Baseplate Installation - Is this for the average do-it-yourselfer?

Gary,

Thanks for the suggestion and the link to the TOAD-CHARGE.  That looks like what I need to get to tow my 2007 Saturn ION.  From the installation instructions, it says the TOAD-CHARGE Thermal Circuit Breaker should be hooked up to the battery isolator or to either the house or chassis bank of batteries in the motorhome.  Now if I can just find the battery isolator...... :-[ 

I guess it doesn't matter whether the TOAD-CHARGE is hooked up to the bank of house batteries or to the bank of chassis batteries since they both get recharged when connected to shore power (enabling the toad's battery to be recharged then too if desired).

Rolf,
Do they say why you need to remove that fuse? Seems to me that leaving the key in the accessory position shouldn't drain the battery - assuming you've turned off all the accessories. I'd put an ammeter in series with the battery positive cable to see just how much it's drawing. Knowing that, you can calculate how long you've got. Make sure you set your meter at the 10 or 30 amp position just to be safe.

Karl,

The manual says to remove the BATT-2 fuse to "prevent battery rundown on long trips."  That's it.

Yeah, I would like to measure the battery draw when the key is in the Accessory postion but I'm not sure how to do it.  I don't know what you mean by "put the ammeter in series with the battery positive cable."  I have a GB Instruments GDT-11 Multitester but don't know how to use it for this measurement. 

Rolf,
Make sure you turn off all things like lights, radio, heater/ac, etc. before turning the switch from the "Off" position to "Accessory". Close the door so you aren't reading the current of the dome/door lights. Some meters have a separate socket to plug the red lead into when reading high amps. If so, make sure you use it. Set the meter at "Amperes" or "AMPS" at the highest setting available. Now remove the positive cable from the battery, place the red lead from the meter on the positive battery post and the black meter lead on the battery connector you just removed. That puts it in series with the battery and will show any current draw.

Karl,

OK, I got the meter readings.  On the 2007 Saturn ION, the battery happens to be in the trunk.  Hooking up the multimeter in series the way you suggested, my first reading was 2.31 Amps.  But that was with the radio on and a CD in the CD player and the trunk light on.  (Do you suppose when the ignition key is set to Accessory, that the CD is spinning whenever a CD is loaded even if the radio is selected and on?) 

Before unhooking the positive battery cable the second time, I removed the CD, turned the radio off, and managed to get the trunk light off.  This reading then showed 0.81 Amps.  So it looks like the combination radio and CD player and trunk light are using 1.5 Amps.  Thus the 0.81 amps is probably for the clock display, the odometer display light, and the OnStar system which are always on when the ignition key is set to Accessory.  There may be other things drawing down the battery which I'm not aware of, but these 3 things I know are on.  So I conclude that while towing, the Saturn will be drawing 0.81 amps continuously, not figuring in the current drawn by the Apollo Braking system and it's remote display.

Leave the meter in place and plug in the Apollo components and get a reading with them on.  That will be your draw while traveling.

I'm interested in the Apollo current drain myself as we have one also.  It's never given us a problem drawing down our battery on two different vehicles, so I suspect the standby current is minimal.

Ned and Karl,

I measured the draw of the Saturn's battery with the Apollo Braking System installed with and without the air compressor being on.  When the air compressor is on, it draws about 7.5 Amps.  When the air compressor is off, it draws about 1.44 Amps.  So that means that the Apollo itself draws about 0.63 Amps (when not running the air compressor - which is most of the time) because the other Saturn components normally draw about 0.81 Amps.  This measurement was made with the ignition key turned to Accessory and with the Apollo remote indicator plugged in to the auxiliary 12V socket.  No other known lights or appliances were left on during this measurement.

Incidentally, I've got one other appliance that might have to be plugged in while towing.  It's the TripSense sensor that I will be activating in November.  It is supposed to draw about 50 milliamps.  It is the Progressive Insurance sensor that will reduce my car insurance premiums from 5-25%, depending on how I drive.  I'm trying to get them to let me pull that sensor while I'm towing the car but they seem to insist that it has to be installed 95% of the time that it's in the collection period.  You can find out more about TripSense by clicking on this link.

Anyway, without the TripSense sensor installed, it looks like I will be drawing about 12-13 AH from my Saturn's battery while towing for 8 hours per day (assuming the air compressor comes on 10 times during the 8 hour period).  (That is:  8 x 1.44 + (6.06 x 1.67/60) + 9 x (6.06 x .75/60) = 12.37 AH.)  (Note that the Apollo air compressor runs for about 1 min 40 secs the first time and about 45 secs each subsequent time.)

12-13AH is not a big load on a typical car battery.  Just run the engine in the morning for a few minutes to top off the battery and you should be fine.  That's what I did when we towed a Honda Accord.  You could unplug the Apollo and turn off the car when parked for the night, just don't forget to plug it in in the morning and turn the car back on.

If 13 AH is what you draw over a day's time, it's not worth losing sleep over. Do like Ned said, and run the car 10-15 minutes each morning to top off the battery. 50 mA is nothing; certainly not worth giving up your insurance discount for.

Karl,

Yeah, I agree with you and Ned, it looks like I'm good to go for towing my Saturn ION as long as I run the the engine a few minutes each day to top off the battery.  Thanks for your help in describing how to measure the amperage being used.  As for the TripSensor, I think they said now that they will allow me to unplug it while towing as long as it is plugged in a total of 95% of the time.  Maybe I'll start with it plugged in and see how it goes.  If the battery gets rundown worse than expected, I'll probably unplug it and see if that helps.

Ned,

I haven't used my Apollo Braking System yet and was wondering about the sensitivity settings.  I thought I would start out with a low sensitivity setting and see how that goes.  If I don't see the Apollo coming on when I think it should, I'll turn the sensitivity up a little until I'm satisfied.  Does that sound like a good plan?

We run ours at 7 towing a 4000 lb truck.  I would start with a high setting (like 7 or 8) then watch for it to come on only in hard stops.  If it comes on in normal stops, reduce the setting one step at a time.  Better to have too much braking that too little, even during the initial setup period.

Ned,

The sensitivity settings range from 1 to 8.  Settings 7-8 are supposed to be the most sensitive braking settings.  If you have yours set to 7, it sounds like your Apollo is setup to come on quite easily.  Settings of 1-2 are for the least sensitive braking which would command the Apollo to come on only during hard stops, which is what I would think would be best.  I agree that it's safer to have too much braking rather than too little, but I don't want the Apollo to come on everytime I take my foot off the gas either.  Hence the thought of starting at a low setting and working up.

We have found that 7 in our installation only activates the Apollo on hard stops.  The numbers are relative, not absolute.  The actual sensitivity will vary from one towed to another and is a function of driving habits as well.  We tend not to make hard stops

Very interestihg,I was not considering doing it myself,I got a quote from one the rv dealers in calgary$2400.00 hitch and instalation.We are going to be going down to arizona through Mt&Id would I be better to have it done down there? ???

Very interestihg,I was not considering doing it myself,I got a quote from one the rv dealers in calgary$2400.00 hitch and instalation.We are going to be going down to arizona through Mt&Id would I be better to have it done down there?

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What exactly does the $2400 quote that you received in Calgary cover?  Hitch and installation?  Baseplate and installation?  Tow bar and safety cables?  Socket light wiring kit and installation?

There are lots of variables here.  You should be able to price everything out via the Internet except maybe some of the installation costs.  I don't know much about the cost of a hitch or the installation of a hitch, but the baseplate manufacturer should list the degree of difficulty in installing it, from which you should be able to estimate the number of labor hours required. 

Would it be best to get the work done in Calgary or get it done in Montana or Idaho on the way to Arizona?  That would again depend on what exactly "the work" is.

I believe the quote I got was for an Aladdin BlueOx,base plates&wiring harness.

I believe the quote I got was for an Aladdin Blue Ox,base plates&wiring harness.

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Well, that's a start.  That would total nearly $1,000, assuming a Blue Ox Aladdin Tow Bar ($525), Blue Ox Base Plate ($395), and Blue Ox Socket Lighting Kit ($56).  That would mean that the RV dealer in Calgary is charging about $1,400 for installation.  That seems a bit high.  And then you'll still need a safety cable kit, a coiled electric cable, and a supplementary braking system.

For comparison, we paid $750 for a Blue Ox base plate, light kit, and installation on a GMC Canyon last December.  $1400 (even in Canada) is too much.

This is the Quote I got if I had just  cut it befor   Ed

Aladding tow bar-rated at 5000lbs - $850.00
Baseplates for Trail Blazer(towed vehicle) - $535.00
Accessory Kit - $350.00 - This kit includes the safety cable, the electrical cable that goes between the motorhome and the towed vehicle, the bulb & socket kit for the wiring on the towed vehicle, a 3-lock set to lock all compenets when not in use, and a cover for the towbar when not in use.
Parts total-$1735.00 and Labour to install system-$660.00 for a Total cost of $2395.00 + GST.
The only thing over and above this that may be required is a drop receiver, which you may need depending on the height difference between the receiver on the motorhome and the height where the baseplates come out of the towed vehicle.  This can not be more than a 4" difference or it puts added stress on the tow bar. 

Klipper

You might want to look at a little higher tow capacity tow bar (Blue Ox Adventa II?) to make sure you have enough towing capability for the Trailblazer, even tho it probably weighs less than 5k. The pricing still seems kind of high, specially with where the C$ is today.