let there be light

[rubbachicken]

i took a 10 gauge cable directly from the battery through under the floor up under the dash, and connected through an inline fuse directly to the relays
_________________
lucy our westy

lucy's BIG adventure

meet 'burni'

[RBEmerson]

FWIW, good wiring practice calls for the fuse to be close to the source (e.g., battery) and not to the load. Develop a short (e.g. wear through the insulation) between the source and the fuse, and your day won't be quite as good as you'd like.
_________________
Lord, give me coffee to change the things I can change, and wine to accept the things I can't change.

[thatvwbusguy]

Wow, that is some nice looking wiring you have in there.

The heat from 130W bulbs in the small inner lens would definitely concern me for a couple reasons.

The rated lifespan of any filament bulb suffers with excess heat, so be sure to carry a couple spares with you until you know what to expect for longevity.

The second concern would be the plastic connectors at the rear of the lens housings. I have seen this plastic distort from too much heat after running 100W bulbs in the inner lens. An additional 30W should only make matters worse. I usually recommend using ceramic sockets for anything over stock wattage, but in this instance I don't think there is anything available.

To be safe, keep an eye on the condition of the connectors and let us know how you fare with bulb life.
_________________
Jay Brown
'85 Zetec Westfalia
Newmarket, NH


If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion.

[rubbachicken]

[RBEmerson]

Da nada.

Although I don't do a lot of automotive wiring, I do enough of it on boats. A fuse 5' from the connection to the power source is a mistake I find too often. Also, where possible, go with the ATO fuses (plastic case, two blades sticking out of the bottom of the case). Radio Shack sells a good in-line case with a cover (oddly, most car places sell a socket with no cover - fine inside a closed space, but useless if water can get into the the space).

Glass Buss fuses, IMHO, should be banned. Here's why: Bringing our boat back from the Abacos (NW Bahama), we stopped on the Little Bahama Bank (big sandy wet area north of Grand Bahama) to check the engine before pushing on across the Gulf Stream to Florida. Belts, fluids, etc. all checked out. "OK, dear, turn on the ignition" "It is on." SILENCE Long story short, the fuse protecting the engine panel (and the overheat and oil pressure screamers) failed. It didn't pop. It looked 100% OK. But one end cap had worked loose just enough to break the connection with the fusible link. Of course we had spares but imagine the fuse doing this to your headlights... [/rant]
_________________
Lord, give me coffee to change the things I can change, and wine to accept the things I can't change.

[climberjohn]

[rubbachicken]

[RBEmerson]

Good move on the fuse! If possible, support the new fuse holder so the vibration from driving doesn't shake things loose.

I installed a new "smart" voltage regulator (three charging stages [bulk, absorb, trickle] among other tricks) on the boat and had a wake-up call about the fuse holder.

Balmar, the regulator maker, didn't leave much wire between the holder and terminal on the end of the wire. Unfortunately, the terminal was the wrong size for the stud I was connecting to, so I had to replace it with the right size. Which left almost no slack between the terminal and the holder. The terminal failed from the holder vibrating back and forth. I had to replace the holder altogether. Needless to say, it's now strapped down so it won't cause the same problem again.
_________________
Lord, give me coffee to change the things I can change, and wine to accept the things I can't change.

[olivelawn]

Does anyone know if fuzzymath's relay making and install instructions work on an '85 and below?

[thatvwbusguy]

No need to cut any wires for 80-85 Vanagon's. The back of the fuse block is all standard 1/4" male terminals.

https://sites.google.com/site/vanagonheadlightrelays/headlight-relays/80to85/80-85-fuse-block

Terminal #30 - 12V constant - 1/4" female fully insulated disconnect
Terminal #85 - Ground - 1/4" female disconnect
Terminal #86 - Trigger - 1/4" male fully insulated disconnect (must be big enough to accept stock female connector).
Terminal #87 - Output - 1/4" female fully insulated disconnect

I make kits specifically for 80-85 Vanagon's:

https://sites.google.com/site/vanagonheadlightrelays/headlight-relays/80to85

Bus Depot has them as well.
_________________
Jay Brown
'85 Zetec Westfalia
Newmarket, NH


If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion.