February 2008, a successful (well, operational) installation of a Kodiak Dual Battery System in my 2005 Jeep LJ Rubicon. With info gleaned from Expo members and Stu-Off Road I chose to purchase and install the system, despite my being an ‘end user’ type and not a ‘wrench turner’ type of person.
With much debate over the cost, all it took was one dead battery to seal the deal and place the order. I am not sure why the Optima red top decided that that day was when it would fail, but fail it did after two years of good service.
The install: Pretty straight forward, amazingly the two PC1200’s fit with about a 16th of an inch to spare. If done over I would have ran some 550 cord under the second battery while dropping it onto the battery tray in order to allow it to be moved easier into its final position. After the battery was in place, I could have pulled the cord out.
Once the batteries were in place there was nothing left but the harness, right?
Wrong , my non electrical comprehending brain was in complete confusion and after reading the instructions several times I could still not get the management system to work properly.
The solution: Call tech support and declare my ignorance, Tech Support to the rescue! It seems I had been provided an ’extra’ part. A Toyota FJ connector to be exact in my Jeep kit, and I had of course hooked it up just like it belonged in a Jeep. Once the good folks at Kodiak had determined what I had done I was up and running in no time.
Conclusion: I purchased the kit so that I could self jump my engine and not worry about having the Engel run all night. I chose the Kodiak System after doing some research and concluding that the Kodiak was the right set up for me. The instructions were a little hard to follow for a layperson like myself but I managed. I have not had much time to field test the system but I am confidant it will perform as designed. I am glad I bought the kit and I am glad I have the insurance of an extra battery.
www.stu-offroad.com
www.kodiakinc.com
With much debate over the cost, all it took was one dead battery to seal the deal and place the order. I am not sure why the Optima red top decided that that day was when it would fail, but fail it did after two years of good service.
The install: Pretty straight forward, amazingly the two PC1200’s fit with about a 16th of an inch to spare. If done over I would have ran some 550 cord under the second battery while dropping it onto the battery tray in order to allow it to be moved easier into its final position. After the battery was in place, I could have pulled the cord out.
Once the batteries were in place there was nothing left but the harness, right?
Wrong , my non electrical comprehending brain was in complete confusion and after reading the instructions several times I could still not get the management system to work properly.
The solution: Call tech support and declare my ignorance, Tech Support to the rescue! It seems I had been provided an ’extra’ part. A Toyota FJ connector to be exact in my Jeep kit, and I had of course hooked it up just like it belonged in a Jeep. Once the good folks at Kodiak had determined what I had done I was up and running in no time.
Conclusion: I purchased the kit so that I could self jump my engine and not worry about having the Engel run all night. I chose the Kodiak System after doing some research and concluding that the Kodiak was the right set up for me. The instructions were a little hard to follow for a layperson like myself but I managed. I have not had much time to field test the system but I am confidant it will perform as designed. I am glad I bought the kit and I am glad I have the insurance of an extra battery.
www.stu-offroad.com
www.kodiakinc.com
