Rocket55 wrote:Got board on Sat arvo and needed a bit of therapy, so I decided to install the 2 LED reversing/work lights I picked up from Glen at 4wd supplies off this forum. I used 2 of the 20W lights, so my expectations were high.
I wanted the lights up high and switched so they come on automatically when reverse is selected, but can also be turned on manually as work lights if required, and just for kicks, turned off all together. After a bit of searching and thinking my plan was set.
Parts required:
- on/off/on switch
- standard relay
- lights of choice
- 3mm twin wire
- split conduit
- various terminals
- 10A fuse
- rubber gromet
- 25mm RHS
Pick up power from 2nd battery and run to switch, rip stero head unit out and pick up reverse camera switching wire and run to switch, come back from switch to relay. Run power to relay from 2nd battery, run output from relay under car along left hand side chassis rail, cross over to drivers side on rear cross member under the tub. Remove drivers side tail light assembly. Drill hole from tub into tail light assembly cavity and install rubber gromet (note: passenger side tail light cavity already full). Run wire up around rear window frame. Cut 25mm aluminium RHS to required length. Drill holes through RHS and top of canpoy and install lights. Drill holes for light cable to enter canopy. Connect lights to power supply inside canopy. Turn them on and admire.
The control pic.
Let there be light
Distances are:
- Palm trees 12m
- Gutter at bottom of driveway 17m
- White Hilux next door 25m
- Wheelie bins across the road 27m
- fence across the road 33m
The spread of light is amazing, not huge pentrating power for max distance but seriously there is just light everywhere, very happy with the result
Here is the wiring diagram I used, works a treat and really easy to do.
While I was at it, I noticed a couple of times when changing tyres over to my awsome 33's (sorry, but they are truely wicked) that when getting the spare out from under the tub, I found it really difficult to see what I was doing and could never find that little bloody round thing to undo. In the day time I got too much glare from the sun and under the car was too dark, and in the night time, well it was just plain dark. So I put a little LED under there so I could see. Ran the wires in the same split conduit as the reversing lights, kill 2 birds with the 1 stone. Just put a simple toggle switch up front, too easy. Now I can see plain as day.
Easy to see now
While I was on a roll, a little while ago I put some DVD headrests in for the kids on the longer trips and I powered these up from the 2nd battery. I did this so they can watch movies or play games without the need to run the accessories on the car, problem is the headrests are all touch button and have covers on them, so an inadvertand adjustment of the headrest could turn them on, and under a cover and not running through the accessories could see these things turned on for days/weeks at a time, can't be good for them, so I ran a simple master switch to the power supply in the form of a basic toggle switch. Now simply power them up when needed, no chance of accedently turning them on.
This now meant I had to find space for 3 new switches. It was getting late by now, so I grabbed a piece of aluminium angle cut it to length installed the 3 switches and mounted it under the switch panel on the drivers side as a temporary measure. It turned out Ok, might leave it there I think. Not sure whether to paint it black or Hilux grey though?
PS: There is just the right number of pedals in this shot
Overall a good afternoons work.
Posted: Mon, 12 Aug 2013 5:54 +0000
feel really stupid but don't want to break it by just pulling!!!
