Internal 12v lighting Trident

Hi everyone. New to the forum as I have just acquired a 1994 Trident Autosleeper. So learning as I go. My Trident only has a main battery. The 12v lighting does not work when the ignition is off. Am I missing something? Any help much appreciated.

I'm sure someone more experienced in this vehicle than me will be along shortly, but, for now when you say it has "only a main" battery, do you mean the vehicle starter battery? Are you sure there is no Leisure Battery??

Capbussvs wrote:Hi everyone. New to the forum as I have just acquired a 1994 Trident Autosleeper. So learning as I go. My Trident only has a main battery. The 12v lighting does not work when the ignition is off. Am I missing something? Any help much appreciated.

It's certainly true that some early A/S conversions had very limited 12V equipment (we owned one based on a Commer van) but by 1994 I don't think deletion of the leisure battery would have been an option, so I think it should be present - though of course a previous owner may have removed it!

I've never owned a T4-based conversion, but I think the second battery was typically located in the engine bay, next to the engine battery, so it would be worth looking there. Next step after that would be to find all of the A/S-fitted fuses and check them.

Hi  

Surely a leisure battery would be difficult to miss in someting the size of the Trident!

Roopert wrote:It's certainly true that some early A/S conversions had very limited 12V equipment (we owned one based on a Commer van) but by 1994 I don't think deletion of the leisure battery would have been an option, so I think it should be present - though of course a previous owner may have removed it!

Hard to be sure, It seems it’s just on the cusp of when leisure batteries became standard. Not sure about 1994 but in 1993 it seems that it wasn’t a case of deleting the leisure battery but specifying it so the default was no leisure battery.

Autosleeper wiring diagrams tend are generic. Here is a  diagram for a 1993 Clubmam (page 40):

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The section for the leisure battery has a note saying “Options fitted to larger models or fitted to special order”.

Roopert wrote: Next step after that would be to find all of the A/S-fitted fuses and check them.

Agreed,  it’s only the lights that don’t work I’d check the fuses in the control panel. If nothing on the 12V side works look for any signs of a missing battery and for a fuse close to the battery whether it’s a single or dual battery installation.

Brod

brodco wrote:
Hard to be sure, It seems it’s just on the cusp of when leisure batteries became standard. Not sure about 1994 but in 1993 it seems that it wasn’t a case of deleting the leisure battery but specifying it so the default was no leisure battery.

It's great to read those old manuals - they look so helpful compared to the more modern versions! But it does clearly say (at the start of the Electrical section):

"A second battery is fitted as standard and a split charge relay is fitted between the batteries...". I think that wiring diagram would have been well out of date by then.

I can recall helping my parents when they specified the factory build of their 1982 Frisky (which wasn't at that time called a Frisky - they didn't tend to "name" all of their models then) and at that time I'm pretty sure that a leisure battery was standard but the mains charger was not! So our '82 van had just a split charge and no means of charging other than the split charge circuit. My '93 Rapport also had a leisure battery (and charger) as standard. So by '94 I'm pretty sure that the battery itself would have been standard.

Whatever - you're right, it should be hard to miss the leisure battery (or the space and terminals where one should be).

So... Capbussvs - what were your findings?

Did you locate the battery, or the location where a battery should be???

(With apologies for starting a sentence with the word "so"!)

Roopert, Apologies not required as, in this instance, it is grammatically correct. But (grammatically incorrect  !) I concur with the sentiment.
That should create some discussion.
Keith