54 Headlight Woes
I was driving the other night and all of the sudden my Headlights just cut out in the middle of a side street. Wow was that scary.... I had my brights on one minute and then black.... I almost hit a tree..... A minute later, they came back on..... Do I need a relay ??
0
Comments
-
Doubt it - probably need a new headlight switch (somebody correct me if I'm wrong - and I probably am). As I recall there's a cirquit breaker in the headlight switch. Over time the contacts become weak and heat causes the breaker to open and the lights to go out. Doesn't take long for it to cool down and the lights come back on.
Had this problem on a 55 Pontiac I had - GM seemed to be the ones with this problem.
Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN0 -
I had the same thing happen to my Jet, I took the relay out of my parts car and changed it, plus I put in a new dimmer switch. I don't know which one fixed it, but so far they have been fine. You are right, it can scare the hell out of you, try being in the country when it happens!
Good Luck, Barry Smedley0 -
So if I replace the switch I should be ok ?0
-
Harry, In addition to the relay you might want to check the condition of your wiring. Relays are fine but if your wiring is origional and threadbare you may want to do some rewiring. This would also help prevent a possible fire at a future date. Alex bring up a point about the large amount of heat causing the circuit breaker to trip. True enough but the heat is a result of resistance the wiring is experiencing such as corrosion or broken strands. Check your wiring, may be time for some electric surgery.0
-
I have rewired from dimmer forward. Rhode Island 's best... I visually inspected from dimmer to the dash and all looks good... Could there be that much resistance from dimmer to switch ? Also If I were to put in a relay would that lower the resistance anyway ?0
-
I'm not a Step-Down owner, but I was given to understand that a worn circuit breaker is the "usual suspect" in these "on-again, off-again" cases. I'm also given to understand that these circuit breakers are still available, and that you don't have to find a 6-volt-specific circuit breaker to have it work.
I hope someone a bit more knowledgeable than I can confirm or deny this.
Of course, if a GOOD circuit breaker cuts out -- well, then you DO have a wiring or related problem.0 -
THX TO ALL
I think I'll replace all of the above... Dimmer, headlight switch and Put in a headlight relay..0 -
I had the same problem in my 54....Put in a relay and it's been fine ever since.
Tom0 -
Heres a little tidbit about that subject.
Driving from Texas to Wisconsin after being released from the Army, in 1953 driving our 51 Hornet cpe. Usually drove at night. Going through Iowa in the dead of night, doing probably 60 anyway, wife and baby sleeping. In those days Iowas roads through the cornfields were very small two lane highways.
IH35 wasn't even thought of. I remember hitting the dimmer switch for bright lights. Wham!! Pitch black....All I could do was lightly apply brakes and try to steer as straight as possible. Got lucky was still on the road. Turned light switch off and on, nothing...Hit the dimmer switch, got lights...
Can happen in a 3 year old Hudson too....0 -
That's quite a story... Thank goodness for a cool head....
I was right around the corner from my house , just came around a bend and whammo... pitch black..... I just hit the brakes and stopped in about 20 feet, as I was only going 25mph... But boy was I scared... I feel blessed that I didn't hit anything .... I can't imagine that happening in a 2yr old car.....0 -
Had this problem on my '52 Wasp back in the sixties. Back then I was able to get a new switch from the local Rambler dealer. It happened again on my '53 Hornet, 6V, a couple of years back. The relays definitely help; they take the current load off both the dimmer switch and the dashboard switch. Instead of ALL the current for the lights going from the battery to the headlight switch and then through the dimmer switch to the lights, only enough current to run the relay goes through the
headlight switch and dimmer. (By the way, the parking/tail lights are on a different circuit, so they usually work when the headlights fail.)
The relay itself carries the current to the from the battery to the lights. This is a much shorter distance with less voltage drop, which pays dividends for the 6V user. This also reduces current load on the headlight switch's circuit breaker. This may keep you from having to replace/rebuild your Hudson headlight switch (mine worked fine afterward), but the remarks about wiring etc. still need to be heeded. I got a vintage aftermarket NOS 6V double-relay from Bill Albright (this was a few years back), but Ron Francis and others offer modern 12V relays. Make sure you also check the wires that run in front of the radiator....Good Luck.0 -
There could be several causes of this problem. The circuit breaker will only trip out through over-current, such as a short circuit ( bare wire touching frame for instance). However, a loose connection anywhere in the circuit could cause the same promlem - light switch, foot switch (input or output), circuit breaker, or terminal block, so go over the whole system and check that all connections are tight, and that there are no bare wires anywhere. . If the problem re-occurs, it could be that the circuit breaker is tired, but I have never encountered this. If so, either replace it, or fit a relay, which is the best option. However, fitting a relay if there are problems already in the system you could also have trouble, as the relay still needs full voltage to hold them energised. Good luck,
Geoff.0 -
Does anyone know where you can get one of these 6v headlight relays, and the price ?0
-
While the double relays are not common, the single ones come up for sale on ebay all the time. Just buy one for the high beam circuit, and one for the low. I stow my relays behind the left removable panel (Hudson had a "mirror" dashboard design for many years from the 30's through the StepDown era, with a removable "glove box filler" panel in front of the driver that mirrored the glove box door).0
-
Thanks Jon, but I'd rather not buy any electrical items on ebay, not knowing the vender.0
-
harry54 wrote:
Hi---I also had this happen to me in my 54 Hornet a couple of years ago. The problem was caused be a short in the wire leading to the center grill ornament light. However, I go along with Geoff's evaluation of your problem.---Cliff Minard.I was driving the other night and all of the sudden my Headlights just cut out in the middle of a side street. Wow was that scary.... I had my brights on one minute and then black.... I almost hit a tree..... A minute later, they came back on..... Do I need a relay ??0 -
A possible source for 6V relays is VW suppliers. There are still a lot of 6V air-cooled cars running around. I've never used one in a Hudson, but the Bosch 311941581C 6V dimmer relay is readily available. I haven't checked the A rating on it.
A good supplier for this item is Busdepot.com. It is a great company to deal with and their prices are very good as well.
Matt0 -
There are two 6V dual relays on ebay right now. If it is name brand I don't see a reason it should be an issue. I got mine on ebay for $7.00 NOS Echlin. Works fine.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Dual-Headlight-Relay-6-Volt-Systems_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ140737QQihZ004QQitemZ140173330058QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NOS-6-Volt-fused-headlight-fused-relay-w-5-terminals_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33710QQihZ014QQitemZ330181674297QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW
Also do a search on headlight relays on the forum there are a number of threads.
Also, while you are doing the relay might as well put in some modern halogen headlights. I just did mine a few weeks ago and they work just as good as most 12V systems, brightness was shocking to say the least after having used sealed beam jobs for some time.
http://www.classiccar.com/forums/showthread.php?t=114370 -
A Hudson 20 amp curcuit breaker is on eBay:
Hudson Circuit Breaker 20 AMP Item number: 1301766960510 -
Ken,
Thanks... However, I put in two single relays and all is well.... The Headlights are also more bright now... thanks to all for the help and advice...0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- 37K All Categories
- 106 Hudson 1916 - 1929
- 19 Upcoming Events
- 91 Essex Super 6
- 28.6K HUDSON
- 562 "How To" - Skills, mechanical and other wise
- 995 Street Rods
- 150 American Motors
- 175 The Flathead Forum
- 49 Manuals, etc,.
- 78 Hudson 8
- 44 FORUM - Instructions and Tips on using the forum
- 2.8K CLASSIFIEDS
- 602 Vehicles
- 2.1K Parts & Pieces
- 77 Literature & Memorabilia
- Hudson 1916 - 1929 Yahoo Groups Archived Photos