Dim lights

[timberdog]

Question for you all my 200 TDI engine seems to be not putting enough charge out i think?
The meter in the Cab is fine untill you put the lights on and then you can see the Amp meter go down to just above the Red and lights are Dim?.

Thoughts were Alternator about crud??


Also i wanted to know what are the pros of fitting two batteys and would this remove this problem ..I say this as i have just fitted a Light bar which is not wired up yet but if i have this problem with Amps at this stage it aint gonna light the Fairy Tree either..

I want to cure the problem of Dim lights but  i also wanted to benifit from second battery can anyone help on the above points?


Timbo

[Jim-Willy]

Defender lamps are cr@p anyway, solve the problem and ya still won't be able to see where you are going.  They aint called threepenny candles for nowt.

[BigA]

my battery meter sits at about just over 2 thirds with no lights or heating on, when i have either lights or heater, or both on, it goes down to about half.....

you can test your alternator by putting a meter on your battery terminal, when running i think the voltage should be about 15 vaults, but i am no expert. i was having problems with battery recently and tried this test to check alternator.

i have also got set of rooflights, and battery meter doesn't seem to move when they are on, but have thought about secondary battery myself.

Andy

[timberdog]

Seein how i am crap with Wiring how do you fit a second Battey in place correctly?.

Thanks for the Tip with a meter.. :lol:

[BigA]

again, i am no expert, but i have seen duel charge kits available on ebay and other sites, these i think basically consist of a relay that will split the charge between main and secondary battery and cables required to do the job.

i have searched on google in the past and found a number of sites with explanations on how to do it, but i am sure there will be somebody on MC that has done it and can give advice.

Andy

[muddyweb]

If your system voltage isn't right, adding more batteries, etc. won't cure the problem.

Dim lights could be caused by a number of factors...

Tired Battery
Low output from alternator
Very old lamps
Poor or under-rated wiring

or e) All of the above ;-)


Before you chuck any money at it or get too carried away adding things, first thing is to take some readings so you know what is going on.

Check the battery voltage with the engine (and all loads) switched off.
Start the engine and check the voltage at the battery.  Watch it for a couple of minutes to see if it changes.
Turn a load of lights on and see what the voltage does

This will give you at least some idea of what is going on...  let us know what you find :-)


In terms of the specifics of Defender headlights... as mentioned they are at best poor.   You can often improve things by uprating the cable which feeds them, since the stuff in the loom isn't up to much.  You can also put different lamps in there which will increase brightness, but again on standard wiring, these will likely just cause more problems than they solve.  The general condition of the headlight units will make a big difference too.  As they age, the refelctors become less efficient, and quite often loose the silvering.

[timberdog]

Thanks for that i will have torun it to a Garage as i do not have a meter of any sorts but what you speak is very good Common sense thank you

[Berliner Beer]

alot of garages are advertising free winter checks on batteries etc. Motor serve in MK are not sure if they are around your neck of the woods?