ShopTalk Forums | Aircooled VW Tech & Restoration Help

I am replacing my clock w/a oil pressure gauge & installing a new gas gauge & stereo. I need help in
determining where to tie in to a switched 12v circuit & a always hot 12v circuit.

NOTE - at the age of 76 I can no longer read A SMALL diagram. they HAVE TO BE BLOWN UP.

Thanks Don

Look here....

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/inf ... a_8_70.jpg

By clicking on image it should go LARGE FORMAT...

Dale

Thanks for the diagram......does anyone have a suggestion as to where to pick up
switched & always hot terminals.

Don

These guys have always been a good source of electrical items. http://www.delcity.net/

Look at your fusebox.

There will be a large red or red/black wire coming in direct from the battery or regulator: This feeds ~everything else.
Most of the terminals will have doublers, and one side of the connection will be jumpered with brass strips to feed several fuses.

Stick a meter on it with the key off: If 12V is present, There's the "always hot", note which fuses it feeds, and take the power off one of those.
If you do not have a DVM, buy one.

Also, for bright headlights w/o spending a fortune:

Tap off that "always hot" circuit (or run another) and feed it to a 30-40A relay.
Control the relay with the headlight switch, and use the relay output to feed the headlight circuit hi/lo beam relay.

On many setups, the headlight power has to go through the ignition switch, then the headlamp switch, finally feeding the Hi/lo relay.
It loses some power at each step, and the headlight switches a usually the ignition are typically old, and the new ignition switches are generally Chinese grade junk.

Yours MAY be set up that way from the factory, not sure when VW fixed that stupid setup.

Great......I now know where to attach the always hot wire/now
need advice on where to attached the switched hot.

Thanks Don

weldvair wrote:Great......I now know where to attach the always hot wire/now
need advice on where to attached the switched hot.

Thanks Don

On the opposite side of the fuse box from 2 fuses with the red wires, you'll have 2 fuses with a number of black wires. The black wires (with stock VW wiring) are all switched hot. Make sure to connect to the fused row of terminals so your stuff is actually fuse protected. You can identify the unfused row because the terminals will be paired together to their left or right neighbor with a brass strip.

Change of direction.....I pulled all the wiring from the car, installed a chevy tilt steering column & bought a EZ wiring harness w/fuse panel.

If there is any interest ..I'll take a lot of pictures.
let me know.

Don