Footwell illumination for under $10

[au_liberty]

Hey guys - please forgive my novice electrical knowledge but I am not sure of what the part is which you use to connect the three wires together - ie the 1 wire from the power source to split it to the 2 lights

 

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[upstater]

I decided to add some LED footwell lighting using a non-OEM approach, using two modules from Oznium.com tapped into the approach lighting using the map lights.

 

https://www.oznium.com/super-bright-12v-led-module

 

Inspired by this dude did the same with his WRX:

 

 

I didn't want footwell lights on all the time, I like the idea of them on when get in, then fading to black...

 

Also, I found this: http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulletin/f85/foot-well-lights-door-opening-373849/ and

 

The dimming signal comes from a switched ground, via the BIU/BCM...And the forester forum highly recommends putting in LED map light bulbs before tapping into this circuit, because that control device is expensive and could be voltage sensitive.

 

So I ordered these 6 led bulbs to install (SMF6 cool white):

 

https://www.diodedynamics.com/store/2003-2009-subaru-legacy-map-light-leds

 

These Diode Dynamics bulbs were a bit longer than the OEM, so I would recommend you buy a different vendor for these...they are however brighter than stock, and daylight instead of yellow. They do fade just like the OEM bulbs do. You can see the back of the bulbs in the picture below.

 

The big white connector with the most wires supplies power to the map lights (among other things), I needed to unplug all the connectors to remove that entire unit to get the new map light bulbs in place (I even pushed out the light covers because it seemed impossible to do them from above). So if you need to remove the overhead map light console to do the bulbs that is the one connector to reconnect to power the map lights, then do the rest.

 

http://i1307.photobucket.com/albums/s587/Zeeper1/IMG_1311_zpsmxbblbdl.jpg

 

This picture shows where I attached wires to the map lights (picture is before cleaning it up, I used crimped on connectors and slid them under the metal rails on the top/ground wire and side/power wire of the unit.

 

Similar to WRX dude, except mine will turn on if I turn on the driver side map light (I wanted my side to control it, vs passenger map light), and comes on as an approach light with the doors (if the map lights are set to door, and dims exactly as it should now just like the map lights).

 

Red is power wire, and Black wire is to the switched ground. Wires were run across the top of the windshield and down the passenger door pillar, very easy to tuck away invisibly.

 

I did blow a mini-fuse twice (the one that controls the dome lights, etc, is in the drivers side interior fuse box, labelled Backup, 10a), and of course, the local auto parts store has almost no low profile mini fuses, just one box with two 10a fuses...so I replaced the fuse and the spare from under the hood, and have it all working now. It's almost like Subaru said, "what is the hardest to find fuses, let's use those!" These low profile mini fuses are cheap on ebay should you want a small supply. Now you know where to wire them just be careful so you don't blow that fuse, or pull the fuse first, connect the wires, replace it and test to prevent fuse replacement (just keep in mind the map light LED's are unidirectional, so if backwards they won't light up).

 

In any case, if you want ~$40 LED footwell lights/LED map lights (including two LED modules from Oznium $24, and two 6-LED map light bulbs $16 from Diode Dynamics, you will also need wire and connectors here and there), that come on with the door, then dim, then fade to black before you drive, and can also be switched on with a map light anytime, this is how you do it.

 

I chose red led modules for the footwell lighting to match the interior dash lighting, but they also sell blue. I think this was a bit of a PITA, but now I know what to do it wouldn't take long to duplicate the process, probably easier than pulling the dash apart for the factory OEM kit wiring, and I like the function of this better (not lit all the time at night when driving, and these are switchable to turn on whenever I want them on).

 

these footwell LED modules are brighter than the stock OEM kit, the Oznium modules are 6 LED's, but you can use any LED you want in the footwells, to be safe if you are tapping the map lights for footwell lighting I would put in LED map light bulbs to keep the current draw low.

 

PS: Shout out to Oznium.com, American company, great communication, and hilarious owner:

 

https://www.oznium.com/forum/topic15419

[au_liberty]

Guys - sorry for the re-bump but I was just hoping for some guidance on wiring.

 

In order to splice one wire into two - I don't have any of those three way wire connectors so would it be acceptable to just use a butt connector with 1 wire in one end and 2 wires in the other like the picture below?

 

 

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[upstater]

Guys - sorry for the re-bump but I was just hoping for some guidance on wiring.

 

In order to splice one wire into two - I don't have any of those three way wire connectors so would it be acceptable to just use a butt connector with 1 wire in one end and 2 wires in the other like the picture below?

 

yes, electricity is like water, it will flow as long as you connect the wires together, and watch out for leaks, meaning, crimp that up and run some electrical tape around it so it cannot short out or get disconnected when you move it around (keep the wires from pulling out of the connector).

 

I solder only sometimes, usually using whatever connectors I feel like or have handy.

 

If you keep doing electrical work on your car, learning to solder can be helpful, especially with higher voltage items.

 

For LED lights, just about anything will work from thin or thick gauge wire to crimping, I even used a screw on nut when connecting my driver side LED light to the ends of the ground/power wire run from the map light, then taped them up, because that was simple and quick.

 

These often come in handy:

 

https://www.radioshack.com/products/crimp-on-snap-connectors

https://www.radioshack.com/products/wire-tap-ins

 

I have had bad luck with these:

 

https://www.radioshack.com/products/radioshack-quick-splice-con-18-22awg

 

often they don't cut the insulation sufficiently and therefore don't tap the wire like they are supposed to, but to be fair, usually I am just using whatever gauge wire I have handy, and the taps are not the correct size for the wire.

 

But others share my experience:

 

http://tech.bareasschoppers.com/resources/the-problem-with-wire-tap-connectors/

Edited May 10, 2017 by upstater

[DubVLegacy15]

I did the same as upstater mentioned a few posts ago. Tapping into the map lights, the LEDs come on when the door is opened/car is unlocked. While driving, or whenever I want, they can be turned on by pressing the passenger map light (removed the actual light from this side so the map isn't on while the foot wells are on..although you could also just reverse the light so it won't turn on but is still installed). Positive wire is on the drivers side map, and negative is on the passenger.

 

It took me maybe 2 hours for this install, which included cutting and splicing all the wires and running them through the ceiling and down the door posts/under the dash. It could be done faster but I took extra time to do it right (so I don't have to clean it up later)

 

I used the same lights from Oznium https://www.oznium.com/super-bright-12v-led-module

 

They are awesome LEDs and come prewired which makes them super easy to install. I went with blue, as it's my fav color and I just think they look amazing at night. Ordered them on a Wednesday and they arrived Friday afternoon..what a great surprise!

 

Assuming you already have small wire and some connectors/heat shrink wrap you could do this for around $20 by buying two LEDs. I spent maybe ~$40 as I had to buy wire, connectors, heat shrink etc.

Either way it's much cheaper than the OEM kit that is over $150 and it's more fun to wire it yourself in my opinion.

 

Here are a few pics of the finished product, as well as some shots of where the wires are connected to the map lights.

 

 

 

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Edited May 15, 2017 by DubVLegacy15

[au_liberty]

So I have been drooling over this mod since the moment I joined the 6th gen forums and after gradually acquiring all of the components I finally got around to hooking it up.

 

With my lack of electrical knowledge I had little hopes that it would work but after doing the wiring, grounding it and tapping the hazard illumination, voila it works!

 

I have the wiring running to the back also just didn't have time to ground them and connect up before it got dark.

 

It looks awesome, however I definitely want to experiment with colours and try to find an LED which matches the rest of the blue lighting in the cabin.

 

Currently the standard blue has a bit of a cheap ricer look I feel.

 

Am considering changing the wiring the tap through the map lights so the lights aren't on always when driving. If I do this I will definitely swap them out to white LEDs to give it the OEM/premium look/feel.

 

Anyway, thank you endlessly OP - this has been an interesting and rewarding lesson in electrical work!

 

http://i962.photobucket.com/albums/ae108/muncee/Mobile%20Uploads/20170520_192143.jpg

 

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Edited May 20, 2017 by au_liberty

[au_liberty]

Oh and a quick note to anyone attempting this in future - for me personally the trickiest part was fitting those rubber T10 bulb connectors into the panel piece in the footwell.

 

It was an incredibly tight fit and I had to use a razor to shave off some of the rubber to make it fit.. but finally got it working in the end

 

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[au_liberty]

. Edited May 20, 2017 by au_liberty

[leolfds]

The light does look a bit purplish but looks good. It look very bright and could be a little annoying (for me) driving with them on. I would definitely look look into tapping the power wire from maps/dome light source so they can turn off. Good job on the mod!

[andrew_l_s]

I've been running these bulbs for year or so now and have been very happy with them, I have small plastic caps glued over the lights to prevent them from being bumped (especially on the passenger side). This dims them down slightly to the perfect level of brightness.

 

https://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/miniature-wedge-base/194-led-bulb-1-smd-led-miniature-wedge-retrofit-car/204/908/#tab/Specifications

 

 

For those looking for a very subtle light, here is another option. These aren't going to be very bright at all, just add a little ambient light with minimal distraction to the driver. I would get the wider lens option to more evenly distribute light.

 

https://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/miniature-wedge-base/194-led-bulb-1-led-miniature-wedge-retrofit-car/197/

[au_liberty]

Didn't have a set of 4 bulbs so I have blue in the front and ice blue in the back.. trying to decide which is better.. hmm

 

http://i962.photobucket.com/albums/ae108/muncee/GIF%20Maker/1495611272544.gif

 

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[leolfds]

I like the purple one.

[au_liberty]

I've been running these bulbs for year or so now and have been very happy with them, I have small plastic caps glued over the lights to prevent them from being bumped (especially on the passenger side). This dims them down slightly to the perfect level of brightness.

 

https://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/miniature-wedge-base/194-led-bulb-1-smd-led-miniature-wedge-retrofit-car/204/908/#tab/Specifications

 

 

For those looking for a very subtle light, here is another option. These aren't going to be very bright at all, just add a little ambient light with minimal distraction to the driver. I would get the wider lens option to more evenly distribute light.

 

https://www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/miniature-wedge-base/194-led-bulb-1-led-miniature-wedge-retrofit-car/197/

So I ended up buying the dimmer single LED option you shared from Super Brights and I was so happy that the colour finally matched the other ambient blue lights!

 

However as you suggested, it was quite dim and I missed the brightness that the cheaper alternatives offered..

 

Soooo, now I'll be ordering another set of blue 4 LED bulbs from them haha..

 

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[au_liberty]

Still incredibly happy with my footwell lighting, thankful to the OP for this mod!

 

Finally have a colour which I'm happy with which matches the OEM ambient lighting perfectly ad you can see from the pics

 

http://i962.photobucket.com/albums/ae108/muncee/Mobile%20Uploads/20170625_211050.jpg

 

http://i962.photobucket.com/albums/ae108/muncee/Mobile%20Uploads/20170625_211125.jpg

 

http://i962.photobucket.com/albums/ae108/muncee/Mobile%20Uploads/20170625_211313.jpg

 

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[im2c0ol]

Another safety and quick tab install and less distraction when driving. The footwell only lights up when your feet are on brake or when you at the stop light. You can tab into the positive Brake Wire

BROWN / white + brake switch, white 5 pin plug, pin 2

 

Or tap it to Parking Lights (+) BLACK/ green + dash fuse box, blue 16 pin plug, pin 5 this will turn on when you unlock your car and turn on when your parking light are on, you can also add a switch to turn on/off if needed.

 

I'll take some pictures when I do this mod again on my 2nd Legacy.

[vtdog]

Another solution in search of a problem. I know where my feet are, know that I have shoes on, and don't need to look at the pedals. What is the point?

[Da Roo]

I'll take some pictures when I do this mod again on my 2nd Legacy.

 

Slipped that in there! Comin back to the club eh?

 

 

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[crucialcolin]

So I'm doing this sort of mod on my Outback. I was curious if anyone know if the footwell lights dim along with the dash lights depending on the dimmer switch position?

 

Also is there a ground in the hazard connector?

* edit found it *

Edited September 30, 2020 by crucialcolin

[KJS2023]

They wouldn’t dim led forwarding voltage is such a small range it’s really on or off. I tapped into the arm rest power for it but I believe the original kit instructions said to use power and ground from hazard wire.

 

 

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[ammcinnis]

They wouldn’t dim led forwarding voltage is such a small range it’s really on or off.

Not quite true. Yes, a bare LED's forward voltage is nearly constant, but you can dim it by varying the (average) forward current. Most conversion LEDs like we're talking about here use a simple series ballast resistor for current limiting, so varying the supply voltage will dim those LED assemblies.

 

 

N.B. Applying 12 volts directly to a bare LED is the fastest way known to man to let out the magic smoke.

Edited September 28, 2020 by ammcinnis

[crucialcolin]

I pulled the dash apart last night and discovered there is a ground for illumination next to the positive(hot wire) into the hazard or second wire to the right based on andrew_l_s's photo of the connector.

 

Now I'm just trying to figure out what kind of connector that is. Much like how the official kit works it would be better to make a short extension instead of splicing into or even taking the connector apart.

Edited September 30, 2020 by crucialcolin