LEDing your interior

[Martin Roy]

Updated: September 5th, 2007

For many of us, the worst thing about the Versa is its cupholders. Since we can't do anything about their placement, we can at least work on making them more visible at night. Also, when dropping something on the floor, there is no way you'll be able to find it in the dark. Therefore, with the help of several forum members, I've put up this small tutorial explaining how to illuminate the cupholders (PART ONE) and the whole floor (PART TWO). The light emitted by the LEDs will be proportionnal to the gauges and other dashboard lights. This means that the dimmer to the left of the mirror adjustment switch will control the intensity of the light. On PART THREE, we'll add a dimmer dedicated to the LEDs.

Colors: Red to match the gauges needles, Amber to match backlight. Be careful, since there are differences between colors from one LED retailer to the other, so it might end up looking different from the rest (Orange or Yellow may even be better matches). I'm still looking to find the exact light color (??? nm). Clipsed suggests SuperBrightLEDs.com or Oznium.com to get the best quality and service, something you hardly get on eBay.

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PART ONE Illuminated cupholdersWhat you'll need:Two LEDs (with built-in resistor),Wire, about 18 inches (45 centimeters)Electric tape and/or heatshrinkable tubingWallpaper scraperDrill bits

1) Opening the wayBelow the steering wheel, on the left, you'll find a small door that allows you to access a fuse box. By removing the door, you can also push inside on the left side to remove an access panel. This access panel allowes you to "easily" reach parts (harness, connectors, wires, bolts, ...) located behind or over the fuse box.

Under the center console, you'll see a difference in texture between two parts. Take the wallpaper scraper (clean it) and push it in slowly. Apply a small pressure up and down to do lever effect, which will pop out the 5 pins. Being careful, it shouldn't leave a mark or break anything.

2) Getting powerThe plan is to get the power from the dimmer. You can see with the previous pictures that thewith harness that hosts the wires is a "locking tab" type. You'll need something thin and hard, like a flathead screwdriver or a car key, to push the tab and pull it. Remember NOT to pull on the wires. Once this is done, you'll see three wires (one purple, two blacks).Using a multimeter I found the following values to show which ones are to be used:

PURPLE__BLACK(center)__BLACK___________Range(dimmer up to down) in Volts___+___________________-______________11.78 to 11.84 --> Useless___+________-_________________________0.00 to 11.87 --> Proportionnal to dash light____________+__________-______________11.87 to 0.00 --> Invert

So, to have the LEDs as lite as the gauges, you have to wire the positive to the purple wire and the negative to the center black (ground). No need to strip a wire here, since you can simply push your wire down the white plug and it'll lock there. Use electric tape to keep the wires together, just in case.

Your wire can run across the plastic cover and into the metal frame. Putting your head under the steering wheel allows you to see the opening where the LED will be. Now, run the wire all the way there.

3) Positioning the LEDsI can't tell you exactly where to drill your holes, since it's up to anyone's preferences. But here are a few tips:- Remember that the plastic cover is at an angle, so you'll have drill at a specific angle if you want the LED to illuminate exactly over the cupholders.- To find out where to drill, take a long straw (like for Slurpee or other iced beverages) and put it in the middle of each cupholder. Angle it until the bottom is flat and bend the top of the straw for it to fit perfectly. Take a regular pencil or crayon and mark the spot.- Use a drill bit the same size as the LED for it to fit. Do NOT attempt to make a hole using another pointy object or heat (soldering iron).

4) FinishingRemember to wire your LED in parallel, so they each get 12 V. You can either use electric tape or heatshrikable tubing. Test everything before closing the whole deal (cover, access panel, fuse box access door).

Voilà !

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PART TWO Illuminated floorWhat you'll need:Four LED stripes (12 inches/30 centimeters each)Wire, about 12 feet (4 meters), better safe than sorry ;-)Electric tape and/or heatshrinkable tubingAdhesive velcro, pointy (not furry) side (48 inches/120 centimeters)

1) Preparing the LEDsTwelve-inch LED stripes will provide the best coverage if placed correctly. Take the adhesive velcro and cut it in 12-inch stripes. Stick them behind the LED stripes. That's it.

2) Opening the wayBelow the steering wheel, on the left, you'll find a small door that allows you to access a fuse box. By removing the door, you can also push inside on the left side to remove an access panel.

3) Running the wiresFrom the fuse box access door, run a wire inside the plastic cover under the steering wheel and down the back of the main console. Cut and strip it there. Take another wire and run it on the floor along the console and up to the emergency brake.Go back to where you cut the wire and add a wire going along the firewall to the passenger side, run it down the main console and up to the armrest.You can run the wire under the seat rails to get it under the seats themselves.

4) Getting powerThe plan is to get the power from the dimmer, so here is the wire configuration:PURPLE__BLACK(center)__BLACK___________Range(dimmer up to down)___+___________________-_____________11.78 to 11.84 --> Useless___+________-________________________0.00 to 11.87 --> Proportionnal to dash light____________+__________-_____________11.87 to 0.00 --> Invert

To have the LEDs as lite as the gauges, you have to wire the positive to the purple wire and the negative to the center black. No need to strip a wire here, since you can simply push your wire down the white plug and it'll lock there. Use electric tape to keep the wires together, just in case.

5) Powering the LEDsThe wires placed, connect the LED stripes with some electric tape or heatshrink tubing. You'll also have to strip the wires on the passenger side to add a LED stripe there. Since velcro is glued behind the LED stripes, you can place them anywhere. I placed one under each seat on the bottom part of the seat and one on the firewall on the passenger side and driver's side.That's about it !(LEDs not installed over the cupholders, light amplified by camera)

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PART THREE Dedicated dimmerWhat you'll need:Dimmer or switchDrill bitsFlat head screwdriverWire, about 1 foot (30 centimeters)Electric tape and/or heatshrinkable tubing

1) Opening the wayBelow the steering wheel, on the left, you'll find a small door that allows you to access a fuse box. By removing the door, you can also push inside on the left side to remove an access panel. This access panel allowes you to "easily" reach parts (harness, connectors, wires, bolts, ...) located behind or over the fuse box.

2) Removing the empty slotThe third section of the illumination control/mirror adjustement shows an empty spot, which we will use to install the dimmer. To remove it, use a flathead screwdriver to lift the small tabs at the top and at the bottom of the plastic piece and push on it to move it backward.

3) Plastic carvingInside the plastic piece, you'll find some kind of cross (for it to keep its shape), which can easily be removed using a flathead screwdriver. Once the inner part is clean, use the corresponding drill bit to make a hole the size of the knob your dimmer will be using.Since it's up to anyone to choose a dimmer, it's also up to you to find the best way to glue it there.

4) Wiring itThe dimmer acts as a gate controlling the amount of Volts (power) going through to the LEDS. Therefore, it must be connected in series with the LEDs, as close to the beginning of the circuit as possible. When the wire comes out of the regular dimmer to your LEDs, cut the positive wire (usually the red one) and strip both ends. Get one in each connector of your new dimmer and secure it using heatshrink tubing or electric tape.

5) Going back inWhen you are done with the wiring, get the plastic piece back to it's original spot the way it came out (from behind). Simply push until the tabs lock in.

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THANKS !!!Chrispd100Clipsedjfanasellematt_aModerators and all the members from NICO forums
Modified by Martin Roy at 1:31 PM 9/5/2007

[Clipsed]

write up is pretty good, but just a little bit of criticism for the next one can be better.

You have to remember that some people have never attempted anything on a car before, so sometimes you need to put things in lamest terms for members to understand. I do mobile electronics, and even I am having a hard time understanding what you were trying to say with wiring everything to the dimmer.

Colors: Red to match the gauges needles, Amber/Orange to match backlight. Be careful, since there are differences between colors from one LED to the other, so it might end up looking different from the rest.

The line that I bolded is a biggie. I explained in the other thread about quality control, and a lot of places do not have the same standards, and this is what happens when you buy cheap quality things, ESPECIALLY EBAY things like "blinglights" I would never trust their quality control. If you want some really good premade strips, try SuperBrightLEDs.com or Oznium.com They have GREAT PRODUCTS and awesome customer service.

You really did not go into much detail about the mounting of them and showing "what you did" to give those people who have never done anything atleast an idea.

It also would have helped if you would have taken some close ups of the connector and how you ran your wiring.

That is all I can think of right now, but those are just a few things that I think you should improve. You will get a lot of questions from people not understanding some things I am sure, so I am really just trying to help you out and prep you for that.

Nice write-up and great work! Keep up the custom mods!

[CodeRed]

Very nice tutorial. I agree with Clipsed 100%, please go more in depth! This could possibly get you a custom title.

[Clipsed]

Here is a quote from a buddy of mine over at another forum.

i was trying to burn out my 14 led red superflux strip since i installed the new factory piece, and it wouldnt work! i have 2 leds wired in series and the whole array for 5v max input. i hooked to 12.6v battery for 10 mins and only a few leds became dim. the back of the leds and front plastic was too hot to touch after a minute, and after a few more minutes i smelled burning radioshack board finally 15 mins i gave up and turned it off.

These LEDs are designed VERY WELL, and are capable of a lot! This is why I recommend them.

[Martin Roy]

I totally agree with you Clipsed, on how important good LEDs are. But for my part, I just wanted to do a cheap mod to see how it looked and since I'm pretty much new at this, I didn't want to spend 50$ on LEDs I would end up hating . Considering the final result, I might consider buying better LEDs in the near future, so thanks for the links !

[Clipsed]

quite welcome bud!

[idunno22221]

superbrightleds and oznium are THE best sites for LED's. thats where i get all of my stuff. awesome service!

[coxcj]

4) FinishingRemember to wire your LED in parallel, so they each get 12 V. You can either use electric tape or heatshrikable tubing. Test everything before closing the whole deal (cover, access panel, fuse box access door).

Since I'm one of those people that really don't have the foggiest idea on what I'm doing. I just fake it so my wife doesn't get pissed for putting holes in the brand new car. Anyhow, I need some explanation on this step. Pictures from anyone that has actually done this would be awesome.

Thanks

[Martin Roy]

Let me put it this way:Parallel is when all the red wires come together and all the black wire come together.Serie is when a black wire is connected to the next red wire.I'll draw a diagram for you all.

It's with question like this that this tutorial will become more and more complete. Thanks for the head's up !
Modified by Martin Roy at 9:51 AM 8/22/2007

[Demonspawn]

any idea how many amps are in the dimmer switch?

[Martin Roy]

I believe it's only ten amps, but it should be more than enough for LED.

[Demonspawn]

just wanting to know so i could judge how many leds i can add to that circuit.

but yes i think 10 amps will do!

[Martin Roy]

Well, the dashboard isn't pulling a lot of current, so you are safe to add a lot of LEDs. The probleme is that parallel circuits add the amps together, unlike serie circuit, for which amps remain the same for the whole circuit.

But, since most LEDs are pulling only a few milliamps, you can get more than enough without burning a fuse.

I currently have 48 (4 slides of 12) cheap LEDs installed, and I'll take the multi-meter out to find out how many amps I'm pulling.

[reyes1212]

The point is, the project is awsome.how much was the total cost?

[Demonspawn]

yea i am tech support for high end home audio video distro and know all about currents and such but thanx.

guess i could get off my dead a$$ and measure it myself but im being lazy lol

[Martin Roy]

how much was the total cost?

On my side, I used some cheap eBay LED stripes, so it ended up costing less than 30$ for the whole thing. Wire is pretty cheap and electric tape can be bought at 99¢ stores.

It's a fun, cheap and interesting mod.

[S13Ivy]

nice work.

I have got my LEDs from http://www.iJDMTOY.com, only 9.99 a pair.

[Martin Roy]

yea i am tech support for high end home audio video distro and know all about currents and such but thanx.

On one post, they tell me it's too complexe, on the other people get it. Therefore, I'm making sure everyone who's reading this post understands.

guess i could get off my dead a$$ and measure it myself but im being lazy

I couldn't find which fuse controls it... it doesn't seem to be in the dashboard fusebox. I'll check the amps when I'll install the LED cupholders.
Modified by Martin Roy at 4:57 PM 8/24/2007

[Demonspawn]

understood No Worries!

[Ever Victorious]

I think the new revision for today looks much better. What do you think, CodeRed?

[Martin Roy]

I'm here to anwser the questions and updating the tutorial at the same time, so it can only get better. I'll be installing LEDs over the cupholders as soon as I get my hand on some, so more pictures will come.

[Ever Victorious]

Any more progress?

[Martin Roy]

Got the LEDs for the cupholders, I just need the resistor. 400 to 600 Ohms should do the trick.

I also bought a dimmer to control it independantly from the gauges' light. But to think of it, since I never dim my cluster, I might as well use that dimmer for the LEDs and keep the gauges on max light. It's probably easy to do. Dang, that would be nice ! LOL, I just convinced myself.

I also received my fog lights from eBay, but that's another topic.

It should be done by the weekend. It would help a lot to know how to remove the three buttons. I know someone did it, but I can't find it.

[Martin Roy]

After some trial and error, I couldn't manage to use the cluster's dimmer to work ONLY on the LEDs. I've burned a fuse while trying to overpass the dimmer with a wire going directly from Purple to Black (not the middle one). Theoricly, it should have worked, but something within the dimmer is needed... resistance maybe.

Anyway, I'll just install another dimmer only for the LEDs.

[daffyack]

here I see you lighted up the front seats, do you know how to lighten up the back seats also? such as where to get a power from?

for the fronts seat, you got the power from dimmer, but for the back, do you think I can get a power from the same dimmer also ? or I better use the 12V socket which is located in front of e-brake?

please give me some advice on this.

and also you said you burnt fuse, right? thats just because you were trying to dim the led separately from cluster, right? so if I do exactly as you said in this post (for interior and cupholder), any fuse will not be burnt, right? Im planning to do exactly as you said, so just wanted to double check.

thank you

[Martin Roy]

here I see you lighted up the front seats, do you know how to lighten up the back seats also? such as where to get a power from? for the fronts seat, you got the power from dimmer, but for the back, do you think I can get a power from the same dimmer also ?

The cluster uses several fuses to protect itself in case one of them burns out. The fuse that goes to the dimmer is a 10 amps, and since one LED draws about 30 mA (0,03 A), you can add many more to this circuit. I have still to find out how much power is used by the cluster.

I DID light the floor behind the seats, using some LEDs velcroed under them. You can easily get the power from the dimmer and run a wire along the plastic molding from the console to the armrest. You can push it between the molding and the floor. When you get close to the seats, route the wire under the rails to avoid problems. And voilà, power !

or I better use the 12V socket which is located in front of e-brake?

You can, but I wouldn't recommend that because:1) You have to disassemble the armrest/e-brake.2) You can't control when it lights up or dim the LEDs, unless you add another switch.3) Drawing power from that socket limits it's other uses (amps limitations).To sum things up, dimmer=easier.

and also you said you burnt fuse, right?

Right !

thats just because you were trying to dim the led separately from cluster, right?

Right !

so if I do exactly as you said in this post (for interior and cupholder), any fuse will not be burnt, right?

Right !

You have to remember that all the wiring you'll be installing is going to be powered only by the current going throught (How do you right this damn word ) the dimmer, so unless there's a short circuit somewhere, no fuse should blow. My blown fuses were the results of a misunderstanding of the dimmer circuit by myself. The power wasn't going the way I though (How do you right this damn word ). But if you follow this tutorial correctly, you shouldn't have any problems.

P.S.: Note to English language: Why put so many "h" ?

[daffyack]

I DID light the floor behind the seats, using some LEDs velcroed under them. You can easily get the power from the dimmer and run a wire along the plastic molding from the console to the armrest. You can push it between the molding and the floor. When you get close to the seats, route the wire under the rails to avoid problems. And voilà, power !

can you put any pics of how you lighten up the floor behind the seats? From what I understood, you run the wire from dimmer to center console (like the parts where ebrake located)? or dimmer to door side's armrest and run it down to the floor behind the seat?

did you have to disassemble anything to lighten up the floor behind? sorry that im not understanding all this. Im pretty new to all this.

thank you so much!

[Martin Roy]

I'll try to post a picture, but imagine this:

You are sitting in the driver's seat. The wire starts from the dimmer, runs along the plastic molding under the steering wheel and then down to the firewall, behind the gas pedal (your right foot).

From there, run the wire on the floor, but to your right and push it slightly under the plastic molding along cupholders, e-brake and armrest. Get out of the plastic molding when you get to the seat and run it under the seat's rail.

I'll post a picture if you want. But you have to remember that this is a completly reversible modification, so you can't screw it up !

[daffyack]

I see. But for clear images, it will be great if you could still post some pictures.

and from dimmer to passenger side, how did you run a wire there? did you have it completely under the center parts where audio is?

thank you.

[matttail]

Power runs through the dimmer to your LEDs that are wired in series. Thoughts go through your head. But it's tough keeping track of how to spell these things throughout your posts. Of course people also have problems knowing if they should use know now or next time. But they're people that have their friends over there that can help them out!

With your mod the Knight will be able to see his feet during the night better. Then he can take a picture of his pitcher of water sitting in your illuminated cup holders.

for a little fun with they're/their/there check out http://www.better-english.com/easier/theyre.htm.