Clutha

My recent issues with leisure battery led to the electrician who fitted control unit to emphasise have the fridge OFF excepted when on hookup power supply. His experience declared fridge on leisure battery only can drain it too quickly.

BTW I'm talking engine batt, no other batt powered devices! Not long after we got our ‘02 2.4 van I got a no start situation, all dead no lights etc. Under bonnet check revealed very slightly loose positive terminal connection, (eyelet on cable to battery post clamp slightly loose. Nipped up & all was well. Recently van is used as 2nd vehicle and problem arose again & more often + both terminals this time. Spring washers sourced & during fitting noticed battery moving slightly on tray. Close inspection revealed with a bit of effort it would move rotationally quite a bit, home made extension noted on clamp bracket leading to discovery that battery was far bigger than mounting tray! It’s a 70A/hr unit and I haven’t referred to standard spec yet. Main issue was to get it solidly held in place. 7mm wide cable ties fitted at one end but shape of tray support stymied opposite end, but it’s SOLID now.

Just turned over 90,000 in my 02 A10 2.4 Your post is very encouraging 😎

Correct & did mention my engine size. The supplier could cover all Alphard auto boxes.

Yes, & I got mine through eBay. The biggest faff is finding a garage to do the change. On my 2.4 engine it seems to be refilling gearbox is the issue, could be different on yours.

I got mine via EBay, filter, gasket & oil. I’ll dig out the order & post supplier details. https://ebay.us/m/cprDKr

Good looking set up. I’m about to change my connectors/bolts as I think the ageing bolts/threads are causing an occasional ‘loosening’ issue.

My issue is the heater stopped controlling between max & min, and the only way round that I’ve found is to have it full on or off via temp. selector. This makes me think the issue is a disc problem. Dirty or worn? Summertime job methinks, we need a heater up north at the moment! My control method is full heat & windows open if necessary 🙃 Excellent video, thanks!

All is well, new blades arrived via eBay very speedily & rear fitted no problem. Supplier Heyner UK Ltd. All look very good quality, price £25.97

Thanks Gamith! Perfect info 😉

Interesting topic. I’ve had a wiper blade intensive life in the last few days! Briefly, Halfords informed me they no longer stocked blades for Hyundai vehicles as the manufacturer had given the sole selling rights to Arnold Clark dealership. I’d bought a rear screen blade for a family members i10 which didn’t fit. There was a change in design after 2013. The blade had cost me £7+, refunded by Halfords. Off we went to A. Clark dealership Glasgow where the blade for his 2-3 year old i10 cost £19.97! As the rubber had split we (he!) had no choice other than to stump up. As luck(?) would have it a couple of days later I noticed my A10 Alphy rear blade rubber was splitting. Halfords didn’t stock any & suggested A. Clarks!!! EBay research came up with recommended full set of 3 blades for £25. Arriving in two days, I’ll report back re quality. Question: is rear wiper arm fitted to taper splines? Mine is tight to come off, even after penetrant spray application, garage owner advised some have soft cotter pins which can shear easily!

Agreed, a slight movement in an ‘eye’ connector stopped mine. Just moving it slightly was enough to get a start.

Brilliant, I had lost total electrical power somehow due to a stuck starter solenoid. No battery disconnects done. I’m just back in after another play around & I think I’ve inadvertently followed your advice by going round all with ignition on & off. Eureka! All is well Thanks for the very swift advice!

I have a situation currently where only the drivers door window will open & close, (either in stages if required or automatically from fully open or closed). The other 3 will not open at all no matter what position the small square auto/manual switch is in. I seem to remember a post some months ago regarding a similar issue. Do the guru’s have advice?

What OBD reader works on an AH10 2002 2.4 automatic?

Ford Pop side valve was my weapon of choice then, vacuum wipers, no water pump, rod brakes. character building 😎

More info re leisure battery charging. Multi Stage Automatic Leisure Battery Chargers | 12 Volt Planet.pdf

Further research, Recharging: Deep Cycle: Slower to recharge due to their design and intended use. Starter: Designed to be quickly recharged by the vehicle's alternator. From, 12voltplanet.co.uk

Update. The new leisure battery is lead acid. Enclosed instructions minimal. The advice given re differences in leisure/engine batteries was from a well known campervan converter near Edinburgh specialising in Alphards who supplied the new one but weren’t up for sorting out Sargent unit. I’ll clarify advice from garage electrician. 8

Seriously, it was back to the early 60’s or more. Toiling away puting sink/hob unit back in realised the old thing hadn’t run for a bit so fired her up, failed! 😳 First time ever! Anyway battery appeared the issue, 11.7v, power pack hooked up, no good, Optimate charger on while I worked inside. At 12.7v tried again, no good, starter not engaging, faint clicks from under bonnet, had a poke around cables, noted clear area round starter solenoid, remembered old school faults and fetched two hammers, one rubber mallet, that didn’t work but standard metal one did the trick. She fired up like her usual self & idled beautifully. Canny beat the old ways!

Suffice to say imho the best advice is in your leisure battery instructions. Having purchased a special charger for my motorbikes (gel batteries) many years ago due to working offshore, & had no issues, I’ll look into its suitability for van. Lead acid appears to be getting superseded. Prior to my ‘incident ’ I happened to be returning to the van at a Halfords & two of their staff were checking an engine battery for someone, they checked mine too, engine battery good, leisure battery less so, thus my attempt to boost it. Lesson learned 🙄

Due to leisure battery not achieving max charge while on campsite hook up or after long runs. I tried the charger via control unit 13amp outlet while hooked up to domestic supply. Almost instant smoke issued from Sargent unit. I took van to garage referred to & their opinion was Sargent unit may have had internal component issue. All wiring was checked out & no issues found, new Sargent ordered, fitted & all seems well. I had replaced leisure battery too. I’ll relay its charging instructions asap. I’m alerting members to electricians advice as the garage specialise in campervan repairs & maintenance. I was not aware of the major differences re starting & leisure batteries.

I was at the garage getting a new Sargent EC155 power unit fitted. The original had overheated & melted a multi connector + cable while trying to charge the leisure battery via van 13amp socket & mains hookup with a bog standard 12v (maybe Halfords) charger. (More to follow, tea’s out!)