Hello

As others have noted in recent posts about their cars, the headlights in my 2004 panda are beyond a joke.

Before I start messing around with them and trying to change bulbs etc. Are the headlights serviced by a relay or they switched directly?

If they are the latter id like to install a relay with a short run for the power. Has anyone else done this and had success?

Cheers

Relay is part of the bodycomputer (behind the indoor fusebox).
The wiring in the bottom connector is rather thin and tends to burn the contacts.

If you use search in my postings you'll find pics and more details.

gr J

ok great, so id like to use this small feed that is easily burned to switch my relay and then use a big relay and some short 30a cable and an appropriate fuse to service the lights. Does this sound reasonable or will it cause other problems that i havent forseen?

what are you trying to achieve?

chucking more volts at the lamps won't help

why not reply on others experience and spend c£25 on some decent Osram nightbreaker bulbs?

Pandaman955 said:

what are you trying to achieve?

chucking more volts at the lamps won't help

why not reply on others experience and spend c£25 on some decent Osram nightbreaker bulbs?

Click to expand...

*As A3jeroen said its underwired and the contacts burn out. A relay would take the strain off.

*Brightness, Of course it will, put 10v through a bulb and 12v or even 13v youll the drop off in lum is large and not linear. If there is voltage drop the nighbreakers will have exactly the same problem, but itll be nice and white.

Pandaman955 said:

what are you trying to achieve?

chucking more volts at the lamps won't help

why not reply on others experience and spend c£25 on some decent Osram nightbreaker bulbs?

Click to expand...

:yeahthat:

What you're on about doing is rewiring half of the car, TBH you're better off making a complete new wiring loom just for the headlight system to take a pickup off of the OEM plugs if this is something you're seriously wanting to do, but I can't see much benefit myself.

Most Easterly Pandas said:

:yeahthat:

What you're on about doing is rewiring half of the car, TBH you're better off making a complete new wiring loom just for the headlight system to take a pickup off of the OEM plugs if this is something you're seriously wanting to do, but I can't see much benefit myself.

Click to expand...

Maybe i wasnt clear or the purpose of a relay isnt clear, thats the whole point. the oem wiring with voltage drop is used the feed the relay - then a decent short cable powers the headlight when the existing oem wiring fires the relay. I can't see how it can get any simpler than that. Is an addon to the existing wiring not a replacement. A graph from a ducati forum that got me thinking in the first place.

http://i1000.photobucket.com/albums/af129/Yellowducati/Lumensvsvoltage.jpg

I think this what you mean,
http://www.paddockspares.com/land-rover-performance-parts/lighting/headlamp-wiring-loom.html

Actually chucking more volts at it can make a difference.
It does on an older Land Rover

dave k said:

I think this what you mean,
http://www.paddockspares.com/land-rover-performance-parts/lighting/headlamp-wiring-loom.html

Actually chucking more volts at it can make a difference.
It does on an older Land Rover

Click to expand...

Smashing, I've made similar looms myself, but for that price it'll be easier to buy in future

Yes makes a massive difference getting full battery voltage to the bulb

AlexGS did a good post in the Uno section a few years ago

alexGS said:

Click to expand...

guess Pandas are getting to that age where the bulbs go yellowey

https://www.fiatforum.com/uno/151817-here-relay-headlights-etc.html

No need to rewire half the car or waste money on expensive bulbs to dazzle everyone else, just get full voltage to the headlamps

That looks exactly like what I'm planning. Really well written up too. I have just about everything I need now off eBay and will update this thread when its done, although that won't be till it warms up at least a bit! I'm hoping to see a good change

Have you measured the volt drop by any chance?

Shires said:

Have you measured the volt drop by any chance?

Click to expand...

Not yet, ill be gutted if its bang on whats its supposed to be though now Ive got all my cable and relays

I measured the voltages with the engine running on my car, while changing headlamp bulbs today. Seems like relays would be worthwhile.

Battery: 14.0v
Headlamps, dipped beam: 12.2v