Custom Y62 under floor Lithium battery

[04OFF]

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After months of testing batteries and thinking of different ways to do a Y62 under floor battery, ive just finished this install with the help of a old Auto Elec mate, now.....putting a second battery/s in the Jack location is not a new idea, but to get anything near 100Ah normally requires multiple batteries joined together, and relocation of the jack and tools, but if you want to keep all of those 8 seats, there is not much choice in a different yet practical jack location.


The Battery is a new release Australian made 110Ah Lithium (5 year warranty) has a built in Battery Management System and thermal charge cut off to avoid damage charging below 0 deg temps, and is under 12kg.



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Jack and tools are retained in the factory location, a 40 Amp dc to dc charger (the black box also in the jack compartment) is used to supply power to the battery.


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A Victron multi gauge was fitted ,this model has its own shunt to monitor battery performance etc, this model can also Bluetooth all the info to your ph (if you get the app), i should add..... im really not into drilling holes into nice cars, but the panel the gauge sits in, is only $20 new to replace, and is just the ideal spot for a gauge, for both easy visibility, and protection from cargo impacts or obstruction (too bad if you have a Ti-L tho, lol)

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All this was not cheap to do, and some real world use (keeping beers cold) will tell if its value for money, but after seeing how crazy fast the battery was replenished during the very short testing ive done (it seemed happy to suck up every bit of 38 Amps) so far it looks very promising.


Ill do some real world testing next week and see how it all goes. :tongue:

[mudski]

Nice! Where does one source a battery like this? Are they worth an arm and a leg? Or just your kidneys?

[TimE]

Check here (https://www.baintech.com.au/lithiumbatteries), liver, kidneys and your left one!!

But I want one! My 2 105ah AGMs weight a total of 65 kg!

[mudski]

Check here (https://www.baintech.com.au/lithiumbatteries), liver, kidneys and your left one!!

But I want one! My 2 105ah AGMS weight a total of 65 kg!

Holy chit!

[the evil twin]

Very nice installation.

Price may seem expensive at first but when you factor what an equivalent in setup in Lead Acid will cost you in batteries (say $800 min) over same life plus a decent Lead Acid BMS (say $300) plus the weight plus finding space the cost isn't all that bad.

It takes a lot more AH in Lead Acid to match Lithium in elec performance alone.

[04OFF]

What ET said ^ is exactly what my thoughts were, and to add to his comment ,the other options of multiple batteries require more complex mounting, more wiring (and so more connections), this Battery seems like it was designed just to fit in the Y62, so it was a dream come true in every way except cost.


It seems that most people i talk to about Battery/Solar set ups, pretty much all say "ill go Lithium next time", and as the saying goes, the poor man pays twice, that's why i also payed a professional to do the wiring, as i really know very little about Lithium, and then i could concentrate on working out hardware locations and how to mount everything, and of course the final finish.


From what ive seen, (with my fridge running 24/7 for the last 2 days), i am actually honestly starting to believe, for my application, i may not even need "any" Solar charge input at all, if this turns out to be the case, ill save money not buying new panels, plus not add extra weight and hassle of panels as per my old set up, "then" this set up would represent excellent value for me.

:wink:

[the evil twin]

Makes absolute sense Cobber...

For others considering Lith versus Lead Acid...
Lithium technology will charge heaps quicker than Lead Acid assuming the current is available to them.
The techo term is "Charge Acceptance Rate" and Lead Acids are sort of quick early like Lith but the rate tapers off so Lith end up charging to full capacity much faster overall.

The other big advantage is Lith doesn't have as much voltage sag as the battery is drawn down like Lead Acid so anything with in built low voltage cut like compressor fridges will run noticeably longer on Lith.
As Lead Acid draws down, the battery voltage drops and the current increases, sooo... manuf put low voltage cutouts in their gear which trigger even tho a deep cycle AGM may still have heaps of capacity left.
Lith holds the voltage almost steady as it draws down so the low voltage cutout sensors don't trigger.
Danfoss compressor fridges et al are notorious for how sensitive they are to source voltage

[pollenface]

That's a good looking battery, Baintech make good stuff.

I'm currently building a 100ah lithium battery from two older 50ah units both which had BMS failures.
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[04OFF]

Sooooo, after more than 7 days (5 at the beach) with this set up, and running my fridge 24/7 (40L Waeco set at -4 Deg C) including pulling beers out and putting warm ones in, i can confirm i have not even come close to thinking about connecting my solar panels.


Now, its not been very hot weather (tops of 24 Deg), so the whole system is obviously going to need to work a lot harder over a QLD summer, but if my Victron Gauge is correct, the Battery has remained above 80% charge the whole time, but, just running the Engine (even at idle) sees 98-99% charge returned in about 6-10 min (not timed), so if my assumption is correct, if i doubled the above consumption over summer, id still be at 60% remaining ? (can anyone confirm that is actually how it works please ?....cuppa ,lol), and i guess in 15-20 min of running the car, id be back at near 100% again ?


My application may differ to some that like to sit at camp for days on end , I nearly always drive my car once a day to go play in the calm water, or just to take pics, but even the daily 1K trip up the beach to the Toilets, saw the battery 100% fully charged at return to camp, also, during the 2 days rain we had, i did not have to worry about Solar panels outside or cables/electrics etc, and because it was colder on those days (so the fridge runs less) i think the Battery only got down to around 95%.


Anyway, very happy so far, now that the pain in the wallet has slightly subsided, i actually think this set up is great value, and what price do you put on having "cold" beers ?..... and it should all last for years, and i honestly laugh every time i look at the Battery Gauge when i see how full it always is....... now if only i could get the Fuel Gauge to do the same (haha) :bowdown:




So pics of my trip.......


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:)