Swapped out my split charge relay for a Victron Orion-Tr Smart — worth the extra cost?

So I finally pulled the trigger on a Victron Orion-Tr Smart 12/12-30A isolated DC-DC charger to replace the old VSR (split charge relay) in my Transit-based van. Fitted it last weekend alongside a 100Ah lithium leisure battery. The difference in charge acceptance is honestly night and day — the VSR was barely pushing anything useful into the lithium given the low voltage differential, whereas the Orion is now pushing a proper bulk/absorption cycle every time I drive.

The main reason I went isolated was because the Transit has a smart alternator (EcoBoost engine, 2019 plate), and from everything I'd read the VSR was essentially useless with it — the alternator voltage drops off so quickly the relay never even latched half the time. The Orion seems to handle the variable voltage without any fuss, and I can monitor everything through the VictronConnect app which is a nice bonus.

Cost was around £180 for the unit, plus a couple of hours fitting time and some decent cable. My previous VSR setup cost about £25 all in, so it's a significant jump in price. That said, I'm getting a genuine 30A charge rate on the road now rather than the maybe 5-10A I was seeing before.

Has anyone else made this swap, particularly on a smart alternator vehicle? And is there anything in the Victron settings I should be tweaking for lithium — I've left it on the default lithium profile but wondering if it's worth digging deeper into the absorption voltage and cutoff settings?

@EdStewart — absolutely the right move. VSRs are fundamentally flawed for AGM/lithium because they connect batteries in parallel rather than actively charging; you're just voltage-equalising, not properly replenishing capacity.

The Orion-Tr Smart's three-stage charging profile makes a substantial difference, particularly if you're running a lithium leisure bank — a VSR will never fully charge a LiFePO4 because the alternator voltage never climbs high enough to trigger absorption properly.

One thing worth configuring carefully: engine detection threshold. On Transit-based builds I've seen the Orion occasionally trigger on ignition-on voltage before the alternator actually spins up, which stresses smart alternators with variable voltage management. Set your "V-start" threshold around 13.2V minimum and enable the input current limiting if you're on a Euro 6 engine with BMS-controlled alternator output.

The VictronConnect Bluetooth integration alone justifies half the price premium over a basic Sterling unit.