[Diy_efi] CS Failure
Tom Visel
five10man
Tue Nov 29 16:51:24 UTC 2005
I've gone with what fit the housing, mainly, since the form factor is a
little different than a regular lamp. IIRC, the 12-element lamps are
plenty bright, especially in multi-lamp applications. Be sure of your
current bulb number, and have a peek at your housings to see if you
might have any interference issues. If you have differently-colored
turn and brake lamps (sorry, can't visualize yours right now,) you'll
want the bulbs to match the lens color - the lamps only put out one
color, so they can't be filtered into the "correct" color like a regular
bulb. You'll probably want tail lamps of all the same element count, so
that the luminosity is the same across the back of your car. Otherwise,
you look like a Volvo or Lexus.
TomV
Daniel R. Nicoson wrote:
> Tom,
>
> I was just taking a look at the web site with the LED bulbs. What do
> you recommend for stop lights versus tail lights. 19 LED for stop, 12
> LED for tail? Wide angle or narrow angle?
>
> Looks like some choices, just wanted to hear what you've found to work
> best.
>
> Thanks,
>
>
> Dan Nicoson
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> *From:* diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org
> [mailto:diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org]*On Behalf Of *Daniel R. Nicoson
> *Sent:* Tuesday, November 29, 2005 10:34 AM
> *To:* diy_efi at diy-efi.org
> *Subject:* RE: [Diy_efi] CS Failure
>
> Tom,
>
> That's the best help I've had on this issue. The E-39 discussion
> group I listen in on doesn't have any solutions when I ask on this
> one.
>
> I'll take a look at those two solutions.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Dan Nicoson
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> *From:* diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org
> [mailto:diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org]*On Behalf Of *Tom Visel
> *Sent:* Monday, November 28, 2005 11:07 PM
> *To:* diy_efi at diy-efi.org
> *Subject:* Re: [Diy_efi] CS Failure
>
> Most likely you have a bad Lamp Control Module. It's located
> in the forward power distribution box under the hood, and it's
> about the size of a box of cigarettes, with a 32-pin
> connector. It controls current flow to all of the exterior
> lights that aren't headlamps, so if you're smoking bulbs, it's
> probably the culprit. If you have non-stock HID headlamps or
> high-wattage bulbs in your headlamps, it tends to kill this
> idiot box, which gets its power from the headlamp system.
>
> Bad news: The modules cost mega bucks, and there are many
> different part numbers to make JY hunting harder. Good news:
> You can install LED replacements for your taillamps, for less
> money than the module. The LED lamps will have a current
> limiting resistor in them so they won't accept extra current
> and die if the module is getting stupid. You have an
> electronic flasher (hope it never dies, it's spendy too!) so
> your bulb flash rate shouldn't vary; however, if it does, you
> can get a 6 ohm, 50W resistor and place it in parallel with
> the LED turn signal bulb and restore your previous flash
> rate. I buy LED lamps from
> http://www.superbrightleds.com/1157.htm Good service, good
> product, good selection, haven't had one die yet.
> .
> Hope this helps!
> TomV
>
>
> Daniel R. Nicoson wrote:
>
>> Tom,
>>
>> I have a 1998 BMW 540 that eats one or two rear taillights
>> each month. I've never seen anything like it in over 20
>> years of car ownership and 19 cars. The battery is in the
>> trunk, I assume all power goes forward to the engine before
>> coming back to the taillight assemblies.
>>
>> I did put my oscilloscope on the car once to see if there
>> were any weird spikes, didn't see anything.
>>
>> I've cleaned all the bulb sockets, cleaned the multipin
>> connectors, even tried conducting grease at the contact
>> points. Still loose one or two bulbs each month. Any ideas
>> here?
>>
>> I'd drive it into your shop and pay for a proper diagnosis if
>> you're anywhere close to western Pennsylvania!
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Dan Nicoson
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> *From:* diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org
>> [mailto:diy_efi-bounces at diy-efi.org]*On Behalf Of *Tom Visel
>> *Sent:* Monday, November 28, 2005 12:38 PM
>> *To:* diy_efi at diy-efi.org
>> *Subject:* Re: [Diy_efi] CS Failure
>>
>> I own a repair shop specializing in electrical and
>> driveability diagnosis and repair. If my shop had no
>> overhead, I could probably retire on the income I make
>> from alternators which other shops (or customers)
>> installed and had die on them due to high resistance in
>> the output circuit. Intermittent or poor lamp circuit
>> (L terminal) connections will cause intermittent
>> no-charge problems. Poor or no connection at the sense
>> (S terminal, the big one in the regulator connector) may
>> cause the alternator to undercharge, but rarely to
>> overcharge or burn out. What burns out CS-series (and
>> indeed, all) alternators is heat. Internal heat, cause
>> by overwork because the alt can't charge the battery
>> properly and/or can't monitor the battery's state of
>> charge. To diagnose your vehicle:
>>
>> With a fresh known good alternator and a fully charged
>> battery (12.66 V or better) installed, check the voltage
>> drop on the positive and negative sides of the charging
>> circuit. To do this, get the alternator under a good
>> load: engine running, lights on, heater blower and A/C
>> running, cooling fans going if you have them. If you
>> have an ammeter, clamp type or no, measure the current
>> flow through the system. Positive or negative side will
>> be the same, and be sure to include all of the wires at
>> the battery in your measurement if using a clamp-type
>> probe. Note the reading.
>>
>> While the engine is still running, using your DVOM,
>> measure the voltage between the alternator case (the case
>> thru-screws are good candidates) and the battery negative
>> terminals. Note the reading. Now measure the voltage
>> between the battery positive terminal and the alternator
>> output stud. Note the reading. If you got negative
>> readings, ignore the sign. It's the number that counts.
>>
>> Total your two voltage readings. This is the "voltage
>> drop" in the charging circuit. It is a reflection of the
>> resistance in the circuit - resistance which will put a
>> long-term strain on your alternator's diodes and overheat
>> and kill them. If you get a total of greater than 0.1
>> Volt per 10 Amps of alternator output, that is too much
>> voltage drop and the connections and/or wires and cables
>> will need to be improved. For a standard 105 amp CS130,
>> 10 gauge wire straight to the battery, with a 14 gauge
>> fusible link, is sufficient. For a "high output"
>> alternator, 8 gauge with a 12 gauge fusible link is
>> recommended. Also, you can't have too many grounds.
>> Besides keeping your alternator alive, quality grounds
>> (less than .050 volts drop) will help stave off computer
>> stupidity. You would be astonished at the number of
>> vehicles that leave my shop with a sub-$150 repair
>> (diagnosis, labor, parts, tax) when other shops told the
>> customer that s/he needed a new ECM or a stack of new
>> sensors.
>>
>> TomV
>>
>> Clayton Martiniuk wrote:
>>
>>> Hello, I have an 1994 Chevy 350 that Keeps eating
>>> alternators for some reason. They seem to work for about
>>> two days and then shit out. I have a cs series
>>> alternator powered with one exciter/indicator wire at
>>> the F terminal. Looking at the indicator bulb, I'll
>>> start the truck, the light will go off for a while but
>>> turn back on intermittently. I heard that these years of
>>> trucks seem to have a problem. Some say to ground the
>>> back of the case to the batt but I dont see how on mine.
>>> I am probably close to duty cycle but no major power
>>> drains. It gets very cold here around -20 to -50. I am
>>> running an electric fuel pump. I am running an red top
>>> optima with 800 cca. Does this Battery require special
>>> needs? Is the answer an larger amperage generator or am
>>> I doing something wrong?
>>> I am sick of buying alternators and no one can seem to
>>> figure out whats happening.
>>> Thank
>>> you for your time
>>> Clayton Martiniuk
>>>
>>>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>
>>>_______________________________________________
>>>Diy_efi mailing list
>>>Diy_efi at diy-efi.org
>>>http://lists.diy-efi.org/mailman/listinfo/diy_efi
>>>
>>>
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>>
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>>
>>
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