i'm looking to get some extra lights for our(wife and I) buggies.... anyone have any good experiences with some? if so, what kind and where did you get them?

i'm not Mr. Electrical either.... so, feel free to help me out with any needs or notifications on what i would need.



thanks,
Rich

 

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Just wondering, what is the make / model of your buggies???

With these details, we could reduce "information overload" in our replies, and only provide you what's related to your specific buggies.

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yeah, I guess that would help huh..... Carter XTV 2150 and Blade DX150 are the carts...

 

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Found your 1st buggy on the net. It's picture looks like - Press Here -

At the top of the roll cage, I see some factory lights. Does your buggy have these? If not, I'm wondering if you can order this optional roll cage light assembly from a Kart parts seller. Roll cage lights from a different brand / model might work for you too. If you need to order these optional (???) lights, might want try contacting - Press Here - Don't know how good this place is, but it might be a start.

If you are thinking about installing "more or different" lights, I'd recommend you obtain your stator / generator output numbers first. Too much wattage draw drains a battery faster then expected. Since this Kart appears to have a CDI, it probably has a stator output system. To obtain generation side output numbers from a stator system, try these steps.


Steps:

1 - Need a Digital Volt / Ohms Meter tool. They are between $20 - $40 at many electronic / automotive stores. For a picture of the tool I used, surf: http://client.webshots.com/photo/262...62613589PYiCcV

For details on how to use this tool, surf: http://www.colomar.com/Shavano/vom.html

* Note: You must use a Digital Meter because an Analog Meter could / will damage the mini's electrical system. I've been told this many times.


2 - Start your engine and bring it to a warm running condition.


3 - Set your Digital Meter to DC / 12V setting.

4 - Disconnect the "+" post from your battery. To do this the safest way, turn engine off, Key Off, remove "+" battery cable, start your Kart via its backup Kick starter. Much easier to start with a warm engine.

5 - Using your Meter, obtain the power re-generation numbers across the "-" and "+" battery cables. For detailed instructions, read details within " http://www.colomar.com/Shavano/vom.html " before performing this step.

6 - Once you have your output numbers in Watts at idle and mid-rev level, divide their "average range" by 2. The divided number will be your "on average" max 12V Watts bulb size(s) you "should" use. By using "on average" bulb size this way, your power generation system will have enough output to keep its battery charged and to keep your lights bright.

7 - Once you have your "on average" bulb watts size, visit your local Wal-Mark / K-Mart type store and pick up some low watts automotive clear lens fog lights. Some come in orange, clear or light blue tint. Use what ever tint is most comfortable for you.

Note: If you have existing optional roll-bar lights, you might even get lucky enough to replace their factory bulbs with higher watt bulbs. I upgraded the high beam bulbs on my 2002 AC 500i (from 27w to 55w) and they work much better.


Note: I haven't tried the above steps myself. But from a white board perspective, these steps should work.


Hope this helps....

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wow, thanks Spike. i appreciate it.... but, of course i'm looking for the easy way out. lol


let me ask you this.... if i bought a light kit from advance or autozone... and it came with a relay, do i really need the relay?

i'm asking because the wiring diagram isn't very helpful on those kits.

i stopped off at advance and they have a kit i like... i opened the box and was looking at the wiring diagram. the fog lights go to a relay, then some wires go the the power switch, and from the power switch.. to the parking lights and ground. from the relay, one wire goes to positive terminal and one to a ground. it's confusing to look at, let alone try to explain it on here....

what i'm thinking... is that i can use a simple way to hook one of these up. from positive terminal, have a red wire with fuse in it leading to toggle switch.... from toggle switch, have the other wire(positive) go to the lights.... while having the the black wires from the lights go straight to the battery terminal(-). this is this what people call hard wiring, right?? would this work?? if the lights are for a 12V system, which is what my XTV has... everything should be fine, right?? the lights are 55w so they should be fine.. i think.


i guess i'll be studying electrical wiring..... lol


thanks again Spike,
R6

 

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For a simple wiring diagram (which sounds like you are after):

From Battery "+" post, 12V wire to inline fuse. Closer the fuse to the battery "+" post the better. From the inline fuse, use 12V rated wire to 12V rated toggle switch. From 12V toggle switch, use 12V wire to your light(s). From the other output wire of your lights, run it to Frame Ground. This will work.

Key points are:
- Complete wire must be rated for 12V and support your combined light watts. Sorry, I can't remember the guage of woring but it must be a thick wire. 10G maybe???
- Your toggle switch must be rated for 12V system.
- Your inline fuse is the same as (or next rounded up) Amp size to your combined light(s) Amps.
- If your 2 x 55W lights drain your battery, you could "possibly" down grade their bulb size. For example, 55W to 35W. It all depends on the bulb socket size that is used. For example H3-xx can be interchanged with H3-35w and H3-55w bulbs.

For a picture of our 12V toggle switch, surf: - Press Here -


If you want to install a relay, surf "Method B" within: - Press Here -

If using a Relay, end results may look like: - Press Here -

As with all upgrades, go with the upgrades you are most comfortable with - based on your skills and available parts.

Hope this helps as well...

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some great info....



yes, it helps a great deal..... thanks again spike.

 

one last question.... what is a relay for? what purpose does it serve?

 

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Instead of "hard wiring" directly to the battery, some people like to tap / splice into an ignition OFF/ON type wire. When the key is ON, there's current in the wire. When the key is OFF, there's no current in the wire. Most of the time, this ignition type wire is very small size. Much like the very small size unused "little brown" wire from my son's Pred-90's removed Oil Injection system. This "small wire" can't handle the high levels of 12V current. Thus, tapping light wiring wire directly into the little wire would overload it. Direct wiring would probably melt the plastic off this little wire. For the lights on our Pred-90, we connected to our small brown wire and ran it into the Relay. When the brown wire is "live", it sends a small amount of 12V current into the Relay. The Relay is an internal switch. The switch inside the Relay is turned ON and allows current to flow through its "thicker wire side". Thus, allowing higher level of current in the Relay to flow to its upstream side devices - such as high wattage lights.

When installing a Reverse Light on an Adult Size ATV that this tapped into the unit's "R" dash wire, many people use a Relay. Dash wires are usually small size and the Reverse light uses much thicker wire (because of its higher level current needs). Thus, a Relay is used so the little dash wire doesn't get overloaded. For a pictures of an adult size reverse light, surf: - Press Here -


Hope this helps....

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hey spike, i got the light system and installed it.... didn't take that long to figure it out, just took forever to do the wiring along the chassis. Thanks for your help, i really appreciate it.


they work great, btw.

i wired to the positive terminal on the battery, next was the fuse, then the toggle switch, then the lights. putting all of the grounds in their proper location of course. the lights are bright... 12V with 55W are great.


anyways... it won't take me long to do my wife's cart when it gets here b/c i now know how to do it.


thanks again,
R6