I am wiring up my car and the universal wiring loom I bought uses a seperate circuit for brake lights, turn signals and running lights however the cheap Duolamp reproductions I have only 2 leads. Do any of you know of any 3 lead tail lights I can use or do I need to modify these lights? I am in a time crunch and would rather get something off the shelf. I would also like to use a simple toggle switch to operate the blinkers however the loom I have wants a GM turn signal switch installed. Have any of you done this and what does it take? Is there a store bought circuit I could use for this mod? I don't want to clutter up my steering column with one of those ugly add-ons. Thanks in advance Todd
I wired mine like that.....if by 2 leads you mean 2 wires....one is for running lights, the other is for brake/turn signal. The light grounds through the housing. I don't have a schematic on it, but if someone doesn't post something by the end of the day I'll figure it out after werk.
Affirmative, three leads is 3 wires 1 for turn signal 1 for running lights 1 for brake lights grounded through housing as you noted Currently I only have 2 leads one for running lights and one for everything else Does anyone have a US source for something similar as I don't have a week and a half to wait for British parts?
Just went thru this. Hook them up with the two wires/leads as instructed above, if the lights dim or don't work, try running a ground wire from the inside housing of the lights to the frame. Mine seemed not to ground thru the housing. Now they run fine. As for a toggle switch you'll need one that has two stages or modes. And don't forget the blinker relay.
You won't find 3 lead tail lights. Because the bulb itself only has 2 filaments. If the wiring kit won't sort out the brake & turn signal to interrupt the brake light and allow flashing, then you need either A- more tail lights to seperate the brake & turn to different lenses. B- a "box" that sorts out the brake & signals to a single wire. There are domestic manufacturers, google, call Vaphead or speedway. You'll find it in stock somewhere. C- in a pinch you could setup a pair of relays that would interrupt the brake wire voltage when the signal is activated. You'd use a relay on each side's brake wire setup to interrupt off the (continuous) signal from signal lever. Good luck.
the other way to do it is, get a cheap column mounted turn signal switch and run your wires into there. i have a double pole, double throw (DPDT) toggle switch on the dash for turn lights, and trust me when i tell you, the box from Mart, or another maker, is the only way to go. you cannot "simply" put a toggle switch inline and make it work. and before someone goes off on trailer splitters, tried that too, and they dont work right. period. Eric (Vaphead) MIGHT have something like this, but i believe he only carries the column switch
I like the old turn signal selectors that were sold as an add on. To use these I have to run a third lamp for th turn signals. The problem comes up when you are turning while applying the brake. To work correctly you need a way to isolate the brake light feed from the side that is blinking so that it will continue to blink. I don't know how to do that with a toggle switch. Some add on turn signal switches run the brake light feed through the switch for this purpose. There may be some complicated way to do it with relays and **** but I like things simple. The small lights below the bed are strictly turn signal lights. The chrome football inside the nerf bar is a separate turn signal arrow pointing to each side. In both cases the dual filament tail lights work as running and brake lights. The blinkers are separate lamps that could easily be selected with a toggle switch if you like.
I thank you guys for your responses, here are some other pics taken when the car was in one piece. It is currently in a pile of freshly painted parts. I'm aiming to have it back together for Billetproof so if it makes it there just know that it was put back together hastily. Here are some other pics:
That hack is over the top!!!!!!!LUV IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!But what's with the aftermarket wiring, trying to get away from the Prince of Darkness?
very nice project you have there, i dont have a quick solution for your problem. But i know that 1960 and 1961 vw bugs are wired this way. one (2)-filament bulb to operate, running lights, turn signal and brake light. Its been a while since i wired my bug....but.....the brake hydraulic switch is wired to your turn signal switch, where it splits and the turn signal switch will allow eather or to blink when switched or both will come on for brakes. you can probably look at the wire schematics of a 60 or 61 bug and figure it out and modify yours to work. if you dont have easy access to one I have a wire diagram buried in my garage but cant get to it till tomorrow....let me know if you need it........... i hope this helps
I may have to use hand signals if I can't sort out the wiring in time but I'm hell bent on having it there. Since my original post this morning I have got in touch with an auto wiring guru and he is coming over tonight to take a look and see what can be done. I will probably end up slamming the car together and then dropping it off at his place for wires this weekend. Wish me luck
You can buy a toggle switch that can handle turn and brake lights using the same filament without any add-on relays, etc ... http://www.centechwire.com/catalog/accessories/tsw1.shtml
I got mine from American Autowire, but it's the same switch. I can't find my instructions for the switch and my wires are all taped up on the car so I can't tell you how to do it. But, that switch is what you need and it should come with the how-to.
It's a 4.2 litre Jaguar engine from a 1974 XJ6 dressed up in valve covers, waterpump and fan off an XK120.The intake is from a Mk10. The exhaust is obviously homemade but it's inspired by WW1 Liberty engine. I have hit some snags while ***embling it and it no longer looks like I will be making it to Billetproof. Although it saddens me to admit defeat it does give me a chance to finish it right and not scimp on any details. There is always next year I guess and plenty of other shows during the summer. Todd
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