It's kinda funny what you notice and don't notice. My wife opened the glove box last night and for the first time I noticed there's no light inside! I know this is a stripped down vehicle but.........!1
It's kinda funny what you notice and don't notice. My wife opened the glove box last night and for the first time I noticed there's no light inside! I know this is a stripped down vehicle but.........!1
jrp1948,
Funny you should mention this. When I picked up my Sol at the dealership, that is one of the first things I noticed and mentioned (after I noticed the infamous 'clunk'). How CHEAP can GM Get?? Pretty cheap!!!
2006 Nationals Kansas City, KS
2007 Nationals Nashville, TN
2007 TOTD
2008 TOTD
2008 SE Regional Lexington, KY
2009 SE Regional Myrtle Beach, SC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NASSOA
Founding Member-Vendor and Marketing Coordinator ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It's not just a car, it's a lifestyle and a community
Other Cars: 04 Chevy Malibu Maxx, 09 Cadillac CTS
Ever notice that most Sols don't have lights in the foot wells either?
Thank you, I thought I was the only one! Some of the newer luxury cars use LEDs to cast ambient light in the cabin at night. My Acura RL uses it extensively in the footwells, glove box, door handles, heck there's even one in the ashtray.
I added some to my Sol to light the footwell and dash at night.
I realized afterwards that I should have taken pictures during the install and posted a how-to. Hindsight... If there are any brave Sol owners in Phx that would be willing guinea pigs, I'd be happy to repeat the install and do a more detailed write-up.
Thank you, I thought I was the only one! Some of the newer luxury cars use LEDs to cast ambient light in the cabin at night. My Acura RL uses it extensively in the footwells, glove box, door handles, heck there's even one in the ashtray.
I added some to my Sol to light the footwell and dash at night.
I realized afterwards that I should have taken pictures during the install and posted a how-to. Hindsight... If there are any brave Sol owners in Phx that would be willing guinea pigs, I'd be happy to repeat the install and do a more detailed write-up.
That looks great Frank and just what I'm looking for. What kind of lights did you use? Is there a web site I can order them from?
__________________ KEvin#20175
Indifference will be the downfall of mankind, but who cares?
You guys want everything. First off they're so small you can't lose anything in them anyway so what's to look for with a light, and shoot, I thought it was progress when they started putting doors on 'em. They were just holes in the dash when all this sports car stuff started out. Jeeez! Before that they were glove compartments anyway, but that all changed when we got windscreens and bonnets and spanners and the like, ha ha.
That looks great Frank and just what I'm looking for. What kind of lights did you use? Is there a web site I can order them from?
I buy most of my LED parts from superbrightleds.com, but there are many places that they can be easily purchased for pennies on the dollar.
Go to eBay and do a search for "led wire resistor". That should bring up a bunch of auctions that are selling LEDs of various sizes and colors that have a 6-12v resistor and 12-18" of wire pre-attached. You could buy your own LEDs and resistors, but these will save you a ton of time. 5mm are my personal preference, but they usually don't have a wide viewing angle. You could go to 8mm, but anything bigger than that is way too big IMO.
To dress things up you could also buy mounting bezels or diffuser lenses towards the bottom of this page: http://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-b...i?product=LEDS. The diffuser is especially nice for the 5mm LED as it will spread the light more evenly.
I pulled a couple of things apart and took pictures. Here's the general process I went through:
1) Pull the cover off the center arm rest by the e-brake.
2) Locate a 12v power source: I wanted to have the ambient light come on when the doors opened, when the headlights came on, and turn off when the map lights on the rear-view mirror auto-dimmed. As a result, I used the dark brown wire (no stripe). I believe this goes to one of the rear brake lights or the license plate light -- I can't recall which one, sorry.
3) Locate a ground: Very conveniently there's a nice big ground wire adjacent to the e-brake.
4) Obtain two sets of wires, one to run for each side of the cabin (driver & passenger): You'll need a positive and a ground. I used "bell" wire from Lowe's as it conveniently had two 20 or 22 gauge wires stuck together. Estimate what you need and then add a few feet. I think I used 10 or 12 feet for each side and was surprised when I came up a little short.
5) Tap into brown wire for your positive: You could easily use a t-tap connector. I used solder and heatshrink mostly because I like the smell of burning brain cells
6) Attach both ground wires to the nut by the e-brake
7) From here, you can be creative and figure out where you want to the run the LED's. I chose three places: one by the seat belt, by the door sill and another near the pedals. In hindsight, I would have have put another one by door near the death grip or door handle. jrp1948, you could even put one in the glove box
8) Use bezels and diffusers at your discretion. You will likely need to drill holes in the plastic to mount the LED's discretely.
Let me know if anyone is interested in halogen to HID conversion instructions...
The AutoGuide.com network consists of the largest network of enthusiast-owned enthusiast-operated automotive communities.
AutoGuide.com provides the latest car reviews, auto show coverage, new car prices, and automotive news. The AutoGuide network operates more than 100 automotive forums where our users consult peers for shopping information and advice, and share opinions as a community.
> Something soft and subtle maybe 
and easy to install. 
Linear Mode
