I neglected to add a relay after rewiring my lights. Tried looking them up online and found a confusing amount of different relays, but nothing that said it was specifically for headlights. Any recommendations?
Pretty much a relay is a relay , it doesn't care what its powering , only criteria is the amp capacity .
I expect you want two relays, one for low beam, one for high beam. The relay coils will be powered by the wires that used to go to the headlights themselves. The switch side of the relays will get power from a new large, fused wire from the battery. The other side of the relay switches will go to the headlights themselves. here's a diagram I swiped off the internet. Shows what you need to do. Personally, I'd use a higher quality (meaning old OEM) headlight and dimmer switch, and heavier gauge wire, instead of relays to solve any problems related to headlight brightness, on an old car
The problem with stock wiring is adding Halogen sealed beam headlights so that you can actually see objects at night. The higher current draw (Amps) is not old wiring friendly. Over the years, I have used the relay setup (see squirrel's post #4 above) on a few vehicles. New headlight sockets and ground wires. The 12 gauge wire is also an important detail. Now back to the dim, yellow colored, headlights are traditional posts (because everyone wants to look like a 6 Volt VW).
huh, I have used halogen sealed beams in several old cars with original wiring, and they work fine. I guess I'm just lucky? The current draw is not significantly more than non-halogen lights. I'd be looking for where voltage drop might be in the system, and see about fixing the cause of it, instead of using a band aid. But you all can do whatever you want.
Band aid for me, I was not up to digging into wrapped wiring harnesses and finding replacements for crusty old stock wiring connectors.
I only have a heavy duty toggle switch run to the high beams. The headlights are tilted enough that it shouldn't be a bother to other drivers. Foot space is so limited, I don't have an accessible spot for a dimmer switch. The reason I figured it needed a relay, was when I first tried them, one blew... Electrical engineering is not one of my strengths!
Since you are asking about headlight relays and mention that you don't have a dimmer switch I will mention what I have. Back when Rod & Custom was still in print, Chris Shelton did an article on using a late model Volkswagen headlight dimmer relay along with the pertinent part numbers but unfortunately, I haven't been able to find that article. I did this to my car since I didn't have the necessary space for a foot operated dimmer switch. I switch the relay with a turn signal stalk mounted momentary switch from Ron Francis. It works good. If you find a smart partsman at the VW dealership, they could find the right part. It most likely is used on more than one model of car.
If a headlight burned out, you might have too much voltage going to it. usually this is due to a voltage regulator not working, or else you had a 6v bulb in a 12v system. This is no reason to add relays to the system. If you connect low beam instead of high beam, and adjust the headlight where it's supposed to be pointed, you'd probably be better off.
.............Don't feel obligated to putting your "foot operated" dimmer switch on a floor with tight space. Mine is mounted under the left side of the dash, easily reached and operated with my left hand.
I’ve had halogen and no relay for 6 years. Never blow a fuse or anything. I too like the better lighting. I did replace the dash light switch first.
Here is part of the R&C article: See my hand written notes on the schematic above. The ground is controlled by a momentary switch. I used a motorcycle kill ****on. Each activation of the memory switch moves the relay latch from high to low beam and back. The VW latching relay dimmer is #111-941-583 or Napa Echlin #AR 284 or DNI 0127 I can provide wiring info to anyone who messages me. Phil
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