The sources of electricity on the car are a generator and a battery (battery) connected in parallel. When the engine is turned off, consumers are powered only from the battery. When the engine is running, power is supplied from the generator and the battery is charged. When a large number of consumers are switched on at the same time and the engine speed is low (idling) the energy of one generator will not be enough, in this case the battery will be discharged. This must be taken into account in order to avoid a complete discharge of the battery.
The nominal operating voltage of power sources and consumers is 12 V. Depending on operating conditions, the voltage in the network may fluctuate within 11-14.5 V. Most electrical circuits are protected by fuses installed in the main and additional units. The engine ignition system circuit, the starter power circuits and the battery charging circuit are not protected by fuses.
Consumers of electricity are the starter and the ignition system of the car (ignition coil, spark plugs), lighting and light signaling devices (headlights, side lights, tail lights, side indicators), control devices with sensors, electric motors (windshield wipers, washer pump, heater and radiator fans), sound signal, rear window heating element.
The consumers are switched on by switches on the instrument panel and steering column (steering column switch) and in the car interior. Voltage is supplied to most consumers via the ignition switch (lock), located on the left side of the steering shaft bracket. The power supply circuits of the horn, cigarette lighter, brake light lamps, interior lighting lamps, and the side light switch are always connected to the battery. The ignition switch is used to switch the starter and ignition system circuits. The ignition switch consists of a housing, a mechanical anti-theft device with a lock and a contact part secured in the housing with a clamping ring. After removing the key in the "parking" position, the locking rod of the anti-theft device extends from the lock and enters the groove of the steering shaft, blocking its rotation. Voltage from the battery and generator is supplied to the input contacts of the ignition switch "30" and "30/1".
High power consumers are connected via electromagnetic relays.
The horn is mounted on the bracket of the left radiator frame pillar behind the trim. Early production cars were equipped with two horns of different tones, mounted at the front in the engine compartment on the radiator frame crossbar.
Low-voltage wires of the PVA type with elastic insulation made of polyvinyl chloride, resistant to oil and gasoline, are used to connect electrical equipment devices. The wires are collected in bundles. To facilitate searching in bundles, the insulation of the wires is made in different colors. Depending on the current strength in the circuit, wires of different cross-sections are used. The negative terminal of the battery and the engine are connected with a wire with a cross-section of 16 mm².
The transmission of high voltage pulses from the ignition coil to the distributor and from the distributor to the spark plugs occurs via high voltage wires. Spark plugs are selected depending on the type of ignition system (contact/non-contact) (cm. "Spark plugs").
Attention! When repairing electrical equipment, to avoid short circuits, it is necessary to disconnect the wire from the negative terminal of the battery.