DIY wiring for lighting

[sadtaco]

Hey fellas, new here and glad I found this site.
My pops has a 1990 G2 he inherited from his dad when he passed away in 2012, and had it shipped from Sun City, AZ where everyone has a gas cart to his home in Bellingham, WA. Right now my dad and mom are wintering over in Arizona and South America (shakes fist), so I have been tricking his cart out.

I've got the whole thing torn apart, and I am pretty mechanically inclined (I partially rebuilt my 2002 Ducati M750 and 1973 Honda CB500). I did a lot of work to the engine, and have it going 10Mph faster than previously; 32Mph as of now. I also ripped out all of the old wiring for the lights, signals, and brake switch and am in the process of rewiring that. I've left the voltage regulator, ignitor, battery leads, solenoid, and starter alone however. I did replace the coil and spark plug though.

I've read lots of diagrams, and it seems fairly simple. The burning question I have though, is do I need to route through the voltage regulator for the headlights, turn signals, and taillights, or can I bypass the regulator as long as I have inline fuses? My wiring consists of:

1) 18gauge positive with 10amp inline fuse for the headlights, ran through a on/off switch on the dash. The lights themselves are Blazer fog lights using 55watt Halogen bulbs, grounded individually up front.

2) Stock Ducati Monster turn signals ran though a standard blinker I bought at the auto parts store to a three way on/off/on toggle switch. I've also got flushmount 3 way taillights (turn, stop, on) on the same circuit as the turn signals.

Originally, I had the turn signals and the headlights on the same positive circuit, but when I turned the headlights on, the turn signals lit dimly and did not flash. They would flash normally if I did not have the headlights on. So I am going to rewire and separate the headlights from the signals and taillights. Just wondering though if I need to use the regulator for any of this.

yes you need to run through the voltage regultor
the reason is that the generator at high speeds will put out around 14v it's good for charging the battery but bad for your 12v lights
note :if you use LED lights in your turn signals you will need an electronic flasher

BTW ..... TO BGW !!

[smokindawg]

When I get ready too install my lights I'll wire them thru a fuse block. I bought a couple 6 circuits on Ebay like this one. "Fuse Block"

I used one on my motorcycle and will use one on the G1 to wire up lights and accessories. I may also use relays, depending on how I end up doing my wiring.

You won't actually wire the lights thru the Voltage Regulator, but will want to pick up the voltage from the battery. There are different ways you can do this. Here is one way using a relay to turn the power on and off. "Wiring Lights"

[Mike Mac]

18 gage wire is way to small for light!! 14 gage!

[sadtaco]

Originally Posted by Mike Mac

18 gage wire is way to small for light!! 14 gage!

I had wondered about that, but the stock wiring was 18 gauge I had thought.

[sadtaco]

I bought an inline fuse block as well and plan on using that. I think you pretty much answered my question. I read last night that the regulator is primarily for the voltage coming back from the generator to the battery to step the voltage down since it is too high to charge the battery. Other diagrams I have seen had the lights running straight from the battery with a 10amp fuse inline.
Now that I think about it, the stock wiring had the same setup.

Last night I did a POC (proof of concept) and wired and tested the flashers and headlights, and they all work great. The reason the signals didnt flash when the headlights were on was I didnt have a good ground to the rear lights. I only have one missing link right now, and thats isolating the front turn signals from the brake pedal switch. When i hit the brakes the front signals light up. Since the tailights are integrated turn, stop and "on", its fine if they light up in the rear.


1) 10amp fused positive lead from battery to a two way off/on switch for lights and accessories up front; one wire from switch to ground, and one positive lead to the lights.
2) Power lead from light & accessories switch to turn signal blinker (X), and power lead from blinker (L) to 3 way turn signal toggle switch (left, off, right)
3) Turn signals (front) individually grounded, and connected to toggle switch for signals (Left->left, off, right<-Right)
4) Taillights individually grounded and "on" or power lead connected to lights/accessories switch, and one wire from each connected to turn signals toggle switch up front.
5) LED signal indicator bulbs (left, right) on dash connected to toggle switch up front.
6) Brake light switch connected to turn signal circuit (load), and positive (+) connected to power/lights.

This is just a POC, now that everything is verified, I'll wire everythng to fuse block, and possibly use lower guage wire. I just need to figure out how to isolate the front signals from the brake light switch so it cancels them out.

[sadtaco]

I read last night the regulator was just used to downstep the current coming back from the generator to charge the battery? I'm not using LED lights, but I am using stock turn signals from a 2002 Ducati Monster (incandescent bulbs). They work great and offer enough resistance that the flash rate using a standard winker from the auto parts store is a normal interval.

[DOOmsman]

Run the lights off a small fuse block that is powered from the battery through a fog light relay that is triggered by the starter solenoid. about 15 dollars worth of stuff.

[sadtaco]

Originally Posted by DOOmsman

Run the lights off a small fuse block that is powered from the battery through a fog light relay that is triggered by the starter solenoid. about 15 dollars worth of stuff.

I'll try this tonight. What will the fog light relay do? Does this prevent power from reach the front signals when the brakes are applied?

[DOOmsman]

nO IT JUST TURNS ON THE POWER TO THE LIGHT SYSTEM.
Opps sorry for the caps.
i use the relay to prevent walking away with the lights on.