I have a set of baja off rd lights mounted on the front of my truck.
They quit working and I had someone look at it and not sure what they have done.
What is the proper way to wire them up?

Parts:

Battery
Relay/Solenoid -----> not sure what type?!?
Switch
Low-beam - headlights
Baja lights

The relay on there is of the rounded type .. looks like a 3 prong solenoid.
The Power wire comes from the electrical bx under the hood to the left side of solenoid and has an inline fuse on it.
Should that be a 3 way Relay switch?



Theres what the exsisting wiring looks like.

What is the correct way??
And is it a solenoid or relay that should be in there?

 

Did you chech the inline fuse?

 

Yes I did ,it was shot,I replaced it with a new connector as well.
The solenoid used to click when turned on but nothing now.
I'm assuming its the solenoid or relay which ever it is.
But I'm not sure of the wiring sequence either.

 

If theres 3 terminals on the 'solenoid' then one is battery +, one is the trigger, and one is to the load (lights). It should ground through the mounting (something else to check...)

If you can ID the trigger terminal, then it shouldnt matter what order you put the wires on the other terminals, unless you can read markings, then might as well follow them.

What i would do is see if the 'solenoid' works, and make sure it has a good ground.

If not, then you'll need to get a normal 30 or 40amp relay and replace it. Use your switch in the cab to trigger the relay or solenoid...

Hope this helps...

 

If the diagram is what is in place, then yea there's a major issue. In that arrangement, the In-cab switch needs 12V to trigger the relay, which is being supplied only when the lights are on, so its a catch-22. If the switch has no power the lights have no power and thus the switch has no power.

To fix the existing components, from the relay post with +12V from the distribution box run a wire to the switch (to give it 12V at all times). From the other side of the switch, run a wire to the trigger post on the relay. Then run from the other relay post (not the trigger or the 12V from the dist. box) to the lights.

To wire it properly, get a standard SPST or SPDT (4 or 5 blade) relay and run the following:
Battery +12V to terminals 86 and 30.
Terminal 85 to the switch and the other side of the switch to a ground in the cab.
Terminal 87 to the lights.

 

Proper Wiring:



Use any metallic bolt head under your dash to ground the switch.
The relay can be a DPDT (usually what you get when you ask for a relay), just ignore the 87a terminal.

 

Ok I'll start by replacing the solenoid ..
Is there a way to test it?

This is the type in there now

48-047 - NEGATIVE START SOLENOID, GRND

 

Yes, you can test it.
I doubt its the actual solenoid thats bad, the wiring wont work the way it is. Remove all wires except what is involved in doing the following:

To test the solenoind:
1 - Remove all the wires. Leave the solenoid mounted. (it should be grounded through its base)
2 - Touch +12V to the small post on the solenoid (the top one in the example you gave) with a piece of wire.
3 - The solenoid should click or clunk when voltage is applied.

If it doesn't, then replace it. If you're replacing, wire it as per my schematic with an ordinary relay instead.
If it does click or clunk, do the following:

4 - Reconnect the wire from power distribution to one of the big posts.
5 - Touch 12V to the small post
6 - Measure voltage between the other big post (with nothing on it) and the frame, the base of the solenoid, or the engine block (on bare unpainted metal)
7 - If there isn't ~12V, the relay is no good, even if it clicks. Replace with the ordinary relay.

If you have a continuity meter, touch one lead to the case of the solenoid and the other to the negative post of the battery to prove the ground is good. If there is no circuit, the solenoid is not mounted properly (no ground). Clean the base or replace with the relay circuit i gave. (The same can be accomplished with a test light hooked between the battery positive and the case of the solenoid. If it lights, the gorund is good)

 

Ok NorthernDiesel now were getting somewhere
I disconnected the power wire (from distribution bx) from the left post on the solenoid.. So touching the wire coming from the Distribution box makes the solenoid click so it is working.

The only Power wire is the wire from the distribution box.
I connected that to the small center post.
Now theres the 2 big post left,1 on each side.
And theres only 2 wires left 1 from the switch and 1 from the lights

What now?

 

So should it be POWER WIRE to 1 BIG POST
Switch wire to SMALL CENTER POST
Light Wire to other BIG POST??

 

Ok I got it!
I'm sending the power to post on the left.
Switch to middle post
Lights on post on right.

switch off in cab,hi beam on NO LIGHTS
switch on in cab hi beam on LIGHTS ON

Whats the proper size of fuse as the 1's I'm using blow.
Any idea as to what size.
These are the inline glass fuses.

 

I stopped at the autoparts store and grabbed a 14guage inline fuse holder and a few 50Amp fuses.
All is connected and working perfectly!
Thanks everyone for your help.

 

WHOA there... 50 amp?!! thats probably WAY to much.

What is the wattage on the bulbs? That will tell you what you need for a fuse. You probably need a 10 or 15 amp fuse (quick guess). The fuse is supposed to blow up before the wiring does, so you don't want one thats excessively big.

 

Assuming they are 55watts each, two of them will draw 9.1 amps at 12 VDC. (watts divided by volts = amps, times two lights = 9.1A)

I would put a 15 amp fuse in there for a little wiggle room, and still have good protection.

 

100W of power (150W sealed beam) each

So ..

100W/12VDC x 2 = 16.6amps <--------- 20 Amp fuse I'm guessing for this

Using the 150w it works out to 25 amps for both, so a 25amp fuse????
or go with the 100w figure??