Putting the red bumper lenses to use

[iFORCE]

Re: Connector question...

iForce (or anyone else):
What kind of terminals did you use inside the connector? Or did it come prewired? I'm looking to do something similar with the switch but the piece of the puzzle I'm missing is how do you make the wiring connections at the switch. Do you have or can you take any pics of the actual wiring inside the connectors? Are the terminals available other than at the dealer?

When I bought the switch.. I just bought the plastic connector with it. Then you gotta cut some wires and pconnect it to the connector and it snaps right in. If you don't want to make any wires.. you can also purchase these pre-cut wires with metal clips that make things alot easier. Of course... they are expensive.

switch > plastic connector > wires (ground/power) > housing > bulb

The part numbers for the switch and the connector is up a few posts.

 

[Kmvreter]

Thanks...

for the info. I'll get the switch & connector and work with it.

 

[yabedude]

A google search for:

Universal Double Contact 1157

Should help you find a socket for this mod.

 

[ksneubec]

Help with this Mod!

Alright Gang, I need your help with wiring up the turn signal/brake/marker lights:

I tried this mod this weekend but cannot get the parking light funciton to work. This is what happened. I hooked up the driver's tailight yesterday, without much problem. (All of my accessory wires are spliced into the factory wires just behind the trailer connector plug.) However, when doing the passenger side's today, I discovered that when the DRIVER'S SIDE SIGNAL is on, the passenger side's parking light flashes (like a turn signal, but dimmer). At first, this was the only problem. However, when I started to play around with the setup, all of a sudden the opposite happened too- when the PASSENGER SIDE's signal is on, the driver's side parking light will flash like a signal. WHen the parking lights are on, only the correct turn signal will flash.
I double checked all connections. I had the ground from each light wired together, and then a common wire from the two connects to the white wire with the black stripe (ground going to the trailer plug). I did something similar to the parking lights- the wire from each bulb meets, forms a common wire, which connects to the green wire with black stripe. The red and brown wires, the turn signal wires, are connected by themselves to the appropriate bulb on each side.
Any idea of what I did wrong? I used LED 1157 bulbs, but as far as I can see so did others without this problem. I changed to ground around a few times just in case some sort of reverse signal traveled from one light to the other that way. I LITERALLY spend about 8 hours with a few fellow firefighters checking the wires, changing combinations, running a volt meter, etc. All with no luck.
Can anyone PLEEEAAAASSEEEE help!?!?!?! I like having the brake and turn signals work, but it would be much nicer if the parking lights worked as well. Any suggestions would be helpful.
Lastly, after all this work, the check engine light, VSC light and traction control off light all came on. However, after two quick trips to the store, when I got in the car the third time, all these lights were off, and stayed off on the way home . . . if they stay off, great, but why did they come on???

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks,

 

[iFORCE]

Instead of wiring them each separately to the respective taillights, try wiring the positive wires to the TRAILER CONNECTOR. This should solve alot of issues with the connections.

What will happen is that they will come on when your key is on the ON position or when your car has been started. They will remain ON throughout your drive. You could always hook up a nice switch so that you can turn them on/off if you would like.

One thing you might want to do is hook them up to the strobe lights. It would go on/off according to your lights.

 

[ksneubec]

iFORCE,

Thanks, but I tried touching the wire to the trailer connector, in addition to the wires that feed it, and I got the same results.
And FYI, it did cross my mind to put strobe lights instead of regular turn signal/brake/parking lights. However, then I realized I can buy a special flasher which will make the regular lights flash like strobes when turned on. This is in the works

 

[iFORCE]

looks like your tapping into alot of electrical systems there. There's nothing I can think of right now besides making sure you have a proper ground and that your connections are SOLID and SOLDERED. Maybe something with the housing, maybe the lightbulbs are loose. The LED 1157 shouldn't be a problem, as I use them as well (16 straight firing, 6 radial firing).

Best of luck, and If I think of anything I'll let you know.

 

[RXvedub]

The LED 1157 shouldn't be a problem, as I use them as well (16 straight firing, 6 radial firing).

Where did you get these?

 

[ksneubec]

I got the bulbs from:

http://www.superbrightleds.com/

I believe I got the 19 bulb narrow red 1157 bulb. I think they were only about $7 each.

 

[bryancos]

If you wire the lights exactly as instructed, tapping into the wires that come off the TRAILER connector underneath the rear of the vehicle you won't have any problems... It sounds like you tapped the same wire for both turn/stop lamps.. but the left and right are separate wires. There are descriptions of each wire color (and diagrams) of the connector in the instructions.
===
<I>
NOTE: Toyota does not use the same colors as a standard 7 pin connector. <B><I>(To help you find them, There's a cluster of brown, red, blue and yellow that go off one plug underneath near the trailer connector -- you may need to unwrap some of the tape to see the colored wires)</B></I>

<UL>
<LI>Ground wires from each light go to the <U>THICK WHITE W/ BLACK STRIPE</U> (ground) leading to the connector

<LI>One lead of RIGHT bulb/lens goes to <U>BROWN</U> <B>(right turn/stop)</B> hot wire leading to the connector

<LI>One lead of LEFT bulb/lens lead goes to <U>RED</U> <B>(left turn/stop)</B> hot wire leading to the connector

<LI>Remaing leads go to the <u>THIN GREEN W/BLACK STRIPE</u> wire <B>(tail lights)</B> leading to the connector <I>
</UL>

 

[iFORCE]

Where did you get these?

off the good ole eBay. Lots of different ones and I believed I paid around $15 for two. (expensive but hey.. its LED)

 

[ksneubec]

Thanks bryancos, but that is exactly how I connected the wires. See how strange this is????? I used different wires for the turn/brake signals to each bulb (red and brown); used the white with black stripe for ground, and the green with black stripe for the parking lights. The only thing I can think to change (which shouldn't make a difference anyway, but I can't see what else to try) is change the way I have the parking lights wire connected (I am convinced this wire is somehow the problem).

Right now, it is in a "Y" type connection, with wires from each parking light lead meeting together (the junction of the "Y"), then forming a single wire, which connects to the truck's green wire with black stripe. (all are properly connected). The only thing I can think to try is have DIFFERENT wires run from the parking light leads to the green wire, instead of having them meet. This shouldn't make a difference as far as I can tell, but it is the last thing I can think to try.

Just out of curiousity, what are the blue and yellow wires for, that run next to the red and brown? Also, the ground wire (white) runs with two other wires. I know one of them is constant power, what is the other one?

Thanks for all the suggestions guys

 

[gpross]

The blue wire is the electric trailer brake circuit. It provides variable voltage thru a controller (cab mounted) to the magnetic brake actuators in your towed rig.

( a pigtail probably came in your glovebox when you purchased your rig. You use this to connect the electronic controller to the vehicle wiring. The connector attaches in the driver kick panel. I have two fuse box covers. One has my controller on it. The other is blank. I take the controller out in the winter when I am not towing.)

Gary

 

[Kmvreter]

Just out of curiousity, what are the blue and yellow wires for, that run next to the red and brown? Also, the ground wire (white) runs with two other wires. I know one of them is constant power, what is the other one?

This other one is what you should connect to for your head/tail/parking lights. On mine it is the middle wire in the 3 wire connector (green/black at pin #2 in connector BF1). This might solve your issue.

 

[ksneubec]

This other one is what you should connect to for your head/tail/parking lights. On mine it is the middle wire in the 3 wire connector (green/black at pin #2 in connector BF1). This might solve your issue.

Duh, sorry, forgot the green was one of these. Used it already, but thanks.

 

[bryancos]

For tail lights, (parking lights) I connected the leads from both bulbs together and then made a single "Y" tap into the tail light wire that comes off the trailer connector. I used a wire nut to splice the bulb leads to a third wire and taped it up to keep out moisture. then used a crimp tap to splice into tail light wire near the TC underneath.


<PRE>

L. Tail Light lead
(BULB)-------------------------------\
|------------------------------(T.C.)
(BULB)-------------------------------/ Thin GRN w/ BLK stripe
R. Tail Light lead (coming off trailer connector)

</PRE>

 

[ksneubec]

For tail lights, (parking lights) I connected the leads from both bulbs together and then made a single "Y" tap into the tail light wire that comes off the trailer connector. I used a wire nut to splice the bulb leads to a third wire and taped it up to keep out moisture. then used a crimp tap to splice into tail light wire near the TC underneath.


<PRE>

L. Tail Light lead
(BULB)-------------------------------\
|------------------------------(T.C.)
(BULB)-------------------------------/ Thin GRN w/ BLK stripe
R. Tail Light lead (coming off trailer connector)

</PRE>

Great minds think a like- that is EXACTLY what I did, and yet here I am with weirdo flashing lights. I will check everything again (AGAIN) this weekend and see what happens.

 

[ksneubec]

Did anyone else use LEDs for this mod? After countless hours of working on this thing, I think I figured out the problem- Long story short, you cannot use LED lights for this mod if you want the parking lights to work. You are limited to the following combinations: brake and turn signal only, or parking lights only.
I will upload a wire diagram and try to explain why in a little bit, but as far as I can tell, the LED bulb is the problem itself.

Karl

 

[iFORCE]

I used LEDs. I have my connection so that its not connected to any of the existing lights. Its on its own power source so that it'll turn off when I turn off the car and vice versa. That way i'm not limited to when it'll turn on and I have my switch to manually switch it on/off.

Try getting some cheap 1157 bulbs for a buck and see if that works out better for you. Might have to replace the bulbs a couple times but at least you don't have to rewire everything.

 

[ksneubec]

I meant if anyone had used LEDs for making the lights into turn signal/brake/parking lights, because that combination won't work. It has to do with the LEDs having such low resistance. When the driver's side turn signal is on, a small amount of power will run through the parking light wire back to the light on the passenger side of the truck. With regular bulbs, the resistance inside the bulb is high enough to prevent the light from being turned on. With LEDs, however, because the resistance is so low, it is enough power to overcome the small resistance, making the low power parking light flash on the passenger side of the truck flash in sequence with the diver's side turn signal (higher power). The opposite will occur as well, when the passenger's side turn signal is applied.
When the parking lights are on, they of course already have power so the turn signals will not affect them.
If my logic at 1:00AM is right, the same thing will occur when the brake lights are applied- BOTH parking lights would light up as well, but of course, you can't see that through the higher brake light intensity anyway. (only a few of the multiple LEDs light up when the parking lights are on, hence the dimmer light, but more light up for the brake/turn signal, hence the brighter light).


As iForce suggested, regular bulbs should eliminate this problem. Otherwise, you can "settle" like I did, and just use the bulbs for turn and brake signals without parking lights.