Do Rheostats catch fire?

[Rich in Vancouver]

I did a quick search and came up with this headlight relay circuit.
http://www.humanspeakers.com/audi/headlight-simple.htm
It is very straightforward and could be easily adapted for driving lights and cooling fans. The relay terminals appear to follow the same numbering system as Triumph so if you have Triumph relays they should be straightforward to hook up for a stock appearance

Richard


1975 TR7 ACL764U

[bottomtop]

I saw the relay and loom set up on the VB catalogue, but I am wondering whether AUS and UK spec cars are compatible, given the "Pectron"/flasher circut that the US cars apparently don't have?

[bottomtop]

Well after much physical origami I removed and cleaned the switch with contact cleaner. There was a fair bit of green oxidisation inside it - now removed. It passes the smell test now, but I will also do the Rheostat with the contact cleaner too to be sure.

Once again thanks for your help on this forum.

Does anybody have a view on the above question, re whether the relay loom from VB's catalog works on UK spec cars with the flasher circuit.

[Rich in Vancouver]

I bought a used wiring harness that came from a US car and it came with a Pektron wired in. Are you sure that they were meant to be UK only?

Rich

1975 TR7 ACL764U

[bottomtop]

That's interesting. I had thought that the flasher/pektron was not in US cars, having read that somewhere in the past, but I could be wrong.

[Henk]

Well, not in a 1980 us car, my car has definitly not a pektron for flashing.

Henk

1980 TR7 US Convertible
1978 Mini Clubman Estate

[bottomtop]

The Smell is back! and what's more, the nut at the bottom of the Rheostat got so hot within a minute yesterday that it very nearly burned me. I am wondering if the rheostat itself is not the problem, but some short in the wiring that goes to it? In particular, is it normal that that intensity of the dash lights is as follows:
(1) Bright when on first (park lights) position;
(2) Dip lower just after moving to second (headlamp on) on position while lights are raising; and
(3) Come brighter after the lights have raised, but still not as bright as they were when the parkers only were on.

It really worries me that there is no heat problem there when the parkers are on, only when the headlamps are on....(and then only intermittently).

[bmcecosse]

Can only imagine that the wiring is somehow wrong - and a very heavy current is being drawn through the rheostat - when of course it should only supply the tiny panel lights.

[FI Spyder]

There's got to be a short in the circuit that goes through the rheostat somewhere. You've got to trace it down or risk burning out you're wiring loom or worse your car. It's happened to me in my Hillman station wagon and my Japanese Dodge Colt (in both cases it was in primary ignition wiring looms though). Not fun.

TR7 Spider - 1978 Spifire - 1976 Spitfire - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra