Door Courtesy Lights on an FR-S: Basic DIY added
 

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I made a shortcut that didn't pay off. I'll get the wire I need to finish the job tomorrow.


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niceee how to/

Sweet!

Interested into what you tapped into as well.

diy please

More info tomorrow once I'm done. I tapped the dome light though.

Prep:

You need to run two wires through your a-pillar and dash area. These ends will exit in the cut-out of the dome light as well in the driver side foot well. Tin the dome side of the wire, but leave the other end shielded.

Part 1:

First pull the dome light assembly out of the head liner. The disconnect the 3 pin connector from it. I used a sharp blade to skin the sleeve on the red (door) and green (continuous power) wires. You only need the copper in each wire to be exposed on one side. Don't worry about cutting into the copper. It is a single strand so you would need a lot of force to mess the wires up. Here, I used my soldering iron to tin the exposed copper on each wire.

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Like I said, the dome light works by controlling ground. There is one common power source (green). The DOOR ground is red. The ON ground is black. I wasn't thinking and put my red wire on the DOOR ground and my blue wire on the common. It's alright though as LED's only work in one direction.

After this, I used liquid electrical tape to insulate the new wiring.

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Honestly, it's pretty much common sense from thi point forward.

For the reflector, this is what I did. I removed the door panels to get to the dummy reflectors. This is the point where you run your wiring. One method is to run the wire through the factory loom. My method was easier. I simply took my #11 blade and poked the rubber grommet on each side of the loom. I forced the wire through the doors grommet and simply his the wire behind the loom. After pushing the wire through the second grommet, the wires will be in the foot well area. It helps to remove the panel covering the hood release. You may also have to disconnect a connector or two if you ind it awkward to reach into.


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I placed double sides tape on the area that has been cut away. I placed the bulb socket on that tape, then used a zip tie to secure it. It won't be going any where.

I went back and did the following part for fun.

There is no reflective area behind where the bulb would go so I made this out of a cardboard roll (the smaller kind you find on foil or Saran Wrap rolls) and some foil. I capped one side with a piece of balsa. I then attached it with another piece of balsa and double sided tape.
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I purposely left this vague for a reason. IF you can't figure out the simple things, such as connecting the wires from the dome to the wires coming from the doors, then you shouldn't be taking this project on.

I used a red 5 SMD 194 bulb and socket in each door.


Here is the finished product. They will only come on when the doors open. It does not matter if you have the dome light switch to ON or OFF, these will ALWAYS come on when you open the door. If one door is opne, the closed door will light up a small area on the side of the seat. You really don't see it from the other seat unless you lean forward and look for it.

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Wrong thread...

How hard was this to accomplish on a scale of 1 -10? I'm still learning on how to wire, only worked on tapping into parking lights for leds and that went fine. What was the hardest part in your opinion?

Thanks for the DIY!

The hardest part was getting the wire through the door into the cabin. I can't give you a 1-10 scale, but it was about as hard as the footwell lighting. You follow the same paths and setup for the wires. The only difference is that the power is now coming from the roof instead of the fuse box (under dash), and the lights are now in the door.

wow awesome job! I will be doing this very soon!:happyanim:
Do you know if I can order the WHITE BRZ style courtesy door light reflectors anywhere?:iono:

Thanks. You should be able to go to a Suby dealership and get them.