Converting US to Euro Flashers

One caveat that I want to add here is that, if you implement the modification where the added lamps can be "on" continuously (...Driving and Flashing...), it is up to the Modifier to confirm that the lamps used are appropriate for this type of use.

(I don't know whether the stock F 308QV euro flashing lights are OK for this type of use or not.)

 

Whats different about the Euro flashers? Do you mean turn blinkers/4 way flashers ?

 

The US version 1984-85 308QV has no separate daylight flashing lights (on the US version only the high beams flash and only when the headlight pods are up). This thread could also have been titled "Adding separate daylight flashing (and/or driving) lights to 1984-85 US version 308QV".

This same modification can be applied to 1980-82 US 308i-2V and 1983 US 308QV with the only difference being that (in the stock form) the light blue wire connected to the top of fuse #11 (that you remove) is connected to the top of fuse #14 in the stock configuration.

(For some reason, when stock, F had the low beams flash when the headlight pods are up on 1980-1983 US 308, but changed to having the high beams flash when the headlight are up on 1984-85 US 308.)

 

that makes sense now, mine is a US spec car.

WOW I just noticed, it's my 2000 posting!

 

Mike @miketuason ....I think this is what you are looking for

 

Steve, regarding you statement on the last paragraph, I have confirmed this on five different 308, (3) US QV 83, 84, and 85,
(1) US 82 and (1) US 81 that when headlights pods are up (park light only) flasher works only on low beam. Is this normal? How did they change it to having the high beam flash instead when when pods are up in either park light only or on low beam?

 

I think you may have found an error in the '84-'85 US 308 QV OM schematic. My statement was based on the schematic in the '84-'85 OM that has the light blue A wire from the flashing switch connected to the tops of the high beam fuses; however, in the figure showing the fuses and relays, it shows this A wire connected to the tops of the low beam fuses (i.e., the unused terminal is at the top of the high beam fuses). Although, in the photo I used in post #1, this A wire is connected to the top of the high beam fuses (and that was not my photo) so maybe someone had already moved it? In the 1980 US 308i-2V OM and the 1983 US 308QV OM, the schematic and the fuse/relay figure both agree that the low beams are used for flashing.

However, this is a case where it's very easy to have either the low beams or high beams flash on any year US just by plugging this A wire from the flashing switch either onto the top of the low beam fuses or the high beam fuses.

 

Thank you Steve! I will try to switch the A wire to the high beam flash.

 

I have a 78 308 GTS, USA model. I have done the relay modification that allows me to turn on the parking lights while the pods are down. As a result of this, I have lost the flash function when the headlights are on in either high or low beam setting. When I do drive at night and I have to flash, I just move the stalk down from the middle position to the lower position and then back. Basic, but functional.

Can I regain the flash function by doing the above modification, (changing blue wires at the fuse box)?

 

Do you have a figure/schematic of the modification that you have made?

Do you still have a light blue wire connected to the top of fuse #13 and a light blue wire connected to the top of fuse #14?

 

The modification I made involves changing the wires and adding diodes on the "Headlights Motor Contact" relay. I do not believe a schematic was provided, but the instructions are below. My wires are still connected to the fuse box as you described: light blue-top of #13 and light blue -top of #14


How do I turn on my 308 parking lights without having the headlights pop up?

Many 308 owners would like to be able to run their parking lights without having their headlight buckets in the up position. While Ferrari made this possible starting with the 328 series, many earlier 308 series owners would like to know how to update the headlight circuit so that the headlight buckets can be down when the parking lights are on. Follow these easy step-by-step instructions to make the modification. For those interested, included at the end of this FAQ is a brief explanation of how the circuit works and exactly what is being modified.

Materials You Will Need

2 each 200 volt/1 amp silicon diodes (available from Radio Shack)

2 feet of 14 gauge electrical wire

2 each crimp-on taps for the 14 gauge wire (it's best to use the taps that accept a female spade terminal)

2 each crimp-on male spade terminals (to attach to the taps)

An assortment of heat shrink tubing

Some electrical tape

3 each crimp-on butt splice

3 wire ties to keep the new wiring tidy under the dash

Making the Modification

1. Remove the fascia cover from the dash (the power portion of the passenger side dash). This will reveal an assortment of fuses and relays. Keep the fascia cover handy, as you will need to refer to the diagram on the back of the cover throughout the following steps.

2. Locate the head lamp lifting motor relay. There are three headlight relays: one for the left, one for the right, and a third which drives the other two. The one you want is labeled "Head Lights Motor Contact", and is located in the center of the panel. Check the diagram on the back of the fascia cover to make sure you've got the right relay. The connections on the relay are labeled as follows:
85 - Control Input
86 - Control Output (usually ground for the solenoid)
30 - Power Input
87 - Primary Power Output
87a- Secondary Power Output
Note: When 12 volts are applied to the Control Input, the solenoid is activated, and connections 30, 87, and 87a are shorted together.

3. Identify the fuses for left and right high and low beams. They are usually the first four fuses in the right panel.

4. Unhook the relay panel by lifting and rotating the top toward you.

5. On the back of the panel, the headlight relay should have a blue wire running to the connection at the 3 o'clock and the 6 o'clock positions (viewing the relay connections as a clock; looking down on the panel with the top of the panel pointing towards you). The blue wire runs to 3 o'clock (the control input) first, then down to the 6 o'clock (power input) position. It originates from the relay to the immediate right (the 12 o'clock position). The entire wire runs to four different places (it has four connectors on it).

6. Flip the panel back up to the vertical position. Remove the headlight relay. Each spade connection fits into the panel in a slot with a small hole or notch on one side. Stick an awl or a thin bladed screwdriver into the small hole as far as you can (about 1/4 to 3/8 of an inch). This releases the locking tab for the wire connector on the back of the panel. From the back of the panel, pull the blue wire out of both the 3 o'clock and the 6 o'clock positions.

7. Using wire cutters, cut the blue wire so that there is just one connector. Cut it at the 3 o'clock connector so that the wire no longer continues to the 6 o'clock connector. Save the connector and short wire that used to run to the 6 o'clock position.

8. Insert the remaining connector on the blue wire into the 6 o'clock (power input) position. You should now have a wire running from the 6 o'clock (power input) position on the headlight relay directly over to the 12 o'clock position on the relay to the right. The 3 o'clock (control input) position should be empty.

9. Add a new control circuit. Use a pair of 200 volt/1 amp diodes in a Y configuration, where the branches of the Y connect to the bottom spade connections for the #10 and #12 fuses, and the trunk of the Y connects to the 3 o'clock (control input) position on the relay. The current must flow FROM the fuses TO the relay control input, otherwise you will blow the fuses. Use the connector and the short length of blue wire you cut off previously, inserting the connector in the 3 o'clock position in the relay panel. Be careful, of course, to make sure nothing will short to anything once it is all put back together. You can cover the diodes and their exposed leads with the heat shrink tubing. If the tubing shrinks too much lengthwise, use a little electrical tape to ensure that everything is adequately insulated. Wiring the relays in this manner will activate the headlight lifting motors whenever either the left headlight low or high beam is on. You could also connect to fuses #11 and #13. In either case, the motors will now only activate when the headlights are switched on.

10. Replace the relay, relay panel, and fascia cover.

11. Test your work.

How the Circuit Works

One relay controls whether the headlight lifting motors are activated. It has one power input, two power outputs (switched), a control input to the solenoid, and a ground for the solenoid. The stock wiring is for power to be applied to both the control and power input at the same time by the light switch on the steering column moving to either the park or headlight position. In addition, the light switch applies power to the headlight bulbs themselves whenever it is moved to the headlight position.

The above modification changes this so that the light switch only applies power to the power input when it is in either the parking lights or headlights position. The control input is driven by power being applied to either the high or low beam bulbs themselves. As a result, the solenoid making the headlights lift is only activated when the headlights are actually on.

Contributions to this FAQ by: Bob Bowser, Dave Handa

 

None of that sounds like it should have any impact on the flashing function; however, this:

would only have the low beams glow a little bit brighter when flashing with the low beams "on". My first suggestion would be to move the light blue wire from the top of fuse #13 to the top of fuse #10 or #11 (whichever one has an unused male spade terminal). This would have the high beams do the flashing when pulling the stalk back when the low beams are "on". If you still get nothing happening when pulling the stalk back with the low beams "on" that would be a bad sign for the flashing switch itself in the stalk assembly. Give a shout back with your result, and we'll go from there...

 

Thanks for the suggestion. It may be a few days before I get to the car.

 

Success

Decided to try your suggestion out now. I moved the blue wire from fuse 13 to fuse 10 and got my flashers back. This has got to be the simplest fix I ever did.

Now, when my pods are up and low beams are on I can flash the lights no problem. However the “pods down“ mod still has its quirks. When I have just the parking lights on (stalk in top position, knob turned, pods down, parking lights on) and I pull back to flash, the pods “wink”. They go up, headlights are on, then go down, headlights off. This was also the situation before I moved the blue wire. It’s actually pretty amusing to see.

Thanks again. You advice on this board is always helpful and spot on, especially in the electrical area.

 

Oops - yes, that's natural with the mod you've made (although with the pods down, and only the parking lights "on" you have no bulbs to flash, so no reason to flash them). Let me think about it a bit...

 

The “winking” was there before I changed the blue wire. It is a result of the relay wiring change.


Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat

 

Understood -- but it's still not good . The reason the "winking" happens is that, in the modification, the signal turning the headlight bulbs "on" (either low beam or high beam) is what is also being used to "tell" the headlight lifting relay to raise the pods. Unfortunately, the signal to flash is also a signal turning the headlight bulbs "on" -- so this causes the pods to want to go up initially and then they go down when you release the flash signal -- i.e., the wink. May not be possible to do anything about this without adding too much complexity, but it's an interesting problem so I'm going to ponder it...

I would also bet that your low beams were flashing a bit when the low beams were "on" -- not enough to be noticeable from the driver's seat, but would be noticed by someone looking directly into the bulbs (either directly or via a rearview mirror). Now you've got a much stronger flash (of the high beams) when the low beams are "on", but, if you now flash with the high beams "on", it will be more subtle.

 

Thanks for that explanation.

 

Steve I took a picture of my fuse box last night and noticed that it’s different from the pic above. Mine is 84 QV US. Should I still switch one of the light blue wire to terminal 10 to get the high beam flash?

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Only if you you want the high beams to be the lights that flash. If so, move the light blue wire from the top of fuse 13 to the top of fuse 10 (the light blue wire at the top of fuse 14 needs to stay there). This would give you (assuming no other modifications):
parking lights "on", headlight buckets up, high beams flash when stalk pulled back
low beams "on", high beams flash when stalk pulled back
high beams "on", high beams flash a little brighter when stalk pulled back

What you have now (assuming no other modifications):
parking lights "on", headlight buckets up, low beams flash when stalk pulled back
low beams "on", low beams flash a little brighter when stalk pulled back
high beams "on", low beams flash when stalk pulled back

 

Thanks Steve! I did it, I am now getting high beams flash when pods are up park lights only or when it’s on low beams.

 

Had some time to look at other ways to modify the US version 308B/S headlamp pod lifting operation and flashing light operation. Attached are simplified schematics for the stock arrangement and 4 possible modifications:

Note: On the 308B/S carb, 308B/S 2Vi, and 1983 308B/S QV OM schematics, the light blue A wire of the flashing light switch is connected to the top of fuse #13. This makes the low beam headlights the flashing lights. On the 1984-85 308B/S QV OM schematic, the light blue A wire of the flashing light switch is connected to the top of fuse #11. This makes the high beam headlights the flashing lights. This is something that the user can change on any US version 308B/S (so any particular car may not match its OM schematic). For the purposes of these examples, this light blue A wire is connected to the top of fuse #11, but could also be attached to the top of fuse #13, if desired.

Stock – Shows the stock wiring arrangement which is important to understand in order to understand the possible modifications. Importantly, it shows the blue L wire connecting terminal 30 on Relay 105 (Relay M) to terminal 85 on Relay 105 (Relay M). This wire is always +12V so, whenever the Stalk Knob is rotated to “on” (regardless of the Stalk Lever position), the headlight pods are raised. It is this blue L wire that is cut (and rewired) in each modification.

Operational negatives:

1. Headlight pods are raised when only the parking lights are “on”.

2. When the Stalk Knob is “off” (normal daytime driving), there is no flashing function.

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Modification Option 1 of 4 (As described in FCA NW Region text article by Dave Handa and Bob Bowser)

This involves cutting the blue L wire noted above and adding the two diodes so that the headlight pods only are raised when the low beams or high beams are “on” (i.e., the headlight pods stay down when only the parking lights are “on”).

Operational negatives:

1. When the Stalk Knob is “off” (normal daytime driving), there is no flashing function.

2. When only the parking lights are “on”, there is no flashing function.

3. If flashing is attempted when only the parking lights are “on”, the headlight pods will “wink” up and then down.

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Modification Option 2 of 4

Same as Option 1 of 4, but a …113 relay is added to prevent the headlight pods “winking” if flashing is attempted with only the parking lights “on”

Operational negatives:

1. When the Stalk Knob is “off” (normal daytime driving), there is no flashing function.

2. When only the parking lights are “on”, there is no flashing function.

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Modification Option 3 of 4

Same as Option 2 of 4, but the …113 relay is replaced by a …101 relay and separate daylight flashing lights are added to the front grill.

Operational negatives:

1. When the Stalk Knob is “off” (normal daytime driving), there is no flashing function.

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Modification Option 4 of 4

Same as Option 3 of 4, but the +12V power source for the flashing switch is changed from a source that is +12V only when the Stalk Knob is “on” to a source that is always +12V. This is the same lighting architecture that is used on 328 and TR.

Operational negatives: None

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I will post another message with pdf files of each schematic for better readability and a WORD file with this explaining text. Please let me know if you find any errors or things that need fixing. (Of course, I like Option 4 of 4 best as this gives a flashing option when the pods are up or down and when the Stalk Knob is "off".)