HID Spotlight cut-out switch - help needed please

Dear All,

Please know that I have searched the forum for an answer to what must be to some a very simple question. I have not found anything clear enough for me to apply thus this new thread. This is a long post as I want to include as much explanation as I can.

Now I would normally take this problem to an auto electrician and have him sort it out - but I'm all out of funds (as I shall explain) and I need to do this job myself as its my daily driver. I spoke to a very nice auto electrician and got the feeling it might start getting dear again. They charge £70 + vat per Hr for labour then parts. I don't think I would get away under £200 from what he was saying.

1 Why I need to do the job.
As some my know recently I had the three amigos light up.
This lead to an on-going saga of where is my £420 and will the real Jon Daunter Ltd please stand up (all caused by faulty advice from a plonker at Aylmer). Currently being investigated by my card company and if that turns out no go, this forum has given me some advice on what to do next.
The 3 Amigos then lead to Aylmer Motors putting in a new ABS (almost as a favour it seems) and charging me £1800 for parts and labour.
The day after I picked it up the brakes failed completely (ABS is ok, however I just could not stop at 20mph). The Sevo had gone and the brake lines had burst. < 24 hours after collection.
I could not trust then again and took it to AJD who sorted me and seem very nice but that was another £500.
Aylmer have rejected my complaint out of hand and I'm considering what to do next.
On a nurses wage these are big numbers.

2 The spot light problem
I brought my 2002 '52 plate Land Rover Td5 110 form Nene. I listed to the sales things advice and had the spotlights/driving light I wanted wired to main beam. When I finally collected the Vehicle the driving lights had turned in Terrafirma 8 inch HID lamps.
Now I have to use high beam fairly regularly on an A road on the way home from work. When I switch to high beam the spot lights come on.
a) They must illuminate up to about 1K down the road. I'm sure the law will have something to say.
b) They flicker something shocking. A forum search suggests the ballasts are earthed badly.
c) My radio stops working when the HID spots are on. Another forum search suggests that I run an earth wire form the bulkhead to the chassis.

All I want to do is put a very simple toggle switch on the positive side of the relay so I can have normal high beam without spots and spots only when I have high beam and I turn them on. I would also like to fix the radio issue if possible.

If anybody can give me a really simple guide / instructions to doing this I would be eternally grateful.

I'm very fearful that Mrs NatoTea is going to get the right hump and The Landy will have to go. I waited over 20 years for one and now its biting me.

I promise that if anybody on here ever post a medical question I'll be all over it.

Thanks in advance.

NatoTea

(tried to upload some photos but I have a security token issue or something - sorry)

there are thousands of threads on this forum on how to wire up driving/spot/fog lamps.

The basic method is get a relay. run a live from the battery. to the relay. run a wire from the Highbeam feed to a switch then from switch to the switched feed on the relay. then wire the lamps to the relay and finally earth it.

And jobs a good un.

If they're that bright why not disconnect them from the main beam and have the on a stand alone switch, simply on or off regardless of the main beam. It's got to be simpler than the setup you've described.

Thoughts????

Thanks Redhand,

Yes I appreciate there are lots of threads on how to do it from scratch. I really have tried to understand them.
However its already wired in, Nene did that.
They omitted the switch.
I'm trying to reverse engineer what they did, and I don't think it matches what you described.
I just want to pop a switch into the circuit as a cut out.

I think the headlight relay is on the panel by the gear stick (3rd from right)
Is this the right relay for spotlight already linked to the high beam feed?

Would I just find the positive feed to the relay and put a switch on that and then plug it to the switched feed of the relay?

I think the auto electrician wanted to rip it all out but I'm sure there must be an easy answer.

Thanks for the reply.

Remove the feed from the headlamp wire. and extend it into the cab. fit it to a switch then return the wire back to where ya removed it from the relay. that way the switch will break the circuit until you turn it on.

The extra lamps should have their own relay. But if Nene fitted em Anything is possible.

Dear Marmaduke,

Yeah I did wonder about that.
I was under the impression (from reading on here) that spots needed to be linked to the main beam for legal reasons.

I was sure I just needed to identify the right wire - put a switch in that wire and attach it back on the relay.

But it seems I was naive.

Cheers
NT

your best bet is to either find another landyzone member local yto you. who will take a look or buy a wiring kit from Halfords. Then disconnect the wiring from the lamps and start again.

Thankyou redhand for being patient with me
I'm very stressed over repairs at the moment and just want her to work properly.

Right so I just have to identify where Nene tapped into the high beam feed.

I had a look earlier but I'll go out again at 1st light.
Cheers

OK - If I cant find the tap in point in the high beam circuit I may well go and get the kit and start again.

Just follow the live wire back from the lights

Try and trace the wires back from your spot lights, that will lead you to the relay for them. From there you'll be able to find the the wire that taps into your main beam.

On my '88 tratter the wiring loom runs down the left hand side of the engine bay so it might be along there or on the bulk head.

If in doubt get your camera out.

Thank you all
Yep I now have a plan, gunna trace the wires. I even think I know what colours I should be looking for (some chance).
I dont have an indoor garage and it has been ****ing down here all day. I have sat by the window with the Haynes manual with no joy, not even let up for 30 mins. I did not think electric in the rain was a good idea, I did think about it but came over all sensible.
I'm really hoping to crack this and will report back when I've had my head under the bonnet.
Cheers

Marmaduke said:

Try and trace the wires back from your spot lights, that will lead you to the relay for them. From there you'll be able to find the the wire that taps into your main beam.

On my '88 tratter the wiring loom runs down the left hand side of the engine bay so it might be along there or on the bulk head.

If in doubt get your camera out.

Click to expand...

What Marmaduke says. Follow the cabling back from the spots and it should lead you to a relay or relays if they have used one per lamp. Identify the switched feed to the relay (which should be the wire tapped into your existing main beam) and merely insert your extra switch into that cable between the relay and the existing main beam feed to enable/disable the spots but leave the normal main beam working. If they have not used a relay but merely tapped into the main beam feeds then you need to wire it properly and it may be why you get flicker. If the HIDs are flickering its because they are not getting either full supply voltage or are badly earthed.

Dear all,
SUCCESS !
I have followed all your good advice and found the relay, and basically did as you all outlined.
I can now have side / dip / main / full or full + spot, when and if I choose.
My soldering needs work but I"m sure that will come with time and landy ownership.
I was careful to run the cables not near anything that might get hot and got them behind the dash to a switch. Now its done I can relax and maybe think about making the switch more aesthetically pleasing if I get the chance.

I'm 99% sure that the flickering is a bad earth and have read up the threads and have a plan formed for next time its not raining sideways.
All I can say is the 'professional' installation was not exactly textbook - more what ever was quick.

Again a big thank-you to everybody for their patiences and guidance.