Vittoria Mercedes Vito LWB 115

Page 1 - 13/12/23

My Mercedes Vito is a great vehicle and I am continuing to use it for multiple purposes including:

Kayaking,

Moving stuff,

Carrying motorcycles,

Spending weekends away at the racetrack, and

Short trips not requiring the full bifta La Bestia suite.

Consequently I continue to develop it for camping in. Most equipment and facilities have to be modular and removable which creates compromise but challenges my ability to innovate and improvise to improve functionality.

To date I have been operating off the vehicle battery which is 85Ah and not really made for deep cycling. Mind you it has worked perfectly well but I made sure I carry a jump starter set just in case. It also feeds a 1000W inverter which primarily serves as a Ozito battery charging unit.

In order to protect the vehicle battery, I have recently invested in a 120Ah LiFePo battery and battery box as well as a 25A DCDC charger. I waited for each of the components to come on special so it took a little while to assemble the bits. I ran a line from the vehicle battery to provide charge while moving and an old fold out 80W solar panel to feed the 40L Engel fridge and ‘house’ lights.

Having just spent the weekend at the racetrack at Collie a friend asked why I hadn’t gone for a rooftop panel given that I have roof racks. 🤷‍♀️

Me being me, I did some research and landed on the King’s 110W fixed panel. It’s all installed in 1 1/2 days and works a treat. Great idea Scott!

I have inserted sufficient connectors to enable me to switch to charging the vehicle battery from the solar if necessary.

The bed base is now demountable and consists of a shortened internal door. Light but sturdy. A small compartment can be placed at the end of the bed to contain a small 10L toilet for night duty 😬.

Roof rack mounted PV panel

DCDC charger

Battery box in position

Cut down door bed base

Page 2 - 5/1/24

Having used the new battery box set up it became clear that the power outlet positioning left a little to be desired with respect to where I had it mounted. The standard sockets are along the long side

Did a little bit of research and decided to add a 12v socket and a usb3/typeC socket to the short sides. Found them on Temu for a decent price. The usb socket has a switch so you can turn it off locally which kills the back light.

A bit of wiring and 10amp fuse…voila! I now have a pimped battery box lol

Original outlets

New end socket

New switchable socket other end

Revised wiring under the lid

Page 3 - 22/12/25

Hello everyone. I’m back into local mode and rediscovering my motorcycling mob again.

As many would be aware, I have a Mercedes Vito which was originally used for remote travel prior to the Sprinter. It is now my multi purpose vehicle for carrying motorcycles and kayaks plus big item collection like furniture and TVs for family members.

Use as my track day motorcycle carrier demands that I have a reasonable set up for two or three nights away. The set up also has to be demountable so that modes can be swapped relatively easily.

I have a simple 110W rooftop PV system which feeds a Kings Battery box containing a 120Ah LiFePO battery via a DC/DC charger. It is also fed by the vehicle alternator charging circuit when running. Historically I have been using those simple butane canister stoves but my transition to mostly electric in the Sprinter has tweaked my objective to not burn so much fossil fuel wherever practical.

Anyway I got to thinking of a portable combined battery box and 1500W inverter which would allow me to use my induction hotplate which is not affected by wind when cooking. As a bonus I could also use my pizza oven, small microwave, compact air fryer, toaster, and travel kettle should I feel so inclined. I produced a sketch and set to buying the bits commencing back in May.

I finally collected all the necessary components recently and knocked it up in a day (yesterday) and I am pleased to say it works a treat. With 1500Wh available from the battery, running the hotplate for 6min at normal 1000W (or less usually) only consumes 100Wh = 7%. Similarly for the microwave and air fryer (both 900W units). With my 110W PV this is replenished in around 2 hours.

The inverter is attached to the top of the battery box which makes it eminently transportable at 18.3kg. I could even use it at an outside picnic style event. Edit: $830 total price

Hope your seasonal festivities go well.

Cheers