Hello,

I recently acquired a 1980 ASI Vanagon camper conversion. The previous
owner replaced the front passenger seat with the swivel seat from a
Transporter. To accommodate the swivel bolt, which protrudes into the
battery compartment, he replaced the stock battery with a somewhat smaller
model.

(pause for knowing and sympathetic nods)

Anyway, the beast starts okay nine days out of ten, although the
alternator and EGR lights flicker most of the time. On the tenth day out
of ten, such as this morning, I use a portable battery pack to jump start
it.

Now leaving aside the obvious solution of ditching the swivel chair and
installing a proper battery (I don't want to discuss what the previous
owner *welded* into place right now -- the grief is too fresh), there's
space under the driver's seat for a secondary battery whose main purpose
is to power the refrigerator and water pumps.

Question: Obviously, the secondary battery is charged by the generator,
just the same as the main battery. But if the main battery dies, will the
system draw on the secondary battery to do useful work, like driving the
starter and providing current to the alternator and the coil, or is it
just for nonessentials like the fridge? In other words, can I quietly
overlook the imprudence of the previous owner just by installing the
secondary battery?

Regards,
Eric