How i wired up my lights this week.

1. Select your lights/wire. selecting the proper wire revolves around which lights you use. You want the smallest wire you can safely use ( this will come apparent later) yet still large enough to handle the amperage. Lets revert back to good ole Physics (Physics 132 for you OSU alumni ) Ohms law relates wattage, power, and amperage.. arranged for our need the equation is I=P/E or amps= watts/volts. I plan to wire my lights into groups of two. so if each light is 55w then each light will draw 4.58 amps. x2 is 9.16.. round to 10 amps per circuit.. based on your length of run you can use a chart to determine which gauge wire you will require.

Chart:
http://www.offroaders.com/tech/12-vo...gauge-amps.htm

Myself i need 14 gauge.

Rather then use single strand wire i opted for something with a little more weatherproofing and resistance to wear and tear..

This is called 14-4 SJ cable (same stuff used for powertool cords and equipment) Red will be my lead for my Hella FF1000's and while will supply power to my IPF cornering lights. Green and black will be grounds for each circuit.




Here is a simple schematic of what we will do. Since I'm wiring lights in pairs. we will just repeat this process twice. (since I'm not using lighted switches there will be no ground coming from the switch)




Start by mounting the relays on a plate under the dash




These little Bosch relay plug adapters will speed things up as well as clean up your work. i highly recommend them.



Install fuses as close the the battery as possible and heat shrink all exposed connections.



Run the wire back along the firewall and through a hole just above the bonnet release. The red and white power wires here will each connect to terminal #30 on your respective relay.

My switches are mounted up above the rear view mirror. they are wired to a keyed ignition source so they cant accidentally be left on. Run a power lead from a keyed power source up the A pillar and behind the headliner, also run two separate leads from the switches back down to the relays. This wire will connect to terminal #86 on the relays.





This yellow wire leading from the keyed switch to the fuse panel is a ideal location to steal power for the switches.



Ground terminal #85 to the frame. Now with the key on and the switches thrown, you should hear the relays click on and off.

Now make another run of your SJ cord from the relays up the A pillar and under the headliner The red and white leads will connect to terminal 87. Splice the black and green leads from the two runs of the SJ cable together.. This will ground your lights back to the battery (ideal rather then a frame ground for this high amperage circuit)

In order to get the wire outside, pull off the weatherstripping and using a dremel tool, make a notch in the sheet metal wide enough to pass the cord through.




Be sure to wrap the cord in electrical tape to provide an extra element of protection.. This is a close fit but it DOES clear the door, any larger wire and this will not work, if you are running lower amperage light and can get away with 16 or even 18 Ga wire this will work no problem.



Then notch the weatherstripping and reinstall and route cable up toward the rack.



Then run the cable over to your lights and make the connections, wire loom if you so desire and test out!

 

Did you run the wires on the outside if the rack or I know I seen someone took the time to run them through the tubes of the rack?

 

right now the wires are just in a wire loom and zip tied to the rack. after a test drive tonight I'm going to swap out the IPF lights for another set of Hella FF1000's. Then i may route the wire through the tubing.

 

Good job!
Get any techincal help from anyone we know?

 

I gotta say WOW on the orange paint. I never seen a D1 that color before

 

Its always a good idea to seek advice when attempting to conquer the electrical gremlins of Lucas

 

People either instantly love it or think its hideous. I've never seen another D1 orange before either.

 

Start a new thread and show your CB radio antenna mount and the inside installation of the radio unit.

 

Yeah im kinda liking the orange, it definatly stands out over the rest I see on the road

 

It reminds me of the newer G4 editions. Almost the same orange. You could probably even get some G4 decals and fool some folks. And for the record I think it is sweet looking. Only color I like better on a rover is yellow. I am just a yellow kinda guy. Sweet orange though.