Right, time for an update...
Trip did not happen this year as the truck was nowhere near ready... but it is going ahead next year.
Truck is now all working nicely, I have done a lot more cold weather and route research. Will be running super soft studded winter tyres with tubes, all synthetic oils (0W-20 in the engine), double windscreen...
But still have to take the plunge and buy a cabin heater.
For reference, I am getting a cabin air heater, not a block / coolant heater. As said, engine will stay running at below -35 if there is no heated garage. I will have some serious fuel supplies (preferably 250 - 300 litres of petrol I.m assuming 20 to 25 l per 100 km fuel consumption averaged).
The cabin heater is over EUR 1000 so I really want to make sure I am making the right choice.
I am planning on buying a petrol (gasoline) heater, which seems to limit me to Webasto, as Eberspacher seem only to have petrol block heaters. Altitude is not really an issue as I don't foresee being much above 1200 m on this trip, and usually much less.
I have bought a split charging kit which is ready to go in. I will get a second battery... not sure what to go for though, a cheap Hankook 110Ah leisure battery, or an Optima Yellow Top 55Ah battery which is twice the price?? I've had Yellow Tops before and they were awesome, (though I have switched to an Odyssey battery for the main starter; 900 CCA vs 750 on the Optima) but is there any reason not to go for the cheaper Hankook battery?
I will run the heater from a separate fuel tank. This means I can use 80 RON petrol (yes, you can still get it in Russia, I've seen down to 68 RON even!) which will be better for the heater (more rapid combustion). It also means that I could go for a diesel if it were advantageous? It would certainly save some money.
So is there anything I am missing? Any final recommendations before I take the plunge?
Thanks a lot!
EO
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EurasiaOverland a memoir of one quarter of a million kilometres by road through all of the Former USSR, Western and Southern Asia.
Last edited by eurasiaoverland; 8 Jun 2017 at 21:28.
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