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Date:         Tue, 26 Apr 2011 00:20:28 -0400
Reply-To:     David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Subject:      Re: Testing Vanagon Headlight Switch
Comments: To: Chris S <szpejankowski@GMAIL.COM>
In-Reply-To:  <BANLkTim4ibCZ_T2Fdt-Q63pf2YBuzgj_cw@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

At 08:46 PM 4/25/2011, Chris S wrote: >Based on the schematic on page 97.56 of the Bentley manual, terminal 58 is >parking lights and terminal 56 is headlights.

Yes.

> When testing between terminal >30 and 58 I see continuity when I press the switch to its first detent, as >expected. When testing between 30 and 56, I see no continuity at all >I need some help to make sure I'm testing this properly.

Look more closely at the drawing of the switch, which is shown in the "off" position. All those wires a b c d at the top of the page are all 30 circuit (i.e. live all the time) and wire d comes to the 30 terminal on the right side of the switch. Note that there is an internal jumper in the switch to a second 30 terminal which supplies another wire feeding the clock. That wire f is incorrectly labelled as a 15 (switched) circuit and feeds the clock.

Inside the switch, notice that in either of the two "on" positions the 30 terminal makes contact with the 58 terminal, energizing the parking light circuit and also the panel dimmer circuit. Observe further and see that these are the only connections made by the 30 circuit in the headlight switch. If your clock is dying when you turn on the parking lights, you've got a bad contact somewhere that's allowing the parking lights to drag down the voltage to where the clock won't run.

Now look at the left side of the switch diagram. Here you see the X contact, fed by the X contact on the ignition switch. With the switch in the headlight position only, it makes contact with terminal 56, which feeds power to the high/low switch. That switch is a toggle, feeding either one or the other of the low or high beams through S3-4 or S5-6. The little complication over on the left is a switch that whenever you pull back the stalk, feeds the high beam circuit direct from the 30 circuit, thus lighting the high beams *while the stalk is pulled* even if the normal circuit isn't working or the key is off. You may have noticed on track 39 that the X circuit also gets referred to track 89 where it energises the load reduction relay. The whole point of the X circuit is to kill headlights, heater fans, rear defroster and wipers while the engine is cranking. The lights are done directly and the rest by the load reduction relay.

> My headlights do >not work, high beams and parking lights work. When I turn on my headlights >I see the LED clock display slowly fade out. It comes back when I turn off >headlights or flip to high beams. > >regardless of switch position. > >Is the switch bad?

Probably not.

I'm surprised the parking lights work. Have here been mods to the wiring that you know of?

Yrs, David


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