TomoHawk Posted May 27, 2015 Share #1 Posted May 27, 2015 Since you can't get the original Yazaki connectors, I searched for some well-designed connectors/pigtails that are available today. SummitRacing lists some electrical harnesses and adapters, but no pigtails or connectors. The best connectors I found were WeatherPack connectors, which are sealed, interlocking, and made for different gauge wiring. I chose 12Ga., to handle the current for headlamps (20A total.) Weather Pack 3 Pin Sealed Connector Kit 12-10 GA If there are suitable alternatives, please mention them! BTW- Yazaki has a website: http://connectors-catalog.sys.yzk.co.jp/ but I didn't see anything familiar to S30 there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share #2 Posted May 27, 2015 If you go the same connector the 240Z uses for the headlamp harness, would it make sense to then buy th MSA headlamp relay kit, and avoid all the fabrication? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share #3 Posted May 27, 2015 I'm leaning towards the Weather Pak 4 pin square connector. I just have to figure out who has my fancy crimp tool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Obvious Posted May 28, 2015 Share #4 Posted May 28, 2015 I did lots of searching for the old Yazaki stuff and never came up with those oddball mixed sized contact connectors they used on the headlights. I dug every which way I could think of on their website as well and came up blank. I'm assuming all that stuff is so old and obsolete that they don't bother even mentioning that it ever existed. That, and from what I can gather about the company themselves, they were big OEM suppliers to the auto industry, but weren't thought of as "commercially available connector manufacturers". At least not in the US. My read is that Yazaki sold to the auto industry making harnesses and the connectors that went with them. They weren't like AMP (for example) who sold to anyone in quantities of one to ten million. Yazaki was more behind the scenes. As far as suitable connectors, I think you've highlighted the important stuff. Sealed, locking, and available. I think you may have overestimated the current needs though. With a 60W bulb you're looking at about 5A per bulb when on HI. Overkill won't hurt, but the stiffer the wire, the more difficult it is to work with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted May 28, 2015 Author Share #5 Posted May 28, 2015 Yeah, I thought I might be over-estimating the current requirement of the headlamps. I also have a set of 100W Cibie driving lamps I think I will mount eventually (actually they have 55W bulbs, but I think I will go to 100W.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Obvious Posted May 28, 2015 Share #6 Posted May 28, 2015 The spec ratings on the original headlights (or at least the ratings on the currently available versions of the single round bulbs) are 60W for the HI beam and 40W for the low beam. Those power specs are rated at a supply voltage of 12.8 Volts. AT THE BULB. So if you provide 12.8 Volts to the bulb HI beam filament, you should draw about 4.7 Amps through each filament. Some things to consider though... 1) Your alternator should be putting out greater than 12.8 Volts when the engine is running (which means the bulbs could draw a little more). 2) You'll have a significant voltage drop along the wires / connectors / relays leading to the headlights (which means the bulbs could draw a little less). 3) The bulbs have a manufacturing tolerance on the specs (which means the bulbs could draw a little more OR a little less). Bottom line? Each headlight bulb should draw about 5A when on high beam and about 3.5A on low. Were you thinking you would power the 100W driving lights from the same wire and connector? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Obvious Posted May 28, 2015 Share #7 Posted May 28, 2015 And don't forget to clean up all the connector contacts... Everything from the three prong connector right on the back of the bulb itself all the way back to where you're getting your power from. The last thing you want to do is burn up any of your available power in anything but the filament. You want all the power dissipated in the bulb, not in the connectors or wiring getting TO the bulb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted May 28, 2015 Author Share #8 Posted May 28, 2015 I would use a separate circuit for the 100W lamps, but the control would be through the high beam line and one control switch in the cabin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted May 30, 2015 Author Share #9 Posted May 30, 2015 (edited) I was looking for some Bosch relays on eBoo, and I saw something interesting: "Bosch style" relays and connectors. Would you say they are the same, as "Bosch style" refers to the Bosch pinout, or is it some kind of selling jargon to pass off some inferior product? I would like to trust some quality STST relays for my headlamps, since there is really no way to design in a failsafe. Edited May 30, 2015 by TomoHawk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Obvious Posted May 30, 2015 Share #10 Posted May 30, 2015 I'm assuming the "Bosch style" is a term coined by automotive enthusiasts to describe the size, shape, and pinout of those relays. I'm not sure Bosch ever really actually made relays themselves. If forced to guess, I would assume that Bosch didn't actually make them themselves, but private labeled them from someone else and had Bosch screen printed on the case. There may be some small spec variation in the part specially for Bosch (or maybe not). There are lots of relay manufacturers, and I don't think Bosch would compete in the world market. As far as being inferior goes... About the only words of advice I would provide is buy from a name you recognize. And even then (as Blue has pointed out on numerous occasions) you're not always guaranteed to be getting what you think you are. On the good side, however, you're not going to be taxing these relays anywhere near their max specs, so even if they are a little sub-par, you'll probably be asking them to perform below what they can handle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomoHawk Posted May 30, 2015 Author Share #11 Posted May 30, 2015 (edited) I took out the headlamp wiring from the buckets to the harness and peeled off the cover. What I found inside was 18 gauge wire! the insulation looked thicker tho. Here is an informative chart comparing wire gauge, current requirement and length. Edited May 30, 2015 by TomoHawk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Obvious Posted May 31, 2015 Share #12 Posted May 31, 2015 Well I'm not sure if they ran different gauges for different years, but on my 77, I've actually got three different gauges running the whole way to the bulbs. Including the little pigtail between the buckets and the harness. I modified my buckets for a new larger grommet so that I could take the connector off the back of the bulb without taking the whole headlight bucket off the car. But the point is... You can see the three different gauge wires: The red/black for the low beams is the smallest, the red (common) is larger, and the red/white for the high beams is the largest. Note that I've got my red/white wrapped with black electrical tape stripes to remind myself that it's actually the common now and connected to ground instead of it's original connection. And in case you're interested to see what the grommets look like once installed in the back of the buckets: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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