Ric:
The rheostat is in series with the dash lights, and dims them by
providing a voltage
drop to the dash lights. If the rheostat is burning, then there is too
much voltage
being dropped across it by the dash lights . This can be caused by:
Adding more lights to the dash lighting circuit.
Incorrect wattage in one or more bulbs in your dash (higher
wattage)
Any wiring problem that increases the load placed on the
rheostat (shorts, miswired, etc).
'Course, the rheostat itself may be having problems - dirty
wiper arm, corrosion, etc can conspire to increase the voltage drop
across the rheostat, and thus increase the amount of power it must
handle.
Is the light dimmer erratic, or do your dash lights flicker when
you adjust the dimmer? If so, it may be the rheostat itself...
Cheers,
Vance
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-6pack@autox.team.net [mailto:owner-6pack@autox.team.net] On
Behalf Of Ric Anderson
Sent: Wednesday, July 07, 2004 12:55 PM
To: 6pack@autox.team.net
Subject: overheating rheostat
Hello all,
The other evening I was out driving my 76 TR-6 with the headlights on
and
noticed the smell of overheating wire. A quick exam resulting in
finding the
panel light rheostat on the dash heating up. I reached up and
disconnected
the wires from the rheostat which of course turned off all of the panel
and
guage lights. My first thought was that the rheostat had gone bad, but
after
replaceing it with a new Lucas and then turning on the lights, it too
started
to heat up. There are three wires that go to the rheostat, 2
red/white and
one red. According to the schematic in my Haynes manual ( which is
really for
a TR 250) the 2 r/w go to one side of the rheostat and the single red
goes to
the other side. Any advice on what might be causing this problem
would be
greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Ric
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