Recently I embarked on setting up a duual battery system in my BJ70.

What is nice about the CDM (Canadian Domestic Market) BJ70s is that they came with two batteries wired in parallel. I am assuming this is for cold starting the big heavy diesel in the chilly Canadian climate. Living in warm, sunny San Diego ; I don't really need the cranking power of two heavy duty batteries , so I decided to start on a project of "isolating" the two batteries.

The advantages of this are : 

1.  I can use the second battery to run auxillary items while camping and not worry about killing the starting battery.
   
2. If one of the two batteries in the current parallel setup goes bad it would kill the other battery hence I would be dead in the water.
3. The tray, wiring are already there. I only have to install an isolator and a second fuse box and I should be good to go.

What is up with diesel fuel prices in California?

As many diesel owners know you generally get 30% better economy with a diesel vehicle over its' gas vehicle counterpart. We are even doing better than that because our diesel BJ70 (4 cylinder) replaced our gas FJ60 (6 cylinder). The FJ60 on it's best day would get 15-16 mpg. The BJ70 is returning a consistent 24 mpg and that is with 33" tires. I think I have even gotten close to 26 mpg on a trip out and back to Anza Borrego.

Unfortunately with the cost of diesel skyrocketing the price advantage is slowly being whittled away. Sure I can run Bio-Diesel but unless I am willing to make it myself the cost is very close if not more than ULSD diesel. I am starting to weigh the option of running some sort of waste vegetable oil system in the old girl.

Coincidentally with it being Earth Day and all, I was walking back from my lunch time swim when I met Allen from Physical Plant services who had his diesel Mercedes on display. He has been running WVO (waste vegetable oil) in his older Mercedes for 2 years w/o a hiccup. He was very knowledgeable about the process so i basically talked his ear off for 15 minutes or so.....

I have been running B99 Bio-Diesel for the past year or so and it has worked great. Recently I noticed a small leak underneath the BJ70 which looks to be coming from one of the fuel lines. Turns out Bio-Diesel is a really good solvent and will eat up older rubber fuel lines.

I did some "Googling" and found Zander's Bio Diesel Conversion Page which described in detail the process of replacing the old rubber fuel lines with viton fuel lines and repriming the fuel system.
Good stuff! Now I am off to Napa Auto Parts.