Wiring replacement headlights

Submitted: Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 08:01

ThreadID: 38188 Views:5858 Replies:9 FollowUps:12

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Member - Pesty (SA)

Hi all, have a curly one for the auto electric experts amoungst us.
Have one of the last 60 series with the twin headlights, and needed to replace a couple so thought this would be a good time to upgrade.
The original lights are sealed beams, and the new ones are semi sealed beams with H4 globes in.
Now I have a pretty good knowledge of the auto electric system and knew that toyota and apparently some other jap car manufactureers have a odd wiring for there headlights.
OK so I thought i would beat this so made a complete new H/L wiring loom into 2 relays , one for high beam and one for low beam, pushed the original system back into car outa the way and presto , it doesnt work properly!
Funny I knew it wouldnt LOL
Activating each one seperatly off a 12v source they work a treat, but they cannot be activated by the existing wiring system !
Seems that they need the lights in the system to complete the circuit.
This is where the problem lays, activating the relays for highbeam and lowbeam, so after racking my brain for far to long, went to see mechanic mate and we played around and poured over the wiring diagram for a while and the whole system works on positives only with a negative only coming off the OE relays.
Now im sure there is a way around this and once known will be simple to fix , and it may mean using a different type of relay or something but it is a weird wring system that is used.
So, does anyone know the trick in getting this to work or able to shed some light on the subject?

Thanks

Cheers Pesty

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Reply By: Member - Robert (WA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 09:10

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 09:10

Hi
I think you have to use a change over relay for the earth as the earth goes back to the dipper switch and 2 relays for the positive side of lights 1 low beam 1high beam
hope this helps
Robert

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AnswerID: 197426

Reply By: Member - Phil G (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 09:32

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 09:32

Pesty,
I've done this to a single headlight 60series many years ago - got it to work, but still couldn't get the high beam dashlight to work. Took me a whole day fiddling and with the multimeter to make it happen. Swore I'd never do it again!!!

The looms from ARB are good value, and you plug it in and it works! Take you 30 minutes to fit it. The ARB loom has 3 relays. one of which is changeover relay. Cost me just over $100 for the loom.

Cheers
Phil

AnswerID: 197428

Follow Up By: Member - Phil G (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 12:29

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 12:29

Pesty,
in case I haven't turned you off it yet, this link for an 80series should be the same as your twin headlight 60series. They are both negatively switched.

FollowupID: 455946

Follow Up By: Member - Pesty (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:35

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:35

Thanks Phil looks like the 3 relays is part of the deal.

Cheers pesty

FollowupID: 456033

Reply By: Member - Robert (WA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 09:50

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 09:50

try this web site
Robert
http://dsl.torque.net/images/Relays.pdf#search=%2260%20series%20headlight%20wire%20upgrade%22

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AnswerID: 197431

Follow Up By: Member - Pesty (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:21

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:21

Thanks Robert for the links and the email.

Cheers Pesty

FollowupID: 456027

Reply By: Mike Harding - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 12:38

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 12:38

I'm perplexed (story of my life really :).

If the old wiring worked and all you wanted to do was change the type of globe, which I don't imagine would affect anything else, why did you want to change the wiring too? Why not just stay with the original, even if it is a bit "Japanese"?

Mike Harding

AnswerID: 197452

Follow Up By: Member - Pesty (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 17:00

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 17:00

Because the originals are sealed beams, and the replacements , to get a stronger globe , are semi sealed beams with a H4 globe.
The 80 series came out with H4 globes standard and are much better lights.

Cheers Pesty

FollowupID: 455973

Follow Up By: Mike Harding - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 18:28

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 18:28

Does that require re-wiring?

I would have supposed that unless the H4 globes drew considerably more current or required more than a high/low beam connection the old wiring would have sufficed?

Mike Harding

FollowupID: 455979

Follow Up By: Member - Pesty (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:00

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:00

If you put the metal backed semi sealed beams with h4 globes into the system they dont work properly, nothing to do with wire size, there is no negative , there seems to be a positive circuit right back to the relay, and nothing works as it should unless the glass backed sealed beams are in place.

Cheers pesty

FollowupID: 456020

Reply By: 3F62 - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 13:15

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 13:15

I've not long ago done this to my 62 series, I made a diagram as i went incl colour codes for the Toyota switch wiring, will post in couple of hours...... I used all new heavy wiring (twin core flex), 2 relay's & sited new earths........

AnswerID: 197457

Reply By: 3F62 - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 13:48

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 13:48

Ok here it is...... You need to find the following 3 wires in the Toyota loom @ the rear of the lights.... I used the Left hand side about 12'' back from the light & broke into the loom there....... Red wire with a green stripe & blue bands = low beam negitive. Red wire with yellow stripe = High beam negitive. Red wire with white stripe = Hi & Lo Positive........

If using Hella type relays follow this.....

HIGH beam.....
87 = Light (earthed to "CLEAN" metal)
85 = Red wire yellow stripe.
86 = Red wire white stripe.
30 = +

LOW beam.....
87 = Light (earthed as above)
85 = Red wire green stripe
86 = Red wire white stripe
30 = +

I used a Nargares 100amp relay for the high beams (400watts) & 40 amp hella for the low (160watts) allow a minimum of 8 amps per 100 watts......... hope this helps!!

Cheers

Chris

AnswerID: 197460

Follow Up By: Member - Pesty (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:22

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:22

Thanks Chris, looks good and easy to follow.

Cheers Pesty

FollowupID: 456028

Reply By: Member - 'Lucy' - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 13:58

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 13:58

Pesty.

I put HID's in Ms Lucy and they came with a loom that was allegedly 'plug & play' however it ended up being 'plug & pray'. Most bizarre result you ever did see in that cars were stopping me in our street where I was testing them - begging me to dip to low beam as I was burning their eyes out.

Trouble was that I was on low beam or thought I was anyway.

So! down to the autolec I use and a $100 later I had the aforementioned 2-3 extra relays installed and all is working fine now.

Toyota have made this poxy type torture into an art form as they only do it on random production designs for some reason unkonown reason.

Oh! and the Autolecs also ran an extra wire to the dash hi/lo beam light.

AnswerID: 197462

Follow Up By: Member No 1- Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 14:58

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 14:58

glad i have sunnies..blue ones at that...dont want my eyes burnt out

FollowupID: 455960

Follow Up By: Member - 'Lucy' - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 16:17

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 16:17

That was nothing. Should have been there when I returned home.

SWMBO comes tearing out for a 'steakybeak at the new lights' - so I fire them up with directly in front.

Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaate! you should have heard the language, also something about everything being black.

So I get out and walk around the front to see what all the cootas are screaming about.

Bloody hell! after one quick linto the drivers lamp, it was just like getting 'flshed' by an arc welder. Everything went white/black for around 5 mins before it started to wear off.

By this time SWMBO has recovered and is reading the packaging and 'destructions'.

Warning No 1. Don't let animals or pets look directly into the headlights as it may cause blindness and or eye damage.

By this time SWMBO is warming up for a session of 'robust dialogue', which duly ensured I can tell you.

Such is life.

FollowupID: 455967

Follow Up By: Member No 1- Tuesday, Oct 03, 2006 at 07:57

Tuesday, Oct 03, 2006 at 07:57

brighter than arc welders flash...strewth!....gotta see that

FollowupID: 456074

Reply By: Member - Jiarna (NT) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 20:03

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 20:03

Hi Pesty
I rewired my 80 series to beef up the current to the headlights, and while doing so I put in separate relays for hi and lo beam (partly because one of the OE ones was cooked and too $$ to replace)
Instead of doing the usual and using the hi beam wire and an earth wire to trigger the relay, I found that it works fine if you use the high beam wire and the common wire from the OE headlight plug to trigger the high beam relay, and the low beam and the common wire to trigger the low beam relay. This allowed the dash high beam light to work properly as well.
Similarly, to fire up the Lightforces only on high beam, I triggered their relays from the OE high beam wire and common wire. Just forget about positive and negative, and leave the multimeter on the shelf, as both wires read 12V relative to earth until they are switched.
My setup has worked fine for over a year so far.
Cheers
John

Those who say something cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing it.

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AnswerID: 197497

Follow Up By: Member - Pesty (SA) - Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:06

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:06

Tried that, but the 80 is different, as it comes out standard with semi sealed beams with H4 globes where as the 60 has sealed beams.
Tried what you said you did and the high beam worked, but not the high beam light or the activation for the driving lights, and nothing at all on the low beam side, so the 80 and the 60 must be slightly different.
Have some good answers to try and a couple good links so will give them a bash.
Wasted enough time this week with it so will have to wait now till we get back from Kangaroo Island.

Thanks to all those that replied, this sight sure is a good resource.

Cheers Pesty

FollowupID: 456025

Reply By: Member - DOZER- Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:52

Monday, Oct 02, 2006 at 22:52

Pete
Ive been down this road before...the flamin terminals on the sealed beams are orientated different to the halogen ones....if you put the sealed back in, i bet it works ok....get one and make a diagram of the three prongs, then test it and mark them common, low and high...the common is the positive, and high and low are neg switched......now get the halogen globe and do thesame....you will end up needing to pick out the spades on two of the wires in the light plug, and swap them about.
As it is, you will have high beam on low, and hardly anything on high...right???? the hardly anything is power going through both filaments at once....
Have fun....some of the first 80's were sealed beam, and others were halogen...
Andrew

AnswerID: 197541