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Old 07-01-2009, 01:40 AM   #1
simonbsays
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Default DIY Puddle Lights - WRX Wagon

I'll eventually put together a full write-up.... but for now, a sequence of pictures should explain most of it:



Pop off all plastic fasteners that hold the side skirts on.






Taped my wires to a short 10ga wire for fishing through to the fender well


Look! a little grommet that leads into the cabin.


Cut off original connectors and soldered on some wires for later...


(light module made by swintledlights.com)




(had to dremel out the area a little for the light to fit; later sealed with silicone)


Test fitting... the slant of that spot made for a perfect angle at which to aim the the LEDs. One of my main concerns was how to aim these things.
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Last edited by simonbsays; 07-01-2009 at 05:30 PM.
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Old 07-01-2009, 01:40 AM   #2
simonbsays
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(wired up to connectors B52 (blue/red wire) & B280 (blue wire), which is the dome light circuit. this way, switching the dome light to "ON" does not turn on the puddle lights)








green stuff is soft foamy wrap stuff.... i'm just trying to eliminate the possibility of any rattling.




using 3m's super sticky molding tape. this stuff's pretty damn strong




hells yeaa!

Last edited by simonbsays; 07-01-2009 at 02:02 AM.
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Old 07-01-2009, 01:41 AM   #3
simonbsays
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Last edited by simonbsays; 07-01-2009 at 01:54 AM. Reason: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmwebt3WdL8
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Old 07-01-2009, 02:20 AM   #4
simonbsays
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Last edited by simonbsays; 08-29-2009 at 07:40 PM.
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Old 07-01-2009, 02:37 AM   #5
Micker72
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wow thats very clean. now i want to do it!
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Old 07-01-2009, 03:32 AM   #6
greco2030
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haha deff gunna try this , this weekend
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Old 07-01-2009, 04:06 AM   #7
SlverEJ20
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sick modd
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Old 07-01-2009, 05:27 AM   #8
originalozzyo
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Thats an awesome mod. How will those leds hold up through the seasons?
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Old 07-01-2009, 10:38 AM   #9
wrxtasy555
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Very cool install. I really like how you connected to the harness and didn't connect to the dome light like I did. I will definitely have to make that change on mine.
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Old 07-01-2009, 11:55 AM   #10
Soobie2.5i
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yeah... i saw the forester write up the other day. looks like a cool useful mod. looks nice dude. i might consider this in the future.
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Old 07-01-2009, 01:14 PM   #11
mems3
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i was thinking of seting this up with a pair of cheap hid kits to light up the whole floor.
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Old 07-01-2009, 01:17 PM   #12
wrxtasy555
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mems3 View Post
i was thinking of seting this up with a pair of cheap hid kits to light up the whole floor.
Hmmm.... that's an interesting idea. Any ideas on how you would protect the bulb? Don't forget that you'd need to run a lead straight from the battery for enough power to ignite them.
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Old 07-01-2009, 01:18 PM   #13
wrxtasy555
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Soobie2.5i View Post
yeah... i saw the forester write up the other day. looks like a cool useful mod. looks nice dude. i might consider this in the future.
That's the best part about it. If you don't realize the functionality, it looks like total Rice. But once you see it in person in a dark place, you're like "damn, that makes sense; I want!"
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Old 07-01-2009, 02:40 PM   #14
simonbsays
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Quote:
Originally Posted by originalozzyo View Post
Thats an awesome mod. How will those leds hold up through the seasons?
Yea, I thought about that too. Since I had not seen very many DIY puddle lights, this will be a test to see how well it holds up. I contacted the LED manufacturer and they confirmed that their modules are waterproof. If that's true then it might come down to my wiring. Also ran into wrxtasy555's version after doing this, and his are proven weatherproof.

That circuit powers the dome/map lights, radio, keyless entry, and a couple other things so if it shorts out it'll be very noticeable. I'm prepared though... picked up a some extra 20A fuses, located the fuse, and ready to disconnect my terminal taps if necessary.

Quote:
Originally Posted by wrxtasy555 View Post
Very cool install. I really like how you connected to the harness and didn't connect to the dome light like I did. I will definitely have to make that change on mine.
Thanks! Since you've already pulled wire up to the dome light, i think you should be able to re-tap the correct two wires (out of the 3 at the dome light). I'm assuming that because the 2 wires I tapped runs up to the dome light as well.
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Old 07-01-2009, 02:48 PM   #15
mems3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wrxtasy555 View Post
Hmmm.... that's an interesting idea. Any ideas on how you would protect the bulb? Don't forget that you'd need to run a lead straight from the battery for enough power to ignite them.

i'll use the original plastic protector and drill a hole from the inside and stick it out through there and ill use a h3 bulb so it doesn't stick out much. and seal it w/ silicone
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Old 07-01-2009, 03:32 PM   #16
wrxtasy555
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^^^ Be careful with those plastic protectors, I don't think they'll be able to handle the heat created by the bulbs.
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Old 07-01-2009, 03:34 PM   #17
mems3
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i guess that for a few seconds of light it wont hurt
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Old 07-01-2009, 03:44 PM   #18
wrxtasy555
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It's worth a try I guess.
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Old 07-01-2009, 03:57 PM   #19
simonbsays
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lol.... HID puddle lights would be crazy extreme. Sounds like a fire hazard to me though! Especially when "cheap HID kit" is the product of choice. At the very least, an appropriate housing should be used. That plastic thing definitely won't stand the heat produced by the lamps - considering how doors are likely to be left open for more than just a few seconds.

A few other problems come to mind:
- Would blind those who are in the line of sight of the lamp
- Return wire would cause an uneven light pattern
- HID's have a warm-up period of a few seconds
- Speed bumps?
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Old 07-01-2009, 04:04 PM   #20
simonbsays
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I think i'm going to smear silicone all around the molding tape and LED module to help waterproof it a lil more tonight.
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Old 07-01-2009, 06:48 PM   #21
brighton96
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Thats a great mod! Looks cool and also useful.

I used an LED unit similar to those to replace my license plate lights in November, and they have held up fine. I did seal them up a bit with silicone too, just in case.
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Old 07-01-2009, 06:54 PM   #22
djerickd
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reminds me of the neons I had on my minitruck! I'm gonna get some and be VIP style
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Old 07-01-2009, 07:08 PM   #23
hoffmanEstates
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dude sweet i made a post on here about doing this just have not found my source of lighting yet. nicely done. i was thinking about using the side skirt, drilling holes and inserting LEDS. like 2-3 rows front to back. it might be over kill, but i might try. again nicely done.
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Old 07-01-2009, 07:10 PM   #24
SurfGuruJeff
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Quote:
Originally Posted by djerickd View Post
reminds me of the neons I had on my minitruck! I'm gonna get some and be VIP style
I had a friend with those on his Mazda B2000...

Am I the only one that thinks this is ghetto?

EDIT: Now that I watched the video, I get it... thought it was always on while driving which = rice, but it's cool, very Luxury Car-esque.
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Old 07-01-2009, 10:17 PM   #25
wrxtasy555
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hoffmanEstates View Post
dude sweet i made a post on here about doing this just have not found my source of lighting yet. nicely done. i was thinking about using the side skirt, drilling holes and inserting LEDS. like 2-3 rows front to back. it might be over kill, but i might try. again nicely done.
You mean like this?

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...php?p=27091112
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