question

noah-guthrie avatar image
noah-guthrie asked

Orion XS direct (smart) alternator

Hello Victron community! Long time listener first time caller.


My question is this, can I wire my smart alternator on my 2019 Toyota tacoma directly to a Victron Orion xs?


I am adding a dual battery bank and plan to wire my two Dakota lithium DL+ 135ah batteries in parallel to act as one large battery instead of two separate batteries. I understand there are potential disadvantages to this.


The batteries are fine to run on an alternator out of the box but will not charge fully and I consider the longevity of the batteries.


For what it’s worth I am also adding a Victron mppt 100/15 to connect to my 85w hood mounted solar panel with plans of adding more solar down the literal road. The plan is to have a well established electrical system as I upgrade instead of doing more as it comes.


I don’t have enough knowledge to say whether this would work or not which is why I’m here. In my mind it seems like it should be ok, but more at play than face value suggests.


I did read an older post about the person trying to run off his boat alternator but didn’t really answer my question specifically.


The stock alternator is a smart alternator and outputs 135, if the 50a output is too high it’s seems through the software I could change the monitored output to not stress the alternator..


If it is relevant or un-wise my general wiring will be 2awg jumper wires between the batteries any suggestions on wire gauge are welcome for any point in the system.


Thank you for your time and look forward to gaining more knowledge here!


—Noah

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2 Answers
pwfarnell avatar image
pwfarnell answered ·

There have been several posts over the years of people trying this with the older Orion DC to DC chargers and having voltage regulation problems on the alternator. The trouble is the voltage regulator on the alternator can get out of phase with the Orion control because there is no buffering of the alternator output if it is only connected to the Orion. The alternator regulator can not respond quickly enough. You can get alternator to battery chargers that do this but they have extra control circuitry in them to manage the alternator. You also have to consider what will happen to the alternator if the lithium battery stops taking charge suddenly and the Orion shuts down. If the Orion is the only load on the alternator then the alternator see a load dump and can generate a very high voltage. The alternator diodes may be avalanche type but downstream electronics may still be damaged. Having a battery between the alternator and the Orion will limit such spikes.

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noah-guthrie avatar image noah-guthrie commented ·
Very helpful! All things I did not know. So, what if, I have a smaller lithium battery meant to be that buffer? Say a 25ah just to be that buffer between the dual battery 25ah inputs to the Orion, outputs to the dual battery. It would basically be a “sacrificial” battery.. I assume that much power going through it may burn it up pretty quick but I don’t really have the knowledge on that.


Appreciate the response and help on this, if you have any suggestions as the optimal way to do the wiring (preferably wiring the two larger batteries in parallel) I would be happy to hear them


I may just get the truck tuned which I can boost the voltage output of the alternator and between the DL bms and smart alternator it shouldn’t have the issues of damaging the alternator is my understanding



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noah-guthrie avatar image noah-guthrie noah-guthrie commented ·
It’s worth noting the 25ah would not act as the starting battery just would act as the buffer between the vehicle wiring and the Orion. The dual, parallel 135ah would still act as the starting / house battery
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pwfarnell avatar image pwfarnell noah-guthrie commented ·
The charging current does not actually go through the buffer battery, it will sit fully charged all the time with the voltage varying with the alternator and no control over its charging. I do not think that this is a good use for lithium as it will become overcharged. If it had a BMS then it could disconnect and then you would have no buffer.
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kai-fuchs avatar image
kai-fuchs answered ·

Make sure Your batterys BMS can Handel the current starting the the car, I have one bank of Two agm batteries in my truck and the smart shunt reads more than 200A to start the car.

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noah-guthrie avatar image noah-guthrie commented ·
The Dakota lithium DL+ batteries are designed to run directly from an alternator, I can’t confirm personally that it will handle what you mentioned but it is my understanding from reviews I haven’t heard of any issues from this.
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