DIY Audi style DRL

[Spike]

Just carrying this over from NC:

I am making this write up for people who are electronic literate. If you know nothing about soldering or electronics, do a little reading first. I am not going to do a step by step thing for dummies here, there are too many details to cover if I do this. Also, please keep in mind that the BCM is EXTREMELY expensive and that you are actually going to be screwing around with it if you choose to do the dome light part. If you screw up the BCM, prepare for a lot of hell.

Tools needed:
Soldering iron
Solder (i recommend using a tin/lead alloy, avoid antimony)
Wet sponge
Diagonal cutters
needle nose pliers
Electrical tape
Wire stripper
gloves (not needed but use them if you like having un-burnt fingers)
3M respirator (again, not needed but i treasure my lungs and breathing in lead fumes may not be very healthy)

Parts list (for this application):
2 Oznium 19" white LED strips
2 SPST 12v automotive relays
1 roll of 14awg wire (several colors are recommended)
3 zener diodes (i used 12volt 5A diodes....might be over kill though)
2 SPST switches
2 fuse holders
2 2A fuse (replaces the 1A and 20A fuse in the diagram
1 box of 14-22awg male and female spade connectors (make sure they fit the relay blades)
1 box of 14-22awg U connectors
1 box of wire taps

Here is my wiring diagram, it should be pretty easy to follow. Please note that this was drawn specifically for my application which is why there are certain changes listed in the parts list:


I do not have pictures of the wiring for the lower left relay, since I made that a long time ago. You shouldn't really need the pictures actually, here are pictures of the new harnesses i recently made to give you an idea of what it should look like:

Pin 30 to +12v


Switch harness



Pin 87/ACC +12 to Pin 86


Connectors added to LED strips


Here's where my main switch is mounted (i figured it would be cheaper to replace that cover than the entire lower piece:


Here are some pictures of the Oznium LED strips:





Here's how the lights behave when I unlock/lock the car:
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[Spike]

This is where i will be mounting the LED strip. I originally intended for the strip to sit flush against the vertical tab but that didn't work out too well. The LED's weren't very visible. So I ripped them off and remounted it under the head light. I probably should've taken pictures of this but I think you can figure it out once you start mounting. So, DO NOT MOUNT IT ON THE VERTICAL LIP on the bottom shown here:


Here's what it looks like mounted. It looks like it's mounted all the way in back, but it's not. There about a 20mm space from the surface of the head light to the LED. This should be consistent from one end to the other. What I did change that's pictured here is the spacing. I ended up leaving all the slack on the inner side of the head lamp. Leaving slack on the outside didn't work out well when the bumper went back on.


It might not be too visible in the picture, but here is a test fire of the LED's after all the wiring was done:


Finished product:

[Spike]

HDR's (nothing special, just did it for even toning)


(the green stuff are ghosts, don't ask)




Daytime pics:

[digitalbow]

<subscribed>
I think I commended you on NC, but agaiin... very nice mod.
My aftermarket bumper actually fits better than stock, so I don't have this gap to work with unless I rock the OEM bumper.
Your pinout diagram is from the '05 ECU, correct? So it could be different for other years. Could you list pin names too?
Thanks

[Spike]

I thought your bumper was just a modified OEM bumper to fit that FMIC.

Anyways, i'm pretty sure the pins for the dome light is the same from 02-06. I don't have the FSM for the 02-04 altima so someone with that will have to double check the pins.

[digitalbow]

This is my aftermarket bumper: It's the STRADA fiberglas one...


The one in my sig is my OEM one, modified to fit the FMIC.

Thanks for the reply. I'll be looking forward to trying this out. I may just wire them to a switch from the battery to save me from doing the extra wiring, though it would be really cool to have it work like yours.

[Spike]

Hmm this is odd....the edit button is gone....

anyways...UPDATE: I snapped 2 more pictures when I replaced the passenger side strip (replaced because one LED went out on the original one). Note that oznium was extremely helpful when I contacted them about this issue. They basically sent me a new one without any hassle.

Spacing of the LED strip:


My wiring (the LED wires are running long my fog light harness):

[wizard8873]

very nice mod. came out looking really nice and thanks for the write up. i might have to try this as soon as i get some time and money

[jayjaya29]

Nice, love the result. My friend is thinking of doing this with his Passat except with the LEDS on the top of the headlight. Looks very sharp man....thanks for all the pics too.

[Paul]

very, very cool mod.

ive been thinking about doing some diy mods, and the fact i dont have to bake my headlights might move this one up in the list.

[icey]

does this mean you have tod rive with your dome lights on?

[Spike]

Originally Posted by icey [Only Registered Users Can See LinksClick Here To Register]

does this mean you have tod rive with your dome lights on?

lol, no. look at my diagram again. the LED's are triggered by both the dome light circuit AND the ACC power (when key turned to ACC power)

[clouderold]

That's sick dude!