964 headlight relays

creaturecat · 11-30-2011, 08:42 AM

I realize that there is a kit for the earlier cars.
What about the 964?
Any suggestions/recommendations?

RSTarga · 11-30-2011, 12:35 PM

I thought these cars came with relays. I've had 100 watt H4s on mine since new and have never had a switch problem like on my 73 which burnt 3 switches before I put relays on.

creaturecat · 11-30-2011, 12:48 PM

Pretty sure; no relays.

Classic Revs · 11-30-2011, 05:17 PM

Correct, no relays. Current goes through light switch. Therefore not good to go long term without adding relays.

RSTarga · 12-01-2011, 01:23 PM

So how would these get wired and who makes a kit?

964TargaC2 · 12-01-2011, 01:39 PM

Our host sells a kit that can be used, wiring is straightforward, you would need two relays per side (one for high beam one for low)

The relay merely bridges a direct hot lead from the battery to the light once the switch is turned on it energizes the relay which connects the bulb to the battery

Connections on relay are to battery, to bulb, to ground, to switch

creaturecat · 12-01-2011, 05:03 PM

Thanks for the replies, gentlemen.
I think I will get 2 Bosch relays, accompanying sockets,
a bit of high quality wire for the power feeds, and have at it.
I would like to see what the H5's are like, with relays and
SilverStars, before i do the H4 thing (via Pelican, of course).
I previously owned a euro 911, with the H4's, they are great headlights.

iamtheari · 06-01-2012, 10:32 AM

I'm dredging up this thread in the hope of getting some input. I want to change my 964 to H4's because the total cost will not be much more than replacing the cracked lenses on my stock H5's. But while I'm in there I want to protect the switches and electrical system with relays. There are numerous threads mentioning that Pelican sells a relay kit. The only headlight relay kit I have found is under the classic 911 catalog (part # JWST-911-HLPR). Does this kit readily work with a 964 or am I better off piecing an equivalent together on my own? Also, it appears to be one kit for each side of the car, but I want to confirm that before I order two of them.

My parts list right now is two each H4 upgrade kits, bulbs, plug adapters, headlamp/fender seals, and relay kits. Am I missing anything? Thanks!

creaturecat · 06-02-2012, 09:44 AM

the actual relay wiring is quite simple. You just need a couple of basic relays, or one kit.
I have obtained all the necessary parts, would like to see an actual install, i.e. - where the wiring is accessed. I believe the best way would be to attach the hi and lo feed at the fuse box, having the relays, etc. close to the lamps. I may be wrong.
Anybody shed light on this ?

mb911 · mb911's Garage

i thought some one on rennlist was putting a kit together and i am curious as well i could use a set

964TargaC2 · 06-02-2012, 12:34 PM

Best place is on Fender near where wiring goes through to headlamp bucket, You will need to take the lead from the bulb and attach it to the to the relay and run a lead from relay to the bulb, you will also need to run fused line from battery to the relay and a ground to relay. Of course you can cut the harness and insert the relay (you will still need a seperate hot lead and ground though)

iamtheari · 06-06-2012, 08:21 PM

Do people run one pair of relays (high/low beam and then put the lamps for both sides in parallel) or two pairs of relays? I was looking at my 964's fuse box and there are unused relay sockets, so I am half tempted to install the relays there. But that also looks like a lot of work...

creaturecat · 06-09-2012, 09:57 AM

one pair, as a rule.

creaturecat · 08:06 AM

anyone wire in the city lights?
I guess that you have to run the power wire to the side marker. What would be the least intrusive method? Updated here: H4 "city light" socket
On a related note; given that you have to cut/change the bulb holders, this seems like the perfect time to wire in relays. How about doing it this way: cut original bulb holders off. run orig hi/low wires from 1 side(terminate other side), back to relays(use as relay control). wire in new h4 sockets directly to relays, wire in the rest of the relay to the battery
positive/negative.
Comments/suggestions appreciated. : )

iamtheari · 06-25-2012, 10:02 PM

How did you wire the lights in? I see four fuses for the headlights on my 1990 C4: left low, left high, right low, and right high. That sounds like four relays to me but I'm all ears for good ideas.

creaturecat · 06-27-2012, 08:09 AM

The relays each have 2 "out" pins.
i.e. 2 lights to each relay.
I have not done mine yet, waiting patiently for comments regarding my above post. : )

iamtheari · 06-27-2012, 08:23 AM

I will have to take a closer look at the JWest kit I got to see if the relays it uses do indeed have the second set of switched contacts. They're not wired in on the kit as supplied but I'm not afraid of taking care of that if the relays are indeed double pole.

For wiring, I am planning to keep the new relays close to the existing central electrics fuse box and use the existing wiring plus one heavier-gauge positive lead to the battery. The relays are primarily for the purpose of protecting the under-engineered switches in the control stalk, and the fuses will protect the wiring to the lights themselves.

iamtheari · 03-21-2013, 05:57 PM

creaturecat: Did you ever finish this? I am trying to plan a way to accomplish it using the factory fuses for the lights. Basically to match the wiring that JWest's instructions give you when installed in an older 911.

Battery + --> both relay inputs
Relays both grounded to chassis
Relay inputs coming from light switch
Relay outputs going to bulbs by way of fuses in the factory fusebox

The problem is that the factory fusebox is a nest of wires so it's hard to work with as well as hard to identify which wire coming from it is for which fuse.

creaturecat · 03-22-2013, 11:55 AM

I did not put the relays in yet. I did however have to put in a new column switch. : (
The fuses should be inline with the power feed from the battery.
I do not intend to install anything in, (or close to)the fuse panel.
The shorter the wires, the better.

iamtheari · 03-22-2013, 03:18 PM

I just got a new column switch from DC Automotive. At least one other member here has a used one for sale (I just got a PM back today so I couldn't take advantage before my DC Automotive order showed up yesterday).

On the relay wiring, the struggle is that I don't want a lot of junk flying around the luggage compartment. I would prefer to at least tap into the existing headlight wiring for the relay triggers and then add fuses on the relay-controlled headlight lines (separate fuses rather than a big one on the hot lead into the relays so I only lose one light when a fuse blows and not all four). And the wiring harnesses up there are pretty dense, so I'd hate to hack into one and dig around in it just to make a mess.