Everything Dims!!!

[Xargon321]

well ive made at relay harness to use with my lights. its not installed yet but will be tommorw will see if that helps at all.

i looked at the turnsignal flasher and it only plugs in one way, i checked the caseing for any signs that it might be heavy duty but didnt see any, it looks just like the one thats on my 65 stang

[Xargon321]

sorry to drag this thread from oblivian kicking and screaming but, still haveing the same problem but now if i even turn my light switch on it kills my radio completely it dont even display time, and when i turn my turn signals on it dims my headlights a bit and my amp meter needle move only to do it again when they turn on again

things i have done to remedy this prob

1 new alt and vr

2 new battery cables

3 cleaned all grounds that i could find

the headlights are halogens if that makes any diffence

[EScanlon]

Electrical systems are pretty basic in performance once you make the link between a flow of electrons and the flow of water. Many lessons in college take this into consideration.

Like water, electricity requires a PATH or PIPE to get from point A to point B. Without that path, there will be no transfer.

Let me explain a bit further and you will be able to then approach the electrical system of your car and repair it.

The amount of water (electricity) that you can put through a pipe (wire) is dependent on it's diameter (wire gage) and the amount of pressure (voltage) that you apply to it. Once you have flow you then have a rate of transfer, whether in gallons or cubic feet or electrons. That rate of transfer is called CURRENT in electricity and Flow Rate in water.

Got that so far?

Now, the amount of current you have is what allows you to then have that current perform WORK. The amount of work it can do is directly proportional to the amount of current you have.

This is the basic precept of electricity.

Now, let's imagine a pair of garden hoses. One is brand new, in fact the coils are still very much evident. The other has been lying in the sun for the past 10 years, and it's sagging worse than.... well, let's just say it's almost flat.

Now, we're going to attach a bucket to each end, one filled with water and the other barrel at the opposite end of the hose will be empty. When you open the valve (switch) you allow the water to flow through the pipe to the other barrell. Pretty basic huh?

By allowing gravity to effect the transfer, we can establish the basic flow without further enhancements. This system is the basic principle to most water wheeled machinery.

But we discover that we need more flow. Now we can either raise the barrels or invent pumps to move more flow.

With the new pipe, with the inside shape being fairly even from end to end, there would be no flow force lost in forcing out the walls of the pipe. The only deterrent to the flow would be the up and down oscillations of the hose along it's length. With the old pipe, part of the force of the flow is used up in forcing out the pipe's inside diameter, whereas the loss due to gravity is nill. For the sake of discussion, let's presume they're both equal flow's.

Now in adding more pressure, both pipes will have additional pressure put on their walls. The newer hose might straighten out a bit, but other than that won't show much change. The old pipe on the other hand will bulge out to it's original shape first.

But let's face it, as you add more pressure to get more work out of the system you will be finding out if the old hose has any leaks. More than likely it will and those reductions in flow will affect the amount of work you can do with the flow that does make it through. Those leaks are analogous to resistance. The more leaks you have the less flow you end up with at the working end of the tube.

Your electrical system is the same. The problems you are describing are due to leaks due to resistances in the many connections. Heck, just disassembling and reassembling will help reduce some of those problems.

Hope this helps someone.

Enrique

[Xargon321]

ya i know the basics of electricity, i havent installed that harness yet because i got the wrong connetors for the headlight harness (the bullet connetors i got where too small) that should help reduce the load on the switch many reducing resistence right?

im just trying to get for now till i put the car up to be redone (next few years probably) i dont drive it everyday anymore i drive a semi for a living now.

i do plan on remaning the harness when i tear the car down but what of the connetors? do we know where they where made?

[TomoHawk]

I believe many of the connectors were made by Amphenol (AMP), but due tro the age, they're no longer available.

Otherwise, you'd see some cottage businesses that would be making the wiring new.

We could ALL use new wiring, except the people that bought the Pain-in-the-arse wiring systems.

[Xargon321]

well i dont have the time or space at this point to tear the harness out of the car, i might here in a month or two after i fix my other car (65 mustang) so i can drive it around and get it out of the garage.

it just wierd as it look like the alt isent doing the job even tho it new could the halogen headlights be pulling that much juice? any alternitive other then the stock lights?

[TomoHawk]

It must be a combination of the old wiring, and corroded connectors.

I've been de-rusting my connectors as I get to them. I dunno if there's anything you can do about the cruddy wiring.

I'll be your older mustang has nice, shiny strands under the insulation.

[Xargon321]

probably as it has been resotred atleast once, well i found out why my radio dies when i turned my lights on, it seems i must have wired it the power to my dimmer switch or somthing, so when my dimmer switch is turned down my radio loses power......:stupid: :stupid: :stupid: is the dimmer switch hot when the lights are off??

[seerex]

I am sure I am adding nothing new to the thread but here are my two pennies, start by removing and cleaning the fuse box and any connections including the ones at the starter it self , recheck the alternator current output and it connections and if you can up grade to a max or other nissan higher output alt , but remember to put in the bridge for it, I would remove the stereo and check it for shorts as well , but if the battery is fully charged and the alternator is giving its recommended output there is a short or a drain somewhere , I am sure this has been done but if not spray all majors grounds with contact cleaner and make sure they are clean like with a wire brush or sandpaper, my old 240 used to do the same thing but I had several amps in the car, hope you find the issue

[TomoHawk]

Very true... As everybody knows, current travels along the ground leg of a circuit so it's important to have good ground connections as well.