Strong! Nothing like an impending road trip to motivate the get sh1t done side of the brain.
Builds OL'BETSY ZX: 1991 HZJ77
- Thread starter JDM Journeys
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JDM Journeys
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- #822
You are absolutely right. It's no coincidence that I get most of my mods and maintenance done in later winter/early spring. Lol
JDM Journeys
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- #823
In my quest to to add a trailer brake controller, I did some investigating of my previous work and decided it was not up to scratch anymore. Electrical is not something I want to get wrong for obvious reasons. My previous build-out worked and didn't cause any issues but because I added things here and there, I wasn't confident in troubleshooting if it was ever necessary. So like always I took out everything and am starting from scratch... To be clear I'm only talking about the auxiliary electrical system.
Here is my plan as I move forward. The base of my system will be a 12 volt battery in a box amidships. The box will also house an MPPT solar controller, a 24 to 12 volt DC to DC converter, and a fuse box. To minimize cable runs, this will feed an accessory 12 volt fuse box at the front behind the dash, and another at the back, in the secret 77 compartment.
In this way I can put circuit breakers or fuses in critical areas to maximize safety. Having 12 volts and 24 volts in the same vehicle means even more care needs to be taken.
Here's where I'm at currently.
Which is to say back to the beginning.
On the bright side, my RedArc Elite brake controller has found a new home and is completely wired in. This setup has the advantage of being usable in a 24 volt system but still supplying 12 volts to the trailer brakes.
It also is not unhappy to be upside down, unlike me when I was installing it.
Here is my plan as I move forward. The base of my system will be a 12 volt battery in a box amidships. The box will also house an MPPT solar controller, a 24 to 12 volt DC to DC converter, and a fuse box. To minimize cable runs, this will feed an accessory 12 volt fuse box at the front behind the dash, and another at the back, in the secret 77 compartment.
In this way I can put circuit breakers or fuses in critical areas to maximize safety. Having 12 volts and 24 volts in the same vehicle means even more care needs to be taken.
Here's where I'm at currently.
Which is to say back to the beginning.
On the bright side, my RedArc Elite brake controller has found a new home and is completely wired in. This setup has the advantage of being usable in a 24 volt system but still supplying 12 volts to the trailer brakes.
It also is not unhappy to be upside down, unlike me when I was installing it.
Anxiety inducing pictures. Need to redo some (all) of the same 12v stuff. God speed.
Love the Tow Pro with my little trailer. Sure it will be great with your new set-up. You will probably want to get another bolt through the mount. Even though it can be installed in any orientation it shouldn't be able to move any on the mounts. It will mess with the calibration majik-mojo.
B
Love the Tow Pro with my little trailer. Sure it will be great with your new set-up. You will probably want to get another bolt through the mount. Even though it can be installed in any orientation it shouldn't be able to move any on the mounts. It will mess with the calibration majik-mojo.
B
JDM Journeys
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- #825
For sure that is good advice. The module feels pretty solid but the 1hz is nothing if not a resonance inducer. Lol. I'll put another mount on the bottom. The top bolt was able to enlist an existing captive nut.
Glad to hear that it works well. I'm looking forward to trying the offroad type mode...
Yeah - when I had to trace a few wires to determine their function, I decided it was time for a revamp. Once I have labelled fuse blocks for EVERYTHING I've added I'll feel a lot more secure. And then adding future accessories will be that much easier too.
Glad to hear that it works well. I'm looking forward to trying the offroad type mode...
Yeah - when I had to trace a few wires to determine their function, I decided it was time for a revamp. Once I have labelled fuse blocks for EVERYTHING I've added I'll feel a lot more secure. And then adding future accessories will be that much easier too.
Good peace of mind on electrical will be worth the kinked neck from trying to curl up in the PS floorboard tracing wires. Keep us posted!
JDM Journeys
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- #827
Spoken from someone who's been there, eh? Shall do!
Speaking of which, there isn't a lot of room to put anything behind glovebox, etc. I spent an hour trying to find a (small) fusebox landing location after pulling glovebox and ducting. But ultimately I think I'll have to settle for passenger side outer kick panel...
Ha. Just added a trans temp gauge, pulled the CB out then ran in new GRMS cable... Ugh. Yeah. Lots of cursing at the dash area transpired that day.
Liking your plan. Unfortunately, That's where I landed on the front fuse block too. Hoping to fit the 25A 24/12V converter where the factory radio step down converter is now. Looks like a tight fit for sure.
Liking your plan. Unfortunately, That's where I landed on the front fuse block too. Hoping to fit the 25A 24/12V converter where the factory radio step down converter is now. Looks like a tight fit for sure.
JDM Journeys
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- #830
I'm out of the country for a bit but can when I get back... I liked my halogen 500s back in the day but there is a nice efficiency advantage to LEDs.
JDM Journeys
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- #831
Dash is now back together again. Lots of wiring improvements that you can't see but I did end up doing a passenger side kickplate fuse subpanel for my forward 12v circuits.
Not squared away yet but getting there. This will be fed by my AGM in a box amidships, once I get it installed and allows me to run one fat wire to power the CB, under dash charging port, and inform the 12v gauge on the dash. None are ignition switched but I can always turn off the whole circuit from the battery box if it is parked for a while. There will also be room for expansion if needed.
Also mounted my Comet NMO mount and antenna. Doesn't seem to draw the eye when seated and it's inside the track of the truck so I'm hoping it's mostly out of harms way. If not it does have a spring... It's one of the few dual banders I could find in a "medium" length @27.5 inches long: COMET SS680SBNMO and RS730 mount.
Not squared away yet but getting there. This will be fed by my AGM in a box amidships, once I get it installed and allows me to run one fat wire to power the CB, under dash charging port, and inform the 12v gauge on the dash. None are ignition switched but I can always turn off the whole circuit from the battery box if it is parked for a while. There will also be room for expansion if needed.
Also mounted my Comet NMO mount and antenna. Doesn't seem to draw the eye when seated and it's inside the track of the truck so I'm hoping it's mostly out of harms way. If not it does have a spring... It's one of the few dual banders I could find in a "medium" length @27.5 inches long: COMET SS680SBNMO and RS730 mount.
JDM Journeys
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- #832
More progress...
Trailer harness (complicated by 24 to 12v light conversion) is mostly finished. I also have my aft fuse sub panel in place. The left side of the compartment houses the 24-12 converter and the tailight converter.
Mounted my battery box on a set of rails and t-nuts, so it's removable. Also bolted a battery tray to the bottom of it. Here it is mocked in place. Rear panel isn't finished yet but is just sitting inside to check for spacing.
The size of the box was chosen deliberately to match the size of the drawers stacked behind it. When closed it blends in with the slideout kitchen and stacked drawers. It's accessible from the LHS back door. Rear seats were pulled obviously.
Now I need to finish the back panel and wire everything in.
Trailer harness (complicated by 24 to 12v light conversion) is mostly finished. I also have my aft fuse sub panel in place. The left side of the compartment houses the 24-12 converter and the tailight converter.
Mounted my battery box on a set of rails and t-nuts, so it's removable. Also bolted a battery tray to the bottom of it. Here it is mocked in place. Rear panel isn't finished yet but is just sitting inside to check for spacing.
The size of the box was chosen deliberately to match the size of the drawers stacked behind it. When closed it blends in with the slideout kitchen and stacked drawers. It's accessible from the LHS back door. Rear seats were pulled obviously.
Now I need to finish the back panel and wire everything in.
JDM Journeys
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- #833
I've had the back wall of my elec box out about 50 times now. And I swapped my old victron 24->12 converter for another Victron that is a "smart" unit, has larger ports for wiring and is able to be monitored via Bluetooth.
I also added another removable panel on the side of the box for circuit breakers. The biggest things are keeping the 24 and 12 volt sources clearly labelled, and making everything safe/protected. To that end, the 24 volt fed circuit breaker is separate from the two 12 volt circuit breakers.
Here's where I'm at tonight. (Bought a proper tool to crimp large copper lugs, and have begun making my wire runs...)
I also added another removable panel on the side of the box for circuit breakers. The biggest things are keeping the 24 and 12 volt sources clearly labelled, and making everything safe/protected. To that end, the 24 volt fed circuit breaker is separate from the two 12 volt circuit breakers.
Here's where I'm at tonight. (Bought a proper tool to crimp large copper lugs, and have begun making my wire runs...)
Looking great! I have come to really like building electrical panels and systems like that, been wanting to do one in my Prado for quite a while but can never seem to find the time for it. I spent a summer as an electrical technician building out complex AC and DC systems in mobile communication trucks, it was a lot of fun but helped me develop expensive tastes in equipment and materials. Lots of BlueSea and Wago parts, large quantities of big SGX cable and even bigger high flex MTW.
One thing I really liked was the use of Wago 221 Lever Nuts along with the mounting carrier (221-500). It basically allowed a really easily mountable small busbar or junction connection with no wire terminations, like if you wanted to run several small loads off a single fused wire. They can be mounted with screws or on DIN-35 rail. (Ignore the messiness of this panel, it was a work in progress!)
One thing I really liked was the use of Wago 221 Lever Nuts along with the mounting carrier (221-500). It basically allowed a really easily mountable small busbar or junction connection with no wire terminations, like if you wanted to run several small loads off a single fused wire. They can be mounted with screws or on DIN-35 rail. (Ignore the messiness of this panel, it was a work in progress!)
JDM Journeys
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- #835
Electrical box is done for now.
All yellow wires in the box are 24 volt. 24 volt breaker is away from the other two 12v breakers on the left. The new Victron DC to DC allows Bluetooth connection and then you can change all the charging parameters. On a cold winter's day, for example, it won't start charging until after your glow cycle has finished and your main batt bank reaches a preset voltage level.
Solar panel isn't hooked up yet but my 220watt panel just arrived.
All yellow wires in the box are 24 volt. 24 volt breaker is away from the other two 12v breakers on the left. The new Victron DC to DC allows Bluetooth connection and then you can change all the charging parameters. On a cold winter's day, for example, it won't start charging until after your glow cycle has finished and your main batt bank reaches a preset voltage level.
Solar panel isn't hooked up yet but my 220watt panel just arrived.
JDM Journeys
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- #836
That looks pro level for sure. I'm not even close. But mine was relatively inexpensive. Although I may look up that busbar setup for future iterations?
My previous setup was in between the two rear drawers and only accessible from up top once you slid one of the drawers out etc. so my goal this time was ease of access and a bit more room. The box is kinda crappy but now that it's bolted down it'll work. And the sizing is perfect for the space.
I like the labelling in the setup you've shown too and should probably do something similar.
JDM Journeys
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- #837
Today was supposed to be more maintenance. But instead I did some more playing. Mounted my traction boards at the front of the (newly cleared) roof rack. And then mounted my new 220 watt bifacial solar panel behind that. Not hooked up yet but it is at least mounted. It took a combination of z brackets (bolted together) and some u-bolts to affix it. I was going to have it to one side but ultimately opted for the middle. If anything else is going up there it'll be narrow and can fit on either side. And less likelihood of shadows this way...
JDM Journeys
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- #838
Finally reunited the truck with my 270 awning today. Previously it was mounted to the side of my rooftop tent but once that came off, so did the awning. Over the winter I sourced some rhino rack mounting brackets and with a little modification, I was able to mount them to my platform rack. Each bracket uses three u bolts so it's pretty solid but it sits nice and low compared to before - just above the level of the doors.
JDM Journeys
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- #839
Gotten a few more things knocked off my list but with only three weeks to go, I need to!
1. Moved my control head to the top of the dash on magnets. We'll see if this is permanent. At least I can yank it off and hide it if necessary.
2. Cracked my viscous fan (OEM blue hub and about a year or so old). Added about 17 ounces of 10,000 CST silicone oil via the four holes. My cooling system is pretty much all new but there are times at highway speeds, if there's a headwind or a hill, that I can cross 200°F temporarily. We don't generally get super high ambient temps here but we do have altitude changes and I do sometimes go south. So a little thermal room (esp after adding a turbo) is not a bad idea. Yes, an IC would help too. But one thing at a time. EGTs are way low so water temps are my target for now.
3. This one is a sideways mod, but definitely will have a big impact going forward. I finally added a natural gas furnace to my garage. Woohoo!
@LDRF if you lived closer...?
4. Added a bracket to my ladder and can hang my scepter can on the back if necessary (I'll fill it last minute and use it asap). But in places like "the Maze" this might ease some range anxiety?
1. Moved my control head to the top of the dash on magnets. We'll see if this is permanent. At least I can yank it off and hide it if necessary.
2. Cracked my viscous fan (OEM blue hub and about a year or so old). Added about 17 ounces of 10,000 CST silicone oil via the four holes. My cooling system is pretty much all new but there are times at highway speeds, if there's a headwind or a hill, that I can cross 200°F temporarily. We don't generally get super high ambient temps here but we do have altitude changes and I do sometimes go south. So a little thermal room (esp after adding a turbo) is not a bad idea. Yes, an IC would help too. But one thing at a time. EGTs are way low so water temps are my target for now.
3. This one is a sideways mod, but definitely will have a big impact going forward. I finally added a natural gas furnace to my garage. Woohoo!
@LDRF if you lived closer...?
4. Added a bracket to my ladder and can hang my scepter can on the back if necessary (I'll fill it last minute and use it asap). But in places like "the Maze" this might ease some range anxiety?
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