12v outlet for P38?

Kieran> I need a constant 12v outlet in the rear for the fridge- Kieran> will it upset all those fussy computers in my '98 4.0 RR?

No, in fact the wiring is already there in the left hand cover. You can either buy the LR kit or a cheaper outlet and join the wiring. I can dig out specific details if you need them.

AndyC

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||||||| "Kieran" == Kieran McCoey ||||||| writes: || || Kieran> I need a constant 12v outlet in the rear for the fridge- || Kieran> will it upset all those fussy computers in my '98 4.0 RR? || || No, in fact the wiring is already there in the left hand cover. You || can either buy the LR kit or a cheaper outlet and join the wiring. || I can dig out specific details if you need them. || || AndyC || || || -- ||

Andy

I'd be interested in this if you wouldn't mind. Remove obvious spam trap to mail me.

Thanks

Rich

Any Chance you could send the details to me also

Cheers

Anthony

Well that's amazing. I bought my vehicle from a LR dealership & asked about an outlet, but was told to go to my local ARB 4x4 shop & get them to do it because they do a better job!

Thanks for reply>

Bad new re. existing outlet. An auto elec says that the existing wiring isn't heavy enough for running a fridge, the voltage drop is too great; the fridge will cut out (it does do this in my Rover 825).

He says I need wiring with 5mm cross section!! Thoughts please....

Kieran

cunningham.me.uk

What's the power rating on the fridge?

Did the sparky say 5mm area or 5mm diameter?

My fridge doesn't have a particularly huge cable attached to it.

To make any sense, the wiring would have to carry well above what the fuse is rated for (otherwise the wiring would catch fire before the fuse blew). What fuse is fitted to the existing wiring?

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 '77 101FC Ambulance '95 Discovery V8i

err... can't remember for sure. 5mm dia does sound huge doesn't it.

But 1.6mm sounds way too small. My last Rangie had 12v. power in the rear; when we changed the headlining, we found the cable up there. They had used some existing wiring, fairly small. It had melted, & we're not sure why the whole lot didn't go up in smoke.

Thanks for the help Tim.

Can't believe I'm going to suggest this, but....

Pop into Halfords. They have a fairly good cables / connectors stand (albeit aimed at people fitting neon tubes under their cars or 2 megawatt tweeters). Have a look at the autoelectric cables they sell

- you will be able to see (rather than read) the size and rating of the cable.

The stuff I used to patch up the back of the 101 was fairly heavy rated, but wouldn't have been any bigger than 2mm diameter. It was, for the record, substantially thicker than the military stuff already there, and that is all sheath and sod all metal.

Your sparky is right about the wiring though. A 150W fridge is going to pull about 13 amps, so your 3A fuse is not a good sign!

Will your fridge run from 240V btw?

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 '77 101FC Ambulance '95 Discovery V8i

In article , Kieran McCoey writes

Makes perfect sense - 5mm cross sectional area.

You also need a heavy isolating switch, and carefully made & insulated connections all round - low connection resistance and no danger of chafing or insulation getting damaged. Fuse it for 15-20A. Try the lower value first, and only go up if it keeps blowing. The issue is the motor's surge current on startup.

Also be ready for a loud thump on the audio system (if you have one) as the fridge motor switches off - the back EMF will be impressive. It ought to be suppressed, but might not be!

Regards,

Simonm.

On or around Sun, 21 Sep 2003 19:29:06 GMT, SpamTrapSeeSig enlightened us thusly:

In article , Austin Shackles writes

Fair comment. My general point was that it should be 'heavy' cable. 15A twin+earth for house wiring is, IIRC only 2 or 2.5mm CSA, so I had assumed that 5mm ought to be fine for 10A or thereabouts.

Regards,

Simonm.

On or around Mon, 22 Sep 2003 07:30:58 GMT, SpamTrapSeeSig enlightened us thusly:

It's resistance you're looking at for the voltage drop thing, the relative resistance of the wiring and the load. If the load has 100x the resistance of the wire, then 1% of the voltage drop between 12V nominal and 0V nominal will happen in the wire. Of course, it's not *quite* that simple, 'cos there are connectors, which each have their own resistance. Between battery and faglighter, say, there are apt to be probably about half a dozen connections, plus a fuse, and probably another 3 or 4 conections back to the battery -ve. All in all, say a round dozen connection points, many of which are sub-optimal contacts, especially on a vehicle a few years old. Just been playing with such on the headlamp/sidelamp/indicator wiring on the 110 front wing, which all got undone to fit a new front panel, and then took loads of faffing around cleaning up the connectors to get it all working reliably again.

if you're doing a dedicated fridge supply, you should be able to keep the connections to a minimum - one to the battery, one each end of an in-line fuse, one to the fridge plug-in point, and then 2 more back to the battery.

how many amps does the fridge want?

In article , Austin Shackles writes

Yes, but in a ring main, where a socket is fed from both directions. That's why I said 15A.

Too jolly right. Still can't find the problem with the supply to the reversing light switch on mine :( (both switch and light work fine)

Seriously, to get the best from aux. lighting and other heavy loads put the heaviest gauge cable in that you can afford, and make sure any/all connections are as well made as possible. It can help to run solder into the back of crimped connectors - improves the contact and reduces ability to corrode (if you solder it well), but can cause the cable to fracture with vibration (as a little strain relief is lost).

For the very best results, you can solder the contacts to the ends of the glass-type fuses. Obviously if it blows it's a nuisance, but whilst it doesn't the circuit will work better and the fuseholder won't heat up.

Regards,

Simonm.

On or around Mon, 22 Sep 2003 21:35:26 GMT, SpamTrapSeeSig enlightened us thusly:

I think it's rated for 30A on a single spur as well. The ring main typically has a bunch of sockets, and a 30A fuse at each end. BICBW.

good point. Most vehicular things don't vibrate unduly, but the ones onto the engine for example can do. I've an idea that you get a hardening effect in the copper too, from the heat involved.

The hi-fi boys used gold-plated terminals and connectors to avoid corrosion, not seen the typical lucar blades available thusly though ...