Dorset ES 4 seats

Hi, My Dorset has 4 travel seats, however when opening the sliding door there are no lights to see to fasten seat belts etc. If the engine is running the habitation electrics are disabled. Someone mentioned in another thread that the inhibit connection to the rear electrics can be disconnected to allow lighting in the habitation area to be switched on when the engine is running. Can anyone think of any safety issues if I was to go ahead with this modification. Thanks

It will depend on which power control system you have. If you have a Sargent-based setup, my recollection is that the split charge system (which charges the leisure battery from the alternator while the engine is running) will cease to work if you do that. Other makes of power control system may behave differently.

Hi, Interesting thanks for info and yes it is a Sargent EC155 psu. There is a LED strip light mounted on the bulkhead just behind the cab seats but again it fed from the habitation battery. I can't access it to rewire and it looks like it was fitted as standard during initial build.

The bulkhead lamp may have been added/updated by a previous owner, as I don't ~think~ A/S were fitting LED lights in 2010, typically.

If it really is only the lighting that you need to have on while the engine is running then you should be able to achieve this with a minor wiring mod adjacent to the EC155 power control unit. Essentially what you would need to do would be to disconnect the lighting from the existing output connector and wire it to pin 1 on the output connector. This is a permanently on output.

However, there are a few things to consider:

One is the fuse rating, which is only 5 Amps. If you have LED lighting throughout then I doubt it will be a problem, but if you have halogens it probably won't be enough. It may be possible to increase the fuse rating, but this would need careful thought.

The second is (obviously) the issue that you have the potential to completely flatten the leisure battery if you leave the lighting on when it shouldn't be. This won't be an issue for most motorhome owners - it's just part of what most people know anyway, so a typical owner will know not to leave things switched on!

Another potential problem is that the police may take an interest if you are driving with distracting lights on inside the vehicle. As I understand it, this is entirely at the discretion of an individual police officer. Generally I doubt they will take the slightest interest unless you've got lights that are directly in the line of sight of the driver, or unless you have a disco light setup in the back!

Hi, I think you might be right about the LED strip light been retro fitted, so I should be able to get to the wiring. Its been wired in to the Hab Battery as that has been the nearest supply (front lounge spot light).
Wiring into Pin 1 (radio) would work as you suggested but I am thinking if I can get a 3 core cable down to the step light the led strip would come when the doors open. I could fit a change over switch as well to put it on permanently as per the way the cab lights work. The light could then be moved from the front of the bulkhead to the bottom to light up the front lounge area to aid the rear passengers to get in. This motorhome is so versatile it gets used as a car (4 belted seats) on a regular basis.