Thread: Relays for D2a Upgrade Headlights

Originally Posted by gavinwibrow

Given that Tim/Traxide doen't have a kit, and I'm about to get the job done on my MY04, has anyone added relays for their headlights, and if so did you fit just the one or one for each light or any other variation? I'd like to make life easy/know the best option for my auto elec.

My dual relay from Traxide arrived in the mail this week. I intend to fit it to my D2a's. Will let you know.

But it's a dual relay - one of the relays does the low beam and the other does the high beam. You'll need a single trigger wire for each relay (i.e. a low and high beam trigger wire). You'll want a power wire directly connected to the battery and fused (either two 15amp wires or a single 30amp wire). All up it doesn't look overly complicated to wire in.

Pics?

what pedro said

Originally Posted by Pedro_The_Swift

Pics?

Of what the relay? If so, pictures and wiring diagrams are shown on Traxide's side. No one has actually done anything yet in this thread, the original poster is just asking for information...

Originally Posted by twr7cx

My dual relay from Traxide arrived in the mail this week. I intend to fit it to my D2a's. Will let you know.

But it's a dual relay - one of the relays does the low beam and the other does the high beam. You'll need a single trigger wire for each relay (i.e. a low and high beam trigger wire). You'll want a power wire directly connected to the battery and fused (either two 15amp wires or a single 30amp wire). All up it doesn't look overly complicated to wire in.

If you do this it would be helpful to take a step by step photo guide. So that people like me who have no idea about electrics have a chance to copy!!

Thanks!!

Tim doesn't offer a kit because there isn't a way to make it plug and play with the D2a headlight housings. Getting a clean/neat install with the D2a headlights will require a bit of planning.

You could drill holes in the back of the headlight assembly and chop up the harness, but it's going to end up looking pretty damn ugly - I guess that isn't an issue for some.

Off the top of the head (and without access to a headlight unit) way to tackle this while retaining headlight assembly integrity might be to:

1) Upgrade wiring for HIGH, LOW, GND for the headlights internally in the H/L housing

2) Remove HIGH, LOW, GND for the headlights from external plug.

3) Remove plug contacts and replace with push-on crimp fittings to suit relays.

4) Make up cables for run from relay to headlight plug. Push on crimp fitting at relay end, crimp contact to suit plug housing at the other.

5) Adapt the Traxide wiring diagram to suit.

Obviously untried and untested, but that is how I'd tackle it.

cheers
Paul

Originally Posted by OffTrack

Tim doesn't offer a kit because there isn't a way to make it plug and play with the D2a headlight housings. Getting a clean/neat install with the D2a headlights will require a bit of planning.

You could drill holes in the back of the headlight assembly and chop up the harness, but it's going to end up looking pretty damn ugly - I guess that isn't an issue for some.

Off the top of the head (and without access to a headlight unit) way to tackle this while retaining headlight assembly integrity might be to:

1) Upgrade wiring for HIGH, LOW, GND for the headlights internally in the H/L housing

2) Remove HIGH, LOW, GND for the headlights from external plug.

3) Remove plug contacts and replace with push-on crimp fittings to suit relays.

4) Make up cables for run from relay to headlight plug. Push on crimp fitting at relay end, crimp contact to suit plug housing at the other.

5) Adapt the Traxide wiring diagram to suit.

Obviously untried and untested, but that is how I'd tackle it.

cheers
Paul

Many thanks Paul. At the risk of sounding more like a complete idiot, does this suggest that the 2a upgrade headlights have larger wiring and would not benefit as much as earlier models from the proposed mods, or are we still at risk of burning out our headlight switches - especially for those of us that have put the stronger bulbs in (NOT HIDs)?
Afterthought - if these lights are also in D3 etc, do they not have the same issues/problems?

Originally Posted by OffTrack

Tim doesn't offer a kit because there isn't a way to make it plug and play with the D2a headlight housings. Getting a clean/neat install with the D2a headlights will require a bit of planning.

You could drill holes in the back of the headlight assembly and chop up the harness, but it's going to end up looking pretty damn ugly - I guess that isn't an issue for some.

Off the top of the head (and without access to a headlight unit) way to tackle this while retaining headlight assembly integrity might be to:

1) Upgrade wiring for HIGH, LOW, GND for the headlights internally in the H/L housing

2) Remove HIGH, LOW, GND for the headlights from external plug.

3) Remove plug contacts and replace with push-on crimp fittings to suit relays.

4) Make up cables for run from relay to headlight plug. Push on crimp fitting at relay end, crimp contact to suit plug housing at the other.

5) Adapt the Traxide wiring diagram to suit.

Obviously untried and untested, but that is how I'd tackle it.

cheers
Paul

You are correct Paul in that the internal wiring of the D2a headlight is probably messy to change over/upgrade.

It really comes down to the purpose of why you are fitting the headlight relays in.

For me, the purpose of fitting the dual relay is to avoid the voltage drop from having to go through the headlight switch and the MOSFETs and also to attempt to prolonge the life of the headlight switch which is often regarded to fail due to the power going through it.
Having read through and discussed it in thread http://www.aulro.com/afvb/discovery-...ht-wiring.html it seems that the MOSFETs are regarded the cause of the voltage drop rather than insufficient wiring.

So for my intents and purpose I do not intend to upgrade the internal wiring of the D2a headlight. I just intend to fit the dual relay so that the factory power going through the headlamp switch and MOSFETs becomes the trigger wire and a new power wire goes into the headlight wiring loom from the relay as close as I can neatly get it into the factory wiring loom.

So I will run a new main power wire fused from the battery to the dual relay, I will run the factory high low headlamp power wires to the relay to become the trigger wires, I will run new power wire to each headlamp from the relay, and earth the relay.