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On 11 Nov 2002, at 18:58, Greg Irick wrote: > My Scirocco has a relay already for the high beams so that only > control current is carried through the turn signal switch for high beams > and the low beams are still well within the rated amperage of the switch so > there are no problems there. My 'Rocco has a 90A alternator stock so voltage > problems are not an issue. My Bug has a relay installed to handle the high > beams and doesn't have any problems with the low beams either. I believe that on all of these cars, the only current thru the TS switch is the relay control current. The main headlight current only goes thru the relay. What some of us were wondering about was how much current that relay could take; it's clear that while the type 3 relay is rated at 100W, it can take a bit more, but the question is, "how much more?" > I am considering Jim A's suggestion to get it rewound for 35-40A so that I > won't be taxing the system when I run my high beams. Standard high beams only draw about 4.2A per side, so that's no problem. (When calculating current/power, we have to keep in mind that the rated power only comes when the voltage is 14.1-14.4V.) I don't really know if it's possible to get our generators rewound for 35A, but the OE generators for 71 type 2s came that way; I've often wondered what changes they made internally, if any, but I never had a chance to take one of them apart. In addition, you will only get the higher current if you get a voltage regulator rated for that amount, but the OEM 71 type 2 VRs are NLA; they just get the same 14V, 30A VRs that we use. Paying for extra capacity in the generator and then using a 30A VR would just be a waste of money, so you would have to have a plan for the VR as well. - Jim Adney jadney@vwtype3.org Madison, WI 53711-3054 USA ------------------------------------------------ To unsubscribe, E-mail to: <type3-off@vwtype3.org> For more help, see http://vwtype3.org/list/