I’m thinking about wiring in a 2-outlet AV inverter, and was wondering if anyone else had shown it in their 3rd gen 4Runner so I am not reinventing the wheel. I’ll add in an extra fuse box for auxiliary use if I do this.

If you’ve done already done this, please share how you did it and what you might do differently if you had to do it all over.

 

Yes I have run dual batteries with an inverter, I discussed it recently here. https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f2/g...teries-310130/

 

It may depend on how much power you need. I sometimes charge my laptop as I'm driving. I have a 150W inverter that plugs into the cigarette lighter socket. I don't use it unless I'm driving. If you want to charge/run things while the truck is parked, then yeah, second battery.

 

Malcm99, as always, great info and thank you! After reading your post, I think I will do the alternator upgrade and then upgrade the battery when it shows signs of aging. I’m not planning on an electric winch right now. I’ll have a manual come along and straps to make recovery possible. But I won’t be set up for rock crawling, more overland/off road touring fire roads and stuff. I’ll keep the inverter light duty or use your suggestion for a lightweight portable generator. If I do anything, it will on a budget for now (I’m retired and don’t have opportunities to earn extra cash unless I sell something that I already own) and doing it right will not be cheap. If this means Yeti coolers instead of an inverter and fridge, then so be it. Towns in the US aren’t so far apart that I cannot make it to a town to restock fuel and ice.

I typically plan my next hobby plans about a year out, so I wasn’t looking to do this right away yet anyway. But one of the things that has made reconsider the route I was planning on going is this video below on 2nd batteries and the charging issues they face. It’s kind of rantish and gets repetitive, but this guy does overland all over the world and is a wealth of information.