24 replies to this topic

[AVV IT]

I'm going to fit a small 12v buzzer into my indicator circuit, to remind me to cancel my indicators. Before I try and fathom where to put it using a wiring diagram though, does anybody know where the most obvious place would be to put it in the indicator circuit? Also would it better to fit it inline in the circuit, or to just take a feed from it and earth the buzzer to body somewhere instead?

[richw911]

Be careful as a mate of mine fitted one under the steering cowling and its way too loud!! he is going to move it under the dash now. AFAIK you fit it inline

[charie t]

if you use a 3 pin flasher relay, its got (I think) loud clicks as it works

[AVV IT]

Trust me, its so loud that it makes your ears bleed in my Mayfair, so I doubt I'd be able to hear a clicking flasher unit on the other side of the bulkhead! Besides I've bought myself a buzzer now any way.

So any ideas where I should put it in the indicator circuit? Or am I going to have to get the Haynes manual out?

[Ethel]

Do like the centre clock warning light & just wire one between the L&R bulb circuits (green/white & geen/red) as long as its resistance is high enough it'll earth through the opposite side bulbs without lighting them.

 

Slight rethink,

 

I happened to have one knocking around my kitchen (who doesn't  ); it has polarity, but it does very high resistance. You could either build a bridge, similar to my idea above, using a couple of diodes (or resistors) with the buzzer tee'd off in the middle, and earthed - or you could stick a couple of buzzers in, head to toe.

[AVV IT]

Thanks Ethel, I've just tried that, but there seems to be a slight problem in that unlike the indicator warning light, the buzzer I have doesn't work in reverse. So it only works on the side of the car that the +ve side of the buzzer is connected to. I suppose I could always buy a second buzzer and connect that one the other way around, so that each side has its own buzzer?

[Ethel]

...or you could restrict yourself to only turning in one direction.

[AVV IT]

Oh I'll turn "One Direction" in alright!! For crimes against music!!

Not really sure what that's got to do with my indicators though, or why I should restrict myself to just them, when "Little Mix" are just as guilty!!

[zerobelow]

I haven't gotten into my wiring on the mini yet. However, I expect that it's going to be like this:

You have one wire going from the relay to your turn signal switch. 

The switch then connects the relay to either the left or right side.

 

So, you just need to put the buzzer inline between the relay and your signal switch. Then it'll work whether you turn left or right. 

[Ethel]

Alas the buzzer won't pass enough current to light the bulbs. I did think of a plan C though, if you have a centre speedo, with just one green flasher, you could try T'ing the buzzer off that(then to earth). One way the bulb will be an in series resistance, the other way it'll act as a voltage divider, but the warning bulb will still do what it does and hopefully there'll be enough current to make buzzes

[Yoda]

 

 

So, you just need to put the buzzer inline between the relay and your signal switch. Then it'll work whether you turn left or right. 

 

Almost!

 

from the output of the flasher take a wire to the positive side of the buzzer and just earth the negative side. Use a piezo buzzer for minimal load,

 

 Buzzer 

 

and fix it under the dash. You can also add a volume control by putting tape over the hole and then if not loud enough, make a tiny hole with a pin and enlarge it till you get the volume you want.

 

I know this works as both of our Mini's have had it done! and i have done it for several other people.

Edited by Yoda, 28 September 2013 - 08:12 AM.

[Ethel]

It'd depend on your flasher, pucker 2 pin indicator flashers are normally closed, so the buzzer would sound all the time the ignition is on. Any sort will have to flow at least a trace current, or there'd be nothing for the indicator stalk to act on.

[Yoda]

Ok, so if thats the situation here, just put the piezo across the two terminals of the flasher, positive to feed side, and negative to swithched side and it will sound when indicator switch is on giving a path to earth. the negative side will see alternate +ve and -Ve feeds on the switch side of the relay and should beep in time with the indicators. 

 

This way the piezo will only see earth when the flasher switch is on and will work for both directions. 

 

In fact, i think i had to do it this way on our Cooper, as it still has the original flasher unit, not an electronic one.

Edited by Yoda, 28 September 2013 - 10:55 AM.

[Ethel]

That's worth a try, depends on the current/resistance characteristics of the buzzer. Hopefully the resistance will be high enough to drop the current through it low enough to shut it up, and leave the flasher working normally to give an alternate flash-buzz effect.

[Yoda]

Thats exactly how it is on Yoda, alternate Flash, buzz.

 

When you turn on the indicators, the buzz happens when the lamp is off, so that confirms how i wired it in. Its actually a reverse sounder from a golf buggy ( a leftover from a past family business) so i cant tell you what its impedance is!