Do you Tow? wondering why your battery is not charging etc.

https://caravanchronicles.com/2019/07/27/euro-6-engines-smart-alternators-and-your-leisure-battery/

The more I read about 'smart' charging systems, the happier I am not to have one in my car.

 

 

Edited 28 July, 20196 yr by Wino
Addition of inverted commas

Yes, when they work and the car is used as intended okay, but add in any aftermarket extras like towing and charging towed vehicle battery, not so good - fit a wind generator to the caravan roof, and a solar cell, job done and new problems maybe. Maybe fitting built in wind generators is something that should have been done already to caravans, maybe need to keep towing speed at 50MPH to get/keep the fridge-freezer working - "out of my way I'm charging!".

The solution is to fit a buck boost type charger between car and leisure battery one that accepts 12-16 volts and constant voltage  output. A battery to battery charger.

 

Another solution would be fit a 12v to 110/240 v converter, followed by a smart charger (eg ctek) connected to your leisure battery.

 

To avoid a flat car battery this should be switched with the ignition.

 

Not sure but a factory fitted towbar electrics may be coded to change the voltage stepping when the socket is connected, same issue must effect/apply to the 12v aux sockets in the car so they must be monitored too.

Edited 28 July, 20196 yr by xman

5 hours ago, Wino said:

The more I read about 'smart' charging systems, the happier I am not to have one in my car.

 

 

Not sure a Polo or a fabia 3 pot is the right car to tow a caravan.....

I have no such desire...

On 28/07/2019 at 14:12, xman said:

Not sure a Polo or a fabia 3 pot is the right car to tow a caravan.....

The 3-pot is not suitable for towing, perhaps it might tow a small camping trailer around 200kg or less.

Edited 29 July, 20196 yr by gumdrop