1973 Thing Reverse lights - reverse switch wiring

[citroen]

if you can get by with it all you need is a toggle switch to replace the switch on the transmission when you put it in reverse put the switch by your seat and flip it when you put it in reverse for the inspection fix it right after the inspection

[Ian Epperson]

[skills@eurocarsplus]

i just did this job today. you can get to the switch, but its a pita. glad i had it on the lift, i would not want to do it on my back
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[kubelmann]

Thin(g) of this solution. After disconnecting the battery, attach a spade connector crimped a wire to the fuse box in the terminal that shares the tail light. Then run it to a switch and take the wire to the light that connects the pos side of the reverse lights. When you put it in reverse flip the switch and it will turn on the reverse lights. Then turn the switch off when you take it out of reverse gear. Another advantage of this set-up is the ability to hit the reverse lights when some bad guy is hitting you with high beams from behind...

[microCADDY]

Just chiming in on this cause after fixing my engine dieing if i put it in reverse I now have no reverse lights & now no brake lights..

Here is how my coil is wired

the red & yellow are on 1 plug in

& what is this white with green wire from my wiring harness

any help is helping

THANKS Mike

[Semper_Dad]

[4thgenlude]

I just wanted to post up a massive THANK YOU! to the Samba folks for this thread. Helped find the reverse light switch and re-wire the circuit to get this THING legal and back on the road.

Cheers!

[stevewp]

I am helping someone with a 74 thing and wanted to open up this thread again.

The backup lights do not work. I have been under the car 2 times and cannot find the transmission switch. I know it is supposed to be on the passenger side at the nose cone but I just cannot find it. It is making me wonder if it has been removed and a plug installed.

I did find 1/2 of of a bakelite in-line fuse wire wrapped around the wire harness in the engine compartment to the right of the cooling shroud next to the engine wall. The other end of the wire is bare.

I have taken a picture of this area and placed 2 arrows on it. I think the blue wire is the backup wire that would go to the transmission backup switch. I believe the orange arrow points to the connector that the in-line bakelite wire would connect to (unfortunately my wire is bare and not connected to a connector).

Can someone confirm this? If the blue arrow points to the backup light wire, I should be able to trace where it goes and maybe find the backup switch in the transmission.

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'68 Beetle
73 Ghia vert
74 Thing (my Dad's but I assist with)
86 Vanagon Westy
04 new beetle (given to my niece, Carina)
09 Jetta Sportwagen

[citroen]

yes that is the wire and maybe this will help

[JayC]

Does the wire from the nose cone that connects to the main wiring harness come through the same whole in the firewall as the wiring harness? I seem to remember when I took everything apart, the wire was just kind of wedged between the engine and the firewall. Trying to get it right as I put it back together

Any pictures of where the wire comes through?

jay

[stevewp]

I was able to find the reverse switch after looking at the photo. It was covered in black stuff and not easy to see.

What I am having trouble with now is locating and re-attaching the wires that connected to the reverse switch.

There are 3 wires that exit the harness in the rear seat spring area. I found a hole in th bottom of the tunnel that makes me think the tube containing the 3 wires descends thru the hole. I cannot find where these wires attach in the engine compartment. They are not connected to ground and not connected to positive.

I also have a connector in the engine compartment that may just need a spade connector stuck on it. When I supply 12 volts to this connector, both reverse lights turn on.

Right now, there is nothing attached to the reverse switch. The 3 mystery wires under the rear seat are not grounded and have no voltage.


I do have a half bakelight connector attached to the wire that was wrapped around this area. I removed that and kept it. I found another full bakelite to hold a fuse and to connect to terminal 15.

So my question is to what should the 3 wires I found under the seat connect?

What should the connector in the engine compartment connect to?

This is a 74 thing. We have been studying a 73 schematic but I would think the wiring would be the same.

Here are the photos of what I am seeing:

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'68 Beetle
73 Ghia vert
74 Thing (my Dad's but I assist with)
86 Vanagon Westy
04 new beetle (given to my niece, Carina)
09 Jetta Sportwagen

[Semper_Dad]

Yellow/Red stripe - Diagnostic wire, no longer used - Pin 7 on Diag plug
Brown Wire - Diagnostic wire, No longer used - Pin 8 on Diag plug

The connector in the picture is T1c I believe. Transmission switch should be between it and your power source (+ side of coil via bakelite fuse)
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Walküre Restoration Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=737492

[stevewp]

well you have a good point. We really need to know the color of the wires to determine. Why would the diagnostic wires be extended to underneath the back seat?

That does not make any sense to me. But if we trace the wires to the diagnostic port, then you are exactly right.

Steven
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'68 Beetle
73 Ghia vert
74 Thing (my Dad's but I assist with)
86 Vanagon Westy
04 new beetle (given to my niece, Carina)
09 Jetta Sportwagen

[Semper_Dad]

The diagnostic wire under the seat were to monitor the battery. I believe one was for water (electrolyte) level, the other to check ground at the battery itself.

Wire colors are important as I can check them against the wiring diagram.
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Walküre Restoration Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=737492