also using 2 Baintech fused distribution blocks, one 6 way for my essential accessories and one 12 way for all the non essential ones.

It was a bit scary drilling holes in the back of the cab for the cable glands! I ran 2 x 70mm2 (12V and GND) cable from the engine bay battery to the gear tray. I eventually plan to have extra batteries in the tub so I will be running 2 more 70mm2 cables to the battery bank. Overkill maybe, but it gives me minimal voltage drop and provision to pretty much add any accessories on later without needing to run more cables.

We are going on a trip to Beerwah in a couple of weeks so I have been trying to get stuff done before then!

I also purchased an Extra Large Heavy Duty slide (https://trailerpartsdirect.com.au/shop/vehicle-drawer-systems-direct/heavy-duty-fridge-slides/) for my Waeco CFX-95DZ2 as there are no other slides on the market that will fit it!

What the space behind the backseat looks like without the trim piece:


Here are some photos of my work-in-progress gear tray:



The gear tray will be carpeted and also get some proper cable management soon!

This is how you get work done on the street in the rain:



Also applied a few layers of sound deadening while I had the back seat out:



I have applied 2-3 layers to most of the back and side panels, hopefully it should make a difference! I am also going to add some sound deadening foam/insulation stuff as well behind the gear tray.

I will be putting a sub on the drivers side in the space I have left.

[sammbo80]

Bought my roof racks yesterday, will be installing them on Saturday. SHould be fairly easy from looking at the instructions.

I went with the Rhino HD Roof Racks: http://www.rhinorack.com.au/products/ro ... ack_ja8398
They are the track mount version which I prefer for a few reasons:
1. You can remove the racks easily and return the car to a stock look
2. Can move the position of the feet easily
3. Easy to attach accessories with their kits or the Unistrut nuts

I will post up some photos of the install after the weekend.

I also received the heavy duty fridge slider, and its freaking huge!!!! I will be installing this into the tub on Saturday as well. I'm thinking I will build a box around it to keep most of the rain and thieves away from the fridge and battery.


Also had this happen today:

Top Score haha

[sammbo80]

So I installed the roof racks and awning on the weekend, not as easy as I had hoped! The tracks are not a perfect match to the channel on the roof so they sit out a bit but overall I'm happy with them.

I also started building the fridge box, it has come up really well. I will finish it off and post some pictures of it up next weekend.

Here's how the roof racks turned out:

[Merkin]

great build so far mate!
will be watching this build closely in the future!
loved the gazebo in the rain setup!!

[sammbo80]

great build so far mate!
will be watching this build closely in the future!
loved the gazebo in the rain setup!!

Thanks mate! Unfortunately I don't have a garage/drive/carport as I live in an apartment so I have to be creative when I work on the car .

[sammbo80]

So there have been quite a few updates since I last posted on here; Towbar, Oil Catch Can, Secondary Fuel Filter and Fridge box have all been installed. I will split each install into it's own post.

[sammbo80]

Fridge and Auxiliary Battery Bank Box:

I am planning on building a custom tray eventually but in the meantime I needed something to keep my fridge and batteries safe so I built the box below to house 400AH of deep cycle batteries and my Waeco CFX-95DZ2.



You can't see in these pictures but there are a couple of Anderson plugs on the outside of the passenger side of the box which allow me to hook up my portable 250W solar panel to the CTEK D250S Dual, and another plug to connect to the batteries. You may be thinking that 400AH is completely over the top and ridiculous but unfortunately it is needed as I often run 2 fridges, a big stereo, battery chargers etc for a week at a time (eg at Southern 80) and I hate having to run the car to charge the batteries. THe plan is to eventually have then under the tray to keep them out of the sun and get the weight lower down.



It's not the prettiest, but it is safe and it works.

The compartment on the right houses 2 camping chairs, my axe, a picnic blanket and my bag of ratchet straps. It is extremely handy!

Some pictures from the 2017 Southern 80 (Yes we did build a pontoon):

[Dundeemac]

Will you be able to install a winch with that type of ARB bullbar?

[sammbo80]

Will you be able to install a winch with that type of ARB bullbar?

Yeah, should be able to fit most winches into it. Planning on getting a Runva at some point, when funds allow for it.

[sammbo80]

Added a couple of things to the car over the last couple of weeks.

Rockford Fosgate PS-8 Punch underseat 8" sub:

It sits under the front passenger seat. I wanted to put it under the drivers seat but it was too wide to fit sideways and there is something under the seat that prevents you from putting it in very far.

Next up was an Audison Bit One DSP:

Mounted behind the rear seats on a gear tray I've been working on.

Currently waiting on a Dayton Audio UMM-6 USB Measurement Microphone (http://www.daytonaudio.com/index.php/um ... phone.html) to arrive to begin proper tuning of the system.

Everything was bought secondhand but is pretty much new, so I paid well under half the RRP.

I don't have any pictures but I also replaced the front speakers with some Focal PS165 6.5" splits that I had from my last car. And the rear speakers I replaced with Focal 165AC Components that I picked up for $50. Running all the speakers off an Audison SR4 but I want to go active in the front so I will hopefully be picking up a Focal iBUS2.1 or Soundstream Rfmp8.0 which are underseat subs with a 2 channel amp built in. Planning to mount behind the rear seat and run the rear speakers off it. Just gotta find one secondhand for a good price.

I've also started working on a custom roof console, will hopefully get the shape completed this weekend and I can put some photos up.

[chevaps]

Decided on using a CTEK D250S DUAL charger and SMARTPASS combo. I am also using 2 Baintech fused distribution blocks, one 6 way for my essential accessories and one 12 way for all the non essential ones.

Over the last week I've gone through a review exercise on what to get for my current Hilux. I have a D250S from my last Hilux, but given the Redarc unit sold by Toyota is the IGN model and general trend for new vehicles to be fuel efficient, i can only assume it has a smart alternator, so resorted to buying a D250SA. I will find a use for the D250S somewhere else.

How are you finding the CTEK D250S Dual and SMARTPASS with charging the batteries? On the new Hilux i'd be monitoring the aux battery voltages to make sure they are getting fully charged by car's alternator. If not, i'd be hooking up a 240V charger to the batteries while at home to top them up. Also, if you do a quick google search you will find CTEK has put an article out on how to use the D250S on a vehicle with a smart alternator, which involves an additional relay and using the solar input.

I also gave careful consideration to the new model SMARTPASS and decided to not go ahead with it because i believe the car's electrical system is not designed for the full 140A capacity of the two units together.. You are using the previous model SMARTPASS with a total capacity of 100A so you might be ok, but I would still be keeping an eye on the main starter battery voltage over time to ensure it doesn't get excessively discharged... While i find the CTEK equipment to be extremely good value for money and have good electrical tech specs, i'm a little dubious about the advertising is for this product. If you read the SMARTPASS data sheet and manual, it specifically states the unit is designed for vehicles with an electrical system that can cope with the continual max load, which I'm not 100% certain the current model Hilux has, hence swaying my decision to not buy it. Having 400A-h of batteries installed is no doubt what would have swayed your decision in instance.

I'm looking forward to hearing how your current system is performing... because it might help me pull the trigger on a SMARTPASS in future

Cheers

Tom

[chevaps]

Started working on my dual battery setup and wiring for all my accessories etc.

By the way, i forgot to mention i really admire your setup. The panel is very neat and tidy
I assume you come from an electrical background (tradie or engineer)?

[sammbo80]

Decided on using a CTEK D250S DUAL charger and SMARTPASS combo. I am also using 2 Baintech fused distribution blocks, one 6 way for my essential accessories and one 12 way for all the non essential ones.

Over the last week I've gone through a review exercise on what to get for my current Hilux. I have a D250S from my last Hilux, but given the Redarc unit sold by Toyota is the IGN model and general trend for new vehicles to be fuel efficient, i can only assume it has a smart alternator, so resorted to buying a D250SA. I will find a use for the D250S somewhere else.

How are you finding the CTEK D250S Dual and SMARTPASS with charging the batteries? On the new Hilux i'd be monitoring the aux battery voltages to make sure they are getting fully charged by car's alternator. If not, i'd be hooking up a 240V charger to the batteries while at home to top them up. Also, if you do a quick google search you will find CTEK has put an article out on how to use the D250S on a vehicle with a smart alternator, which involves an additional relay and using the solar input.

I also gave careful consideration to the new model SMARTPASS and decided to not go ahead with it because i believe the car's electrical system is not designed for the full 140A capacity of the two units together.. You are using the previous model SMARTPASS with a total capacity of 100A so you might be ok, but I would still be keeping an eye on the main starter battery voltage over time to ensure it doesn't get excessively discharged... While i find the CTEK equipment to be extremely good value for money and have good electrical tech specs, i'm a little dubious about the advertising is for this product. If you read the SMARTPASS data sheet and manual, it specifically states the unit is designed for vehicles with an electrical system that can cope with the continual max load, which I'm not 100% certain the current model Hilux has, hence swaying my decision to not buy it. Having 400A-h of batteries installed is no doubt what would have swayed your decision in instance.

I'm looking forward to hearing how your current system is performing... because it might help me pull the trigger on a SMARTPASS in future

Cheers

Tom

Started working on my dual battery setup and wiring for all my accessories etc.

By the way, i forgot to mention i really admire your setup. The panel is very neat and tidy
I assume you come from an electrical background (tradie or engineer)?

haha yes I am an electrical/electronics engineer, so actually I am pretty embarrassed with how untidy the wiring is. I am planning to redo the entire thing in the next 2 months to tidy it up and settle on a final layout and also "beautify" it (eg carpet, cable ties etc).

I was also concerned with which DC-DC charger to go with, and it is actually quite difficult to get any information on the type of alternator we have. My best guess based on my reading so far is that it is actually a temperature based output. So far I have not had any issues with the charging of either my starting battery or the battery bank.

One small design issue I do have is that because I have some accessories (fridge, dashcam) connected to the "critical load" output of the charger, I don't believe it ever reaches the trickle charge current, hence the charger always sits at around 14.4V output. This isn't really a big problem though so I don't think I will do anything about it.

I do also charge all the batteries (I have 6 - 4 in the auxiliary battery bank in the tub, 1 which is the stock starter and 1 D34 yellow top as a backup starter in the second battery spot in the engine bay) about once a month on the 240V charger to make sure everything runs smoothly.

As for the alternator not being powerful enough to supply the 100A my system is capable of, this is also not an issue as the system cannot "pull" more current out of the alternator than what it is designed for, all that will happen is that you will be getting less current than your DC-DC charger is capable of. This means I shouldn't blow any of the stock fuses, and indeed in the 9 months I've had the system in, zero have blown and I expect that they will never blow. You should have no problems with your system if you install the smartpass. One benefit of having it is that you can get more throughput when using the alternator and solar panel concurrently.

If you have any more questions, let me know!