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INT: Puddle Lights

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    INT: Puddle Lights

    I wanted to add some extra lighting to illuminate the ground when the doors are opened. This is an easy, inexpensive mod that just about anyone can do.

    I used a clear straw hat 5mm led mounted flush with the bottom of the door panel. The straw hat leds have a wider dispersion pattern giving more evenly diffused lighting. The led wires connect to the door's courtesy light so no new wiring needs to be ran through the door.

    Difficulty
    Beginner
    Approximate time to complete: 6-8 hours depending on experience

    Tools Needed
    Philips screw driver
    Small flat blade
    Wire strippers
    Snips
    Soldering iron
    Heat gun
    Drill and drill bits
    Vise
    File or sandpaper

    Parts Used
    5mm straw hat leds with proper resistors
    Resistors
    4 feet red of 18-22g wire
    4 feet black of 18-22g wire
    Shrink tubing 1/8", 3/16", and 1/4"
    Deans connector


    Led Preparation
    Start off by prepping the leds. Use 6" of 18-22g wire and solder it to the leds leads. The side of the led with flat spot is the negative side and wires to the green/striped wire door switched negative. The the other side of the led wires to the white/blue 12v wire at the courtesy light. Since leds will not work with 12v, a resistor will need to added on the positive side otherwise the magic smoke will be released.


    Find something to hold the led so it can be soldered. I used a vise. Since leds have thin leads that easily break do not wrap the wire around its leads. Just add a bit of solder to led leads and the wire first, then join them with the soldering iron.



    Next solder in the resistor. They are very fragile and break very easily. Solder them inline with the wire, do not solder them onto the led lead.



    Cover the led leads and resistor with shrink tubing. Then add two more pieces of shrink tube and solder on the faux Deans connector. Use the same method as soldering the led. The Deans connector allows the led to unplug easily.


    Take another 6" of wire and solder to the other half of the deans connector(make sure to match led polarity). Cover with shrink tubing. When done it should look like this:


    Test it to make sure it works.

    Now that the leds are prepped and working, the door panels can be removed

    Door Panel Removal
    Removing The Front Passenger Panel----Drivers door is similar


    1)Use small flat screwdriver and pop out the clip in the upper front corner.



    2)Use a small flat screwdriver and pop up the screw cover in lower rear of panel and remove the philips screw.



    3)Use a small flat screwdriver to remove screw cover from armrest pull and remove philips screw.



    4)Use a small flat screwdriver and pop up the screw cover behind the pull handle and remove philips screw.




    Slide handle forward to front of car to release the hooks and pull towards yourself. Remove door lock switch wire connector(A) and unclip rod(B). Remove door panel screw(C)


    After all fasteners are removed, remove panel by pulling with your hands starting at the front and rear bottom of the panel.



    After the clips are released, push upward from the rear to unhook the top of the panel.

    Unclip the window switch and courtesy light connectors



    Removing the rear panels. This is similar to the front front but easier.

    Remove the interior handle as instructed for the front except there is not a door lock switch to disconnect
    Remove the screw behind the interior handle
    Remove armrest pull handle screw cover and screw


    Pull the panel from bottom to release the clips, then push upward from the rear to remove the panel.


    Disconnect power window switch and courtesy light connectors.


    Led Installation
    Wiring the led to the car is easy, just wire it to the backside of courtesy light. Remove the 2 screws holding the light to the panel.


    Plug the courtesy light back in and observe which wire goes where. The green/striped wire is the door switched negative and the white/blue is 12v. The negative side has a diode but in case short term memory loss, mark the back of the light with a sharpie.


    Solder the led wires to the appropriate +/- location and reinstall light into door panel.



    Mark the center at the bottom of the door panel where led will mount. On the fronts I aligned the led with pocket screw. On the rears. I centered the leds between the door panel clips. Drill a pilot hole using a 3/32" drill bit first, then drill a 5/32"hole. This hole is slightly too small so it needs to opened up slightly for the led to fit. Push the led into the hole from the backside. It should fit tight if the hole was opened up properly(if it is loose, it can be glued in with CA glue).



    The straw hat leds are shorter than standard leds so it will not protrude from or sit flush with the panel. The lip around the led will need to sanded off in order to sit out far enough from the panel. I used my belt sander since it was handy but a file, sandpaper, or even concrete can work.


    Afterward the lip is removed, push the led into the hole until protrudes slightly from the panel. If the vinyl did not cut properly with the drill bit, a razor blade can be used to trim the vinyl around the led.


    This what it should look like when done.


    Plug the Deans connector together and test. If all is good, secure the wires, reinstall door panel and move onto the other doors.


    I use bit of sound deadening to hold the wires down.



    End Result

    Last edited by lucifer1; 04-28-2013, 08:28 PM.
    Manual Belt Conversion-Variable Intermittent Wipers-Steering Volume Controls-Rear Defroster Antenna-JDM Climate Control-MDX Steering Wheel-Lighted Mirror Switch-CL Trunk Solenoid-CL Homelink-Shaved Hood Squirters-Foglight Wiring Diagram-Door Panel Removal-Puddle Lights-Ambient Lighting-Door Speaker Install-Window Seal and Regulator Cleaning-Prelude Cluster-Mirror Tweeter Pods-Illuminated Window Switch -More Coming Soon

    #2
    I've got a set of bogo's with the Honda logo I need to install. About the same thing, but a logo appears on the ground

    Comment


      #3
      I want to do that but just with the front doors though its a cool idea for sure nice work



      Originally posted by evil_demon_01
      Do it once, do it right.
      Saving a dollar is not worth risking a life.
      Missing My
      White -91 LX Sedan - leather converted
      Mulberry 91 EX Sedan

      The project 92

      Comment


        #4
        Awesome DIY with incredible detail. Nice work.


        Form.Follows.Function

        Comment


          #5
          Props
          **Blk Housed Slut Crew Member #1**

          **Don't b scared be prepared for the worst**
          Da Drizzle's Sedan - Dr. Diy's Blk Housed Thread

          '90 2Tone Coupe-Car Heaven_'89 Lude-Junk Yard
          Mostly Usdm, some Jdm,Edm,&Puerto Rican RICE

          Comment


            #6
            The same here thats a great write up

            Comment


              #7
              this an simple yet awesome mod, thanks for sharing!!
              MRT http://www.cb7tuner.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=202004
              1992 Accord EX(Canadian)Seattle Silver sedan

              Comment


                #8
                Cool mod, nice write up.
                "Wise people treasure knowledge, but the babbling of a fool invites disaster" Proverbs 10:14

                Comment


                  #9
                  Another great DIY! This is awesome! I know what I will do next week.

                  Question though, you said to use the proper size resistors. What size resistors did you use? I can see some of the color bands but figured you knew first hand.


                  Thanks

                  Comment


                    #10
                    very nice, I will have to do that, that's awesome!
                    1997 Ford Explorer V-6 AT (what a piece of junk)
                    1993 Nissan Sentra M/T (front end damage, off road for now)
                    1999 Mercury Mountaineer V-8 A/T - RIP (rolled: totaled)
                    1992 Honda Accord A/T EX - RIP (transmission shot: sold to junkyard)

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by excalibur02 View Post
                      Another great DIY! This is awesome! I know what I will do next week.

                      Question though, you said to use the proper size resistors. What size resistors did you use? I can see some of the color bands but figured you knew first hand.


                      Thanks
                      I used 510 ohm resistors striped green,brown,black,black,brown. I had them from some other leds I had. I said proper size because if different color leds are used, they may work on differenent voltages requiring a different size resistor.

                      You can use the leds forward voltage, led current, and 14.4v to calculate what you need. Led resistor calculator:http://led.linear1.org/1led.wiz
                      Manual Belt Conversion-Variable Intermittent Wipers-Steering Volume Controls-Rear Defroster Antenna-JDM Climate Control-MDX Steering Wheel-Lighted Mirror Switch-CL Trunk Solenoid-CL Homelink-Shaved Hood Squirters-Foglight Wiring Diagram-Door Panel Removal-Puddle Lights-Ambient Lighting-Door Speaker Install-Window Seal and Regulator Cleaning-Prelude Cluster-Mirror Tweeter Pods-Illuminated Window Switch -More Coming Soon

                      Comment


                        #12
                        thats a nice look on the accord. I notice you still have the stock bulb on the bottom door panel. Change that to LED on all the doors and it will look nice.

                        Comment

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