firstcar-Y10 said:

although if dealing with a car with dim lights and melty switches it's probably better to assume the wiring is getting past its best.

Click to expand...

Indeed, but people seemed to be advising that uprated headlamp bulbs are a no no without modifications, which isnt always the case.

Hi all,
I have a 1991 Panda Classic 4x4 - and have a problem.....
My lights have stopped working, when we removed the switch, it had completely blown up!!
I do have a spare switch - but can anyone advise me how I could get the connector block (which is also looking pretty burned). Also, none of the fuses blew out - which is a little worrying, any idea why this would have happened?

Apologies to anyone who's already seen this - I had posted elsewhere but thought this thread more appropriate.

Pls see above - am I correct in thinking it may be the headlight bulbs which caused this? I do remember replacing the bulbs as the lights were so dim, and think we have 55/60s fitted - should I be either replacing with 40/45 or fitting a relay? It also appears the switch burning out is common, but I don't understand why this wasn't protected by the fuses....
And one more - as I can't get this part - we're going to detach and fit connectors instead - any better ideas?

looking at that, it looks like it was getting really hot.. i think it was caused by a faulty switch. the small connectors in the switch only just touching causing a hot spot which got worse over time.

i think this was more so caused by the "side light" connector position as normally the dipped beams are relay controlled. (as you click the switch from side light to main/dipped beam you should hear a relay click in the fuse box)
the side lights in a panda require quite a bit of power surprisingly.
you have 2x tail light bulbs at 5 watts, 2x 7 watt number plate light bulbs, 2x side light bulbs in the headlamps at 4 watts each, 6x 1.2 watt dash board illumination lights plus the green "lights on" indication warning lamp.....
but then you have the dim dip. now that is the 2x main 40/45 watt bulbs (or 55/60 if you upgraded them to halogen) lighting up through a resistor.
when i tested it with halogen upgrades they both drew 55.18 Watts! (or 5.45 amps at 12.4 volts)

so that plus other lighting equals a grand total of 94.38 Watts (or 7.61 Amps at 12.4 volts) going through a switch with nothing but what looks like conductive paint as its "switch"

hence why i myself have disconnected the dim dip resistor (just unplug the red wire from it) as it is a system that we do not need to use in the UK and just wastes power.

so what i would do is:
pull out the broken off spade connector from the plug using pliers.
if the plug connectors still looks ok then reuse it. the plastic is only there to hold the spade connectors in place.
if it is completely no good then just cut off the old connectors and use crimped insulated spade connectors as replacements. (just remember which way the wires plugged into the switch)
unplug the dim dip resistor located just next to the battery on the suspension strut top mount.
and replace the switch.

i would leave the switch hanging out of the dash for now and while you are using the car keep feeling it every now and then to see if it is getting warm.

you can if you want to make it so the switch just controls a relay behind the dash. this would make the switch last a long time.


sticking a relay system on the main headlights works very well, but with them already being relayed its not really necessary... however. it bypasses the cars original wiring and running your own thicker wires to the 2 front headlamps (which can be later used as a power cable for additional spot lamps ) really help stop voltage drop to the bulbs.. which means they will be yet even more brighter!
then get a relay and use the original wires as signal wires to turn the relays on and off. you need 2 relays for each side (dipped beam and full beam) so 4 in total.

for the main power cable i did use some 200 amp rated cable. over the top you might say, but my car does have 690 watts of light output from the front.. excluding the LED side lights (810 if i were to have main and dipped beam on together!)
(2x 60 watts from the headlamps, 6x 55 watt spot lamps, and 1x 240 watt LED light bar )

hope this has been of help!

New switches are still available fyi.

Headlights will need relaying ideally if you've upgraded the headlight bulbs.

Fuses haven't blown as there hasn't been a short, just too bigger resistance in the system, normally due to wiring deterioration over the years.

I suspect your failure is a combination of wiring degradation and increased bulb wattage.