Relay Installation

Nissan Navara Forum

Help Support Nissan Navara Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Ash_1

Member
Joined
Jul 21, 2017
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Location
Queensland
Hi Guys,
Has anyone installed several relays for lights etc in their Nav? I have worked out how to install 6 switches in the roof console by replacing the sunglass holder, and running 2 lengths of 7 core trailer light cable up the pillar will give me power to and from the switches, but its only 2mm wire, so all lights will need to go through relays. Im trying to find where/how to install 6 relays neatly, either in the engine bay or behind the glove box, but there just doesn't seem to be any space anywhere..
I have reverse lights, tray lights, rock lights, side lights, and an extra lightbar on the roof that can only be used off road.
cheers
 
With 6 lights you only need 7 wires up there unless the switches are powered. I had 3 sets of driving lights - I've taken 1 set off so they can go on my bike - I switched the earth, not the positive. Actually, you could still do it with 7 wires with positive switching:

* Positive feed from somewhere under the dash (it's low power anyway so tapping into the cig lighter would be fine, or even stereo power).

* Connect positive feed to ALL centre poles of the switches from the one wire

* Connect negative line for switch illumination from a source in the roof (the screws for the visors would do).

* Connect switch output to your trailer harness, running down the A pillar and through the firewall above the throttle which is below and beside the brake booster in the engine bay.

There is room behind behind the battery for a long panel holding the 6 relays, but you might need an additional relay to use the high beam function. The problem is that high beam is a positive source (that's why I negative-switch, makes it real simple) so the relay won't activate if you feed positive from cabin to pin 85 and positive from high beam to 86. There's a simple way to fix that.

Only for the relays that are going to be high-beam switchable: take a wire from the high beam pin on your right hand headlight and feed it to pin 85 of a 7th relay. Connect pins 86 and 30 to battery negative. Connect all the relays you want to high-beam switch from their pin 86 to this relay's pin 87.

So, the other 6 relays have pin 85 from the trailer wire you've run into the engine bay, pin 86 to the 7th relay in the previous paragraph, pin 30 to positive battery via a fuse and pin 87 to each of the lights.

I would warn you about power consumption. Your alternator is rated at 130A (actually that's for a D40, the D22 is 90A and I don't know what the D23 is but this still applies). That rating is only true when the engine is revving quite hard. At normal cruise (1700-2000rpm) you're making about half or a bit more - say 90A. You need about 30A to run the car (ECU, sensors, other lighting (instruments, parkers, brakes, indicators). Your lighting should not really exceed the remaining capacity of your alternator AND you should limit the length of time you run those lights while idling.

Of course, if you have a set of lights like these then you really need a standby generator as well.

For those interested (go on, click on the link and be stunned), your car has to be able to deliver 589 amps to those lights (just shy of 300A per light). 300A is enough to give a V8 a crank and will start any 4 cylinder petrol engine with ease. Jumper cables are NOT sufficient. 589A is more power than a winch draws when it's working hard. The average 75Ah starter battery would run those lights for about 8 minutes before it was damaged beyond repair. You might get 10 minutes if the engine was running.

And before anyone jumps the gun and points out that LEDs won't draw that much power so pick an LED light instead - the link is to an eBay sale of a pair of LED driving lights, with 114 individual CREE LEDs rated at 62W each. 114 * 62 * 2 = stupid. Of course, those two lights put my 11,000lumen light bar to shame - they put out 700,000 lumens - enough to light up a football field on their own.
 
Thanks for that, the lights I have barely draw any power at all. The rock lights and tray lights each draw 0.2amps, they are only small led's so it's 2.4amps total. The light bar draws 10 amps, but that can only be used off road so not to often, the other lightbars on the factory driving lights harness draw 3 amps each.
It's not a big power draw, but I thought just to be safe, hooking everything up to relays is probably overkill, but if I want to change things around it's only a matter of changing the label on the switch, and all the switches have LEDs in them as well


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
You're absolutely right, relays are the best way to deal with it, because then the current draw from inside the cabin is truly miniscule (just powering the relay coils).

Pardon my bender on those lights. They truly are ridiculous in an automotive environment and make a perfect example of what you should never even consider putting on your car.

Unless you have a second motor in the tub with 7 or 8 alternators connected ...
 
I just figured if it's all going through relays, I can keep bulky cables out of the cab, and it would all be nice and tidy, it's just a matter of where to mount the relays, and while it's overkill for small lights, if I change anything it's a matter of changing the label on the switch and it's done, no need for re wiring.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
In the spirit of keeping bulky cables out of the cab. I would be inclined to run two of these up the pillar rather than trailer flex though it is more costly. This only works to trigger relays given it is #22 wire.

It is smaller but also a lot tougher mechanically than trailer flex. you can get it in 6 core (Which would leave you needing to find a local ground point or run a separate ground wire) but these guys don't carry it.

http://www.motorsportelectrics.com.au/online-shop/product/tefzel-screened-wire2
 
There should be a ground point where the sun visor screws into the roof. Smaller cable (especially given that it's not being asked to carry any heavy current) is a great idea.
 
#22 Tefzel or Raychem 44 spec is considered good for about 5A at 100 degrees ambient and the insulation is good for about 150 degrees conductor temperature. But it is harder to strip than standard stuff.

I am in the middle of a major rewire of my race car and am using a heap of this stuff. I am about to start in a full wiring loom for a new ECU. I plan to keep things neat by using two core for a lot of things like the injectors and sensors with three or four core as appropriate. The shielding is not required for the injectors but handy for noise rejection on sensors.
 
Those lights are bananas Old Tony! Only for off road use, you would liquefy the bitumen otherwise......
I like this

5. 100% waterproof ,dust-proof and quake-proof for extreme environment, High temperature resistant and low temperature resistant, fit for all wether , you can use our lights at any time and anywhere.

Just in case you are in a quake prone area!
 
Of course, if you have a set of lights like these then you really need a standby generator as well.

For those interested (go on, click on the link and be stunned), your car has to be able to deliver 589 amps to those lights (just shy of 300A per light). 300A is enough to give a V8 a crank and will start any 4 cylinder petrol engine with ease. Jumper cables are NOT sufficient. 589A is more power than a winch draws when it's working hard. The average 75Ah starter battery would run those lights for about 8 minutes before it was damaged beyond repair. You might get 10 minutes if the engine was running.

And before anyone jumps the gun and points out that LEDs won't draw that much power so pick an LED light instead - the link is to an eBay sale of a pair of LED driving lights, with 114 individual CREE LEDs rated at 62W each. 114 * 62 * 2 = stupid. Of course, those two lights put my 11,000lumen light bar to shame - they put out 700,000 lumens - enough to light up a football field on their own.
Tony, if you read the specs at the bottom of the ad they have 51 X5 watt leds in each light and supposedly draw 11+amps each. not a bright as the top bit suggests. Bazt
 

Latest posts

Back
Top