I want to add some led accent lights to the interior of the truck. I'd like them to come on and off with the dome lights, but also have the option of turning them off and on, like the map lights, but with a separate switch. (Accent lights stay on while dome and map lights are off.) Seems like I could to this by tapping into the "door" wiring on the dome light switch, but I am not sure if this will work or not. Also will the fade to dark feature in our trucks work with these led lights?

Suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

 

When you tap the interior lamp circuit, you'll need a diode that will only allow power to travel from the circuit to the accent lights, but not the other way, then you can just add a switched circuit, adding the power to the accent light side of the diode. I see no reason why the fade would stop working.

 

OK. That seems like it would work, but I am trying to figure out this...the switch on the dome light has a door-off-on function. Can I tap the wire leading to the "door" function and run directly to the accent lights, then run a wire from the "on" function and run through a separate switch. That way when the dome lights power off after the allotted anti-battery-kill time, the accent lights will go off too. (The main reason I am adding these is so the kiddies will have some light while driving at night - but they also have a tendancy to leave switches on when they exit an area, like their rooms, any given area with a light switch, and yes, my truck.) If i did this, would I still need a diode?

 

I'm not really sure how the "on" function circuit works, but almost any powered circuit will work with the battery saver, so technically you should be able to power the switched circuit from any accessory that shuts off after ten minutes. It's also a good idea to run a fuse on each of these circuits you are creating. I would think that the wire gauge on the kit is smaller than that of the interior lighting circuit so a short in the illumination kit could cause a problem that may not cause the fuse to pop.

 

Here is one route that might be easier for you.

This uses a SPDT switch ( on-on or on-off-on with the center off if you want ), to control where the power to the lights is coming from.



With this setup if the switch is in the interior lights position, they come on with the interior lights ( door open or dimmer panel switch all the way up ), the other position they are on, as long as the accy delay relay has not timed out.

The fade will not work with this setup or if you bypass using the relay, as the coil on the relay will have enough of a voltage drop to open the NO contacts, or if you wire the LEDs directly, the LED will only light when there is enough power, once the level is passed that makes them work, they will shut off.