Wiring Diagrams Finished and Available

[Captain Spalding]

Update Notice:
Date: 9/21/09
New drawing added - Alternator Conversion Wiring
Applies to alternators with built-in voltage regulators.

Technical>Wiring>Thing - bottom of the page in the "Other Wiring Diagrams" section.


Date: 7/29/09
Two new files added to the Thing Wiring page in the Samba Tech section.
1. Eberspächer BN-4 Heater Current flow diagram
– in full color and vector-based .pdf goodness.

2. Eberspächer BN-4 Heater Wiring diagram
- a component based version of the BN-4 current flow diagram. Also in .pdf

Revised files:
Thanks to the valuable feedback of several folks here on the Samba, all five of the documents I submitted before have been revised, in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Some errors were corrected, some enhancements added, and other changes were made to make the diagrams more consistent with a preponderance of our cars. (Notice I did not use the term "accurate". In several instances our cars differ from the drawings, so accuracy becomes a relative term.)

So go to the technical section and download the latest versions of:
181_Current_Flow_Diagram_4-73.pdf
181_Wiring_Diagram_4-73.pdf
How_to_Read_Current_Flow.pdf
181_Tail_Light_Wiring_Detail.pdf
181_Fuse_Block_Wiring_Detail.pdf

Here's the really important part:
If you downloaded prior versions of these files, please trash them. It's bad for everyone if there are several conflicting versions floating around. The new versions all have the date in the lower right corner that reads: 07292009. That's 7/29/2009. Dump the old ones, get the new ones. Thanks. I promise I won't update these every two weeks.

Thanks again to everyone who helped sort out the details. A special round of applause to SilverThing, who spent a huge amount of time crawling in and around his car in the name of proofreading my drawings and answering all my fool questions.

Hopefully now we all have a reliable resource that we can use with confidence.

Until the next revision . . .

__________________________________________________

Greetings all. Some of you may know that I have been working on some high-resolution versions of Thing wiring diagrams. I am happy to report that they are now available in the Samba Technical section. (Technical –> Wiring –> Thing)

I will use this thread to announce revisions when they are made available. Every effort has been made to make these documents as accurate as possible. I used original VW source documents where available. If you spot any typos, errors, omissions, etc. please notify me via private message and I will make the necessary changes. Please note that where the wire colors on my car, and possibly yours, differ from the source diagram, I deferred to the source diagram.

The impetus for this project was an electrical issue I had. I have seen many so-called Thing wiring diagrams, but many of them were inaccurate, incomplete, partially illegible, or not actually pertaining to the Thing. I found a pretty decent scan of a European-version current flow diagram, which actually had the 181 model number and date printed on it. I compared that to the lo-res "yellow" current flow diagram which has resided in the Technical section for a long time to confirm that the yellow diagram actually pertains to the Thing, and then I rebuilt it stick-by-stick in a vector-based drawing program, and saved it as a PDF file. If you don't know what that means let it suffice to say that you can zoom in as far as you need to to see the detail. I used the information in this diagram as a basis for the rest.

The documents (I'm just linking to the tech section. They're all there. Some of them are large, so please be patient.):

181_Current_Flow_Diagram_4-73.pdf
As I mentioned, a reasonably faithful PDF reproduction of a 181 current-flow diagram dated 4/73. It's the North American version, with the wire color change for the elephant ear tail lights and front turn signals with the shared bulb for turn signals and running lights, as well as the side marker lights. It also includes descriptions, which the "yellow" diagram lacks.

181_Wiring_Diagram_4-73.pdf
Many people find the current flow diagram to be a little daunting to decipher. This drawing is a translation of the current flow diagram into the more friendly component-based style, with pictographic representations of the electrical components roughly laid out as they are in the car. Again, it's a North American version, and includes elephant ear tail lights, the windshield wiper switch as a stalk on the column vs. a knob on the dash, etc.

181_Fuse_Block_Wiring_Detail.pdf
Just what it says - a diagram of the Fuse Box showing fuse ratings, wire sizes and colors, and terminal information where appropriate. I have posted earlier versions of this diagram in various threads. If you downloaded a prior version, please trash it and use this one. The whole point of this exercise is to make the information as definitive as possible, and the last thing we need is old inaccurate versions circulating around. Prior versions are undated. These new diagrams have a date in light gray type in the lower right corner.

181_Tail_Light_Wiring_Detail.pdf
This drawing depicts the tail light wire colors as they change at the two 4-pin connectors in the engine compartment. This issue has come up several times on the board, so I thought it deserved its own drawing. As with the fuse block drawing, if you have a previous (undated) version, please trash it.

How_to_Read_Current_Flow.pdf
A concatenation of several pages which explain how to read current flow diagrams. For some reason, scans of those pages are rarely posted together, so I put everything on one page.

Pending releases: current flow and component-based wiring diagrams for the Eberspächer BN-4 heater.

I had loads of fun doing this project, and learned a lot. We all owe a HUGE thank you to tallman206, a fellow Samba member without whose proofreading and advice these drawings would not have been possible. Thanks also to Ian Epperson, Pierre G, and everyone else who answered all of my fool questions.

Cheers!

[LuciferRex]

As always, Captain, you never cease to amaze me! Thank you!

[dcdubs]

killer....i got a guy with a thing that goes to all the shows and he's having an issue with his little brake light warning guy thank for your work it will assit me well
_________________
dcdubs/glcustoms
AllRightGarageDoorsNW.com

[Semper_Dad]

[Captain Spalding]

[mrea46]

Now that you have done all this, people far and wide will bow down at the ankles singing your praise...
Thank you ever so much.. Now could you go to Washington D.C. and show our (and I use the term loosely) president how to fix this country fro the big spenders? Please!

[SilverThing]

Nicely done! The colors are much clearer and you can even read the little numbers! I am very impressed!

If you don't mind, I will review them in more detail and compare them to the diagrams I have here in the next couple of days. I probably won't be doing any verifying with my Thing's wiring as most of it is silver from over-spray when the PO repainted the car.

[Captain Spalding]

Thanks everyone for your kind words. As I mentioned above, I had lots of help.

[kuhl 181]

Thanx Capt.
You've built a beautiful pdf, I've already started modifing it to an "as built" schematic with the things I've added ( Alt., Kill Sw.,Running Lts) for my personal use. I had a scribbled on old schematic that frankly, I couldn't understand and I was the one who drew it up about a year ago.
What you've done is trully a gift to the 181 community, Thanks again

[sediltz]

These are great downloaded and saved
Thank You

[EODinert]

Amazing! Thank you.
_________________
'61 rag top beetle, '73 type 181, '66 13 window deluxe

[uberautowerks]

Outstanding work, you are a genius and an outstanding member of this community.
Thank you,
Eric
_________________
--- The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at and repair.
- Douglas Adams -
---
'74 Thing (White)
'71 Single cab (White too)
'70 Weekender (White three)
'05 Evolution VIII (White also!!!)
'68 F-250 (White over black)

[imcjallen]

Thanks for your hard work and dedication. Excellent work.

[Captain Spalding]

Please see the update notice in the first post of this thread.

[Captain Spalding]

Hi again everyone.

In addition to the BN-4 Heater diagrams that were added recently, there is also a tune-up cheat sheet which I cooked up several months ago and submitted, but it occurs to me that I never made any sort of announcement. Look for it in the Samba Technical section (Technical>Manuals>Owner's Manuals:Thing>Tune-up Cheat Sheet). It prints out on a single letter-size page, and then folds to make a booklet that will fit easily into a toolbox or tool roll.

Cheers,

Spalding

Features:
Maintenance schedule
Tune-up/maintenance workflow
Procedure notes including parts, tools, and specifications required for
- Oil change
- Compression test
- Spark plug check/gap
- Valve adjustment
- Distributor cap and rotor check
- Condenser test
- Ignition timing

Notes on brake, carburetor, and clutch cable adjustment
Common maintenance part numbers

Here's a low-rez .jpg from the gallery. Rather than downloading it, I suggest you get the .pdf file from the technical section. It will look much better when printed.

[Captain Spalding]

Update Notice:
Date: 9/21/09
New drawing added - Alternator Conversion Wiring
Applies to alternators with built-in voltage regulators.

Technical>Wiring>Thing - bottom of the page in the "Other Wiring Diagrams" section.

[Celthing]

Capt, that is truly a fantastic wiring diagram. I noticed it a while ago, but am using it now and am very appreciative!

[Captain Spalding]

Update Notice:
Date: 1/6/01
New drawing added - Eberspächer BN-4 Ladder Diagram
Describes components of the BN-4 heater and their relationships to one another.

Technical>Wiring>Thing - bottom of the page in the "Other Wiring Diagrams" section.

Special thanks owed this time to Speedy Jim Mais, who created the source document, and to Emeritusx, who helped me wrap my head around it.

[SgtSamy]

Thx! You are awesome Captain!