Does a td5 Defender need better headlight wiring?

[hpal]

I've been looking at getting rid of my 2x 100w driving lights and replacing the headlights with led's to ease the load on the wiring. I have had to replace the dim/dip blinker switch because it burnt out and the main headlight switch has only lasted two years. Now, this is a late TD5 and I thought they had realys to ease the wiring load?? There are relays thats for sure, but, does the full current still go through the switches?? If the relays were wired properly shouldn't there be little load on the switches just like a normal car? Or is it a poorly thought out landrover/Lucas trap like everything else electric on these things?

The led's I was looking at are 105w total, they guy selling says he also has a plug in harness that'll relay the load to the light circuit. I wonder if this is worth it on a td5 or will I just be duplicating the current wiring?

Any help/input appreciated.

[Leyland1980]

Definitely get a traxide headlight upgrade kit.

[jon3950]

The full current goes through the switch. The relay is only there to switch the headlights on or off with the ignition. It is worth adding relays and also increasing the wire size to reduce the voltage drop at the headlamps. The Traxide kit is a relatively simple way to achieve this.

I have recently done this as well as upgrading the bulbs to Philips extreme vision 130%. I'm very pleased with the result. Personally I'm not a fan of led, I find the light too harsh. The Philips bulbs have increased the light output quite significantly as well as making hte light slightly whiter without being too blue. A much cheaper option than leds and I find much easier to drive behind than the leds of the Adventure model.

Cheers,
Jon

[hpal]

Cheers Jon,
I was wondering why my switches kept burning out when there are relays in there. What a crap system. So I'll find out about this wiring kit he sells and if it does a similar thing to the traxide one I'll put it in, it's a lot cheaper.

[jimr1]

[QUOTE=hpal;2679215]I've been looking at getting rid of my 2x 100w driving lights and replacing the headlights with led's to ease the load on the wiring. I have had to replace the dim/dip blinker switch because it burnt out and the main headlight switch has only lasted two years. Now, this is a late TD5 and I thought they had realys to ease the wiring load?? There are relays thats for sure, but, does the full current still go through the switches?? If the relays were wired properly shouldn't there be little load on the switches just like a normal car? Or is it a poorly thought out landrover/Lucas trap like everything else electric on these things?

The led's I was looking at are 105w total, they guy selling says he also has a plug in harness that'll relay the load to the light circuit. I wonder if this is worth it on a td5 or will I just be duplicating the current wiring?
Your driving lights should go through a relay , some people use one per light , I've only ever used one and never had a problem . They must run in conjunction with high beam , it can be switched off via a switch . You should also use a relay if you want to up grade your head lights as well . The headlight high /low switch is not up to pulling extra power through . Regards Jim

[Markf]

Any help/input appreciated.

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