New Tow Tug is home... not to fit it out....

revemike · Senior Member

New Tow Tug is home... not to fit it out....

grahos · Guru

Can you send us another photo after you have decked it out?
I also have a ranger on my shopping list early next year,
but the word is a new model with Everest goodies is to be released about mid 2015.
Unfortunately I cannot put it off waiting for the new 2015 model.

revemike · Senior Member

I hope to have the extras fitted in January. I will certainly post a new pic then. I am currently trying to sell my Prado and once it is gone the funds will be used to fit out the Ranger.

-- Edited by revemike on Monday 8th of December 2014 10:06:07 PM

Lamb Chop · Veteran Member

Does your rig have the variable alternator?

revemike · Senior Member

Lamb Chop wrote:
Does your rig have the variable alternator?

I don't know the answer to this one Lamb Chop. I will find out though. I am currently arranging for a duel battery system to be fitted in the Ranger. This is to be done by ARB.

I have little understanding of these things and rely on the skills of others. Is there something I need to be aware of concerning the types of alternators in place?

-- Edited by revemike on Friday 12th of December 2014 09:49:12 PM

Dougwe · Chief one feather

Shut the front gate!! Nice looking tug there Mike, nice indeedy. Enjoy playing with your new toy out in the playground.

revemike · Senior Member

Dougwe wrote:
Shut the front gate!! Nice looking tug there Mike, nice indeedy. Enjoy playing with your new toy out in the playground.

Thanks Doug. I am enjoying the fun of setting it up the way I want it. By the time I complete the task it should look fantastic.... And my pockets will be very empty.

ken thomas · Guru

hello mike
There is a problem with the batteries going flat so you have to make sure you lock your car every night
If you are putting in a dual battery, get a dc- dc 1225 or 1240 redarc charger which will keep good charge to the second battery, also get ford to TURN OFF the smart charge, this is easy and should be no charge
If you have LED lights on the caravan, check that they do not blink, otherwise you need a patch lead from ford, also should be free or with the new ranger they may already have put in resistors to the trailer wiring
Ken

ken thomas · Guru

mike
There is also a great forum on the new ranger where there is a lot of info and thing that have been done to rangers
newranger.net/forums/index.php

Ken

revemike · Senior Member

ken thomas wrote:
mike
There is also a great forum on the new ranger where there is a lot of info and thing that have been done to rangers
newranger.net/forums/index.php

Ken

Thanks Ken. I will check these things out

revemike · Senior Member

ken thomas wrote:
hello mike
There is a problem with the batteries going flat so you have to make sure you lock your car every night
If you are putting in a dual battery, get a dc- dc 1225 or 1240 redarc charger which will keep good charge to the second battery, also get ford to TURN OFF the smart charge, this is easy and should be no charge
If you have LED lights on the caravan, check that they do not blink, otherwise you need a patch lead from ford, also should be free or with the new ranger they may already have put in resistors to the trailer wiring
Ken

Ken. This is the one I am getting fitted by ARB

http://www.redarc.com.au/products/product/in-vehicle-battery-chargermppt-regulator-25a-lv/

Is this the one you recommend?

-- Edited by revemike on Monday 15th of December 2014 10:26:38 AM

ken thomas · Guru

That is the one. I got the 1220 which does not have solar
Not sure about the price, very expensive
Have a look at this
www.ebay.com.au/itm/REDARC-BCDC1225LV-DUAL-BATTERY-ISOLATOR-DC-TO-DC-CHARGER-MPPT-SOLAR-LED-LIGHT-/301385204382
Ken

revemike · Senior Member

ken thomas wrote:
That is the one. I got the 1220 which does not have solar
Not sure about the price, very expensive
Have a look at this
www.ebay.com.au/itm/REDARC-BCDC1225LV-DUAL-BATTERY-ISOLATOR-DC-TO-DC-CHARGER-MPPT-SOLAR-LED-LIGHT-/301385204382
Ken

ARB prices was considerably lower then this site has listed Ken.

ken thomas · Guru

How is it lower when the price shown was $631 ??? ebay $390
Ken

revemike · Senior Member

ken thomas wrote:
How is it lower when the price shown was $631 ??? ebay $390
Ken

ARB price is $500. eBay is cheaper but it is all part of a package and I get a discount on the overall work so I think I will go with ARB... If I had more skill in mechanics I might have been tempted to buy parts and do it myself. The ARB price of $500 is lower that the listed price on the redarc site.

I suppose I could have found a cheaper option but I really like ARB's quality and I am prepared to pay for it...

I have to consider suspension next... I am waiting until after I have towed the van at least once.

-- Edited by revemike on Monday 15th of December 2014 09:02:48 PM

ken thomas · Guru

Check out the ranger site and all questions will be answered
Ken

revemike · Senior Member

ken thomas wrote:
Check out the ranger site and all questions will be answered
Ken

I have registed at the ranger Forum... reading away...thanks (and also for your comments on the other post)

Stl · Senior Member

Hi just be careful of getting ARB or anyone else to fit dual battery, could void your warranty. I bought a BT50 2012 model ( basically a ford ranger ) and used the dealers auto to fit the 2nd battery. $500.00 sounds awfully cheap ( do you get a battery for that price) I had 3 quotes $1700.00 - $1300.00 and $1100.00 being the dealers choice but being the first one they had done complained that I got it at least $200.00 to cheap, that's a few years ago. At the same time after being told by others I had been ripped off as they had theirs done for $600.00 bla bla bla found their batteries weren't charging as the computers would only allow minimal charge to second battery and $$$$ later rectified , mine wasn't so expensive and my new car warranty still good.

Stl · Senior Member

Hi again Mike, what size , weight van are you going to be towing, I was towing a 21 ft 2 tonne Windsor and didn't know it was there, no alteration to suspension, have now upped to a 24 ft and and 3 tonne loaded and still sits dead level with Hayman Reece sway bars.
Also when you put a canopy on style sides you can't reach the front middle , I made a false floor out of form ply ( really slippery) and a 50 ml angle at the front with a rope handle, slides in and out easerly.
Also if you have pets get at least one side with slide windows so it can be left open a bit ( something you can't do with lift up)
And as tail gates don't seal properly even with all the double sided tape and foam etc a pressure hatch in roof will keep all fumes and dust out.
Wth the dual battery get them to run extra whether it be Anderson or your choice of plugs to the rear , comes in handy for your fridges, cameras, inverters, etc, can't have too many outlets.

Safe travels. Look forward to photos when finished. Len 😀

revemike · Senior Member

Thanks for your comments Len.

The total charge for duel battery kit is around $1600. It includes battery and the 12v outlet in the rear of the Ranger.

I don't have pets so that part is not an issue. The canopy I have opted for is the new Ascent and I think this does have the pressure hatch. I will check on that.

My Retreat is the baby in the range... The Keppel. It is around 2600kg loaded. The ball weight is 280kg. How much of your vehicle payload did you use?

I will certainly not be lashing out on suspension upgrade unless I really need is as it is certainly not a cheap task.

cheers... I will definitely post some pics once it is all done. smile

Stl · Senior Member

Hi Mike,
When fully loaded, gas, water ,fuel, tools, beer etc will be only about 400-300 kg under the limit (3500) .
I had the tow bar and bull bar fitted ( with led park lights to suit) not by the dealer . Had a traction control light come on ( which happens if I accelerate to hard when I take off) and wouldn't go off , a glitch in the computer, but had to be re-set which they wanted to charge me for ( 4 months old) because I had after market modifications (tow bar and wiring, bull bar and park lights). It was only by coincidence the crowd I used was the same ones they used, ( without their mark up) so warranty wasn't voided other wise would have been?? even though all that quoted said " we can do that for you and it won't affect the warranty" it might not have if shove came push but ??? In hind site all work done by others I would have got in writing saying that it wouldn't affect the warranty and shown it to the dealer before I had work done.
I also had a bigger fuel tank installed by TJM (140 lt) same tank as quoted by ARB but $700.00 cheaper. I haven't used ARB for anything as on all quotes they were more expensive.
I see your thinking of draws, I moved my gas bottles forward as far as I could and had a aluminium tool box made to fit between the bottles and front of van instead of draws in back of tug, I find a lot better. Still under the tow ball weight.

Merry Christmas , Exciting times. Len 😀

revemike · Senior Member

Stl wrote:
Hi Mike,
When fully loaded, gas, water ,fuel, tools, beer etc will be only about 400-300 kg under the limit (3500) .
I had the tow bar and bull bar fitted ( with led park lights to suit) not by the dealer . Had a traction control light come on ( which happens if I accelerate to hard when I take off) and wouldn't go off , a glitch in the computer, but had to be re-set which they wanted to charge me for ( 4 months old) because I had after market modifications (tow bar and wiring, bull bar and park lights). It was only by coincidence the crowd I used was the same ones they used, ( without their mark up) so warranty wasn't voided other wise would have been?? even though all that quoted said " we can do that for you and it won't affect the warranty" it might not have if shove came push but ??? In hind site all work done by others I would have got in writing saying that it wouldn't affect the warranty and shown it to the dealer before I had work done.
I also had a bigger fuel tank installed by TJM (140 lt) same tank as quoted by ARB but $700.00 cheaper. I haven't used ARB for anything as on all quotes they were more expensive.
I see your thinking of draws, I moved my gas bottles forward as far as I could and had a aluminium tool box made to fit between the bottles and front of van instead of draws in back of tug, I find a lot better. Still unde

Merry Christmas , Exciting times. Len 😀

My dealer gave me the name of the fellow from ARB and told me to contact him for the thinks I wanted fitting. They use this same fellow for work they do so I will be more than a little peeved if there is any warrantee issues....

Do you happen to know the ball weight of you van Len? Mine, being a single axle is a lot heavier than I would have expected. I suppose this is because it is a single axle.

Happy christmas to you too... And yes, it certainly is exciting times... I can't wait to have it all completed and get out there and us it.

baute · Senior Member

Just a recommendation here . Warranty with ARB is brilliant. I recently asked them to look at my canopy which is two and half years old. They have agreed to replace split Window seals, sticking Window lock, and replace whole fixed Window which is leaking due to glass movement at sliding Window. All done under warranty no questions asked. The canopy has been good and this work really is just wear and tear. I would consider their products again in the future as they stand by their warranty.

Stl · Senior Member

Hi baute, I'm not saying ARB isn't brillant, I've never heard a bad word about them that's why they were my first choice when getting a quote, but they were always the most expensive, on all quotes. I look at ARB being who everyone including myself who thinks of first, but now days there is heaps of reputable and cheaper places. I normally only got two quotes and ARB was never in the ball park , that's 2 years ago, so maybe they have changed.
LEN 😃

revemike · Senior Member

Stl wrote:
Hi baute, I'm not saying ARB isn't brillant, I've never heard a bad word about them that's why they were my first choice when getting a quote, but they were always the most expensive, on all quotes. I look at ARB being who everyone including myself who thinks of first, but now days there is heaps of reputable and cheaper places. I normally only got two quotes and ARB was never in the ball park , that's 2 years ago, so maybe they have changed.
LEN 😃

No, not the cheapest, but I don't mind paying for good quality.