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elbino

I've just tried to get at the 2 leisure batteries on my Autotrail Cheyenne. They are mounted either side of the spare wheel under the van which also has a towbar fitted which is not hepling. Is it the pig of a job it seems to get at them or am I missing a trick here. I thought they needed regular TLC to keep them happy but from the look of this they could get very little attention. Any observations from Cheyenne owners appreciated
paul

keng

Hi elbino,

I'm in the process of fine tuning bits 'n' bobs getting ready for our annual hols and being new to the m/h game, one of the things I was intending to do was check our leisure battery.

Thanks to many learned members here I have picked up quite a bit of very useful info. First of all, my leisure battery 'lives' inside the driver's seat box and it is one of the type with vented caps (something the dealer is going to hear about very soon). Secondly, I have to actually unbolt the seat from it's runners to gain access to the battery box.

Like yourself I would be interested to hear from anyone who owns/has owned the same type of m/h as my own, Lunar Roadstar 620 on '99 Fiat Ducato, with a view to perhaps relocating the leisure battery.

dodger148

Keng, presume your base vehicle is a Fiat/Peuigeot, we had this issue of access and the manufacturer explained they had "forgotton" to take off some little lugs on the seat slider which enabled the drivers seat to go further forward.
There was a long and detailed set of instructions regarding seat removal and the grinding off of theses little lugs (indents) on the slider. In fact there was not need as they could be filed off with the seat in place, with care. Regarding the battery venting ours does have a vent tube that goes down through the cab floor.
You are right to be concerned as on one occassion our battery had an big gassing session and the concrete flags underneath the van where the vent tube comes out are still cleaner than the rest !!!!

TerryVan

Keng,
you have a few choices with your battery problem.
1.
Request the dealer to replace it, but to be fair they may not have known.
You could try the "Product not fit for the intended use" approach.
2.
Buy a sealed battery if the cost and inconvenience of moving it is great.
The dealer may be persuaded to give a discount.
And tell them you will tell this site how good they were if they are helpfull.
(Mention the number of members)

Terry

EOR

I really don’t think you’ll get very far with trying to get the dealer to change the battery as manufacturers (and converters) have been putting batteries under seats for years. I don’t think so called sealed ones are actually sealed as you would like to believe as the battery could potentially explode if there was no form of ventilation to allow for expansion and contraction.

Talking of seat removal, I’m sure I explained in another post about removing the stops off the seat runners to allow the seat to move further, thus giving easier access to the battery. Mercedes had already done it of the 307’s I had. In my boxer I changed the seat mounting, so that I can remove it from the vehicle in less that ten seconds Very Happy

With regard to the leisure battery on my Peugeot, I made a rack to sit it on. This is under the rear of the van by the spare wheel. Simple clip on one end to drop the rack down to give easy access to the battery. Fully vented area. Very Happy

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[b:411968872 a]Steve
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keng

I'll certainly post the results of any negotiations on the battery aspect.

I checked the runners on the seat and they have 4 ball bearings in the grooves (2 each side). I was interested in doing as dodger and Steve suggested but this would allow the ball bearings to come free.

Anyhow I think I'll leave well alone. It's only a matter of taking off 3 torx bolts and swivel sideways to access the battery.

elbino

I don't suppose there are any Cheyenne owners out there with any advice are there?
paull

dodger148

Ken, I ended up with them all over the garage, thats why I said there was no need to take seat out if you are careful. The white groove plug came out as well. Eventaully got it all back together (didnt take that long really)