illuminated interior door handles
Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 4:46 pm
another simple mod that i did.
halfords sell these for exterior handles but on my 45 i saw that you can fit them quite easily to the inside handle instead.
they are tiny leds on a soft touch resin self adhesive strip.
they come in red or blue, i chose red to match the dash lights.
remove the front door handles and door card, you will need to drill through the actual chrome handle but you cant see the hole once refitted, you have to do this as the led strip is longer than the handle so will have to pass through it.
positioning of the led strip is easy but you want to make sure you get it right 1st time as you cant get it off again, you want to position it towards the rear of the handle (towards the rear of the car) or it might show and be unsightly.
also in this position the leds cant be seen only the light they emit, which is what you want.
all this will become clear as you work.
the hole needs to be just big enough to pass the led strip through but not so big that it weakens the handle.
without removing the backing of the light pass it through the hole wires first and choose the position, it will be about 1/4 inch back from the end of the handle so it cant be seen and so it feels right when you use it. then peel off the backing and stick into place.
to wire it up find a suitable earth such as a bolt on the door frame then find a place where you can get a connection that is only live when the ignition is on.
i do this by using a bulb with 10" of wire on, use your earth point you used for the negative of the led strip and put the other end on a live from somewhere on the door with the ignition on, this will test the earth connection you are using, and give you a possible connection for the positive, now turn the ignition off and see if the led strip goes off, it may not go off straight away depending on the live you have selected as part of the wireing in the door remains live till you open the door, this is the prefered live as when you turn the car off the door handle stays lit up till you open the door or after so many seconds, this delay effect only works on the drivers door and depends on the live source you use.
it may sound complicated but it should make sence as you work through it.
be carefull where you route the wires to avoid pinching and shorting and make sure all connections are secure with no bare wire.
halfords sell these for exterior handles but on my 45 i saw that you can fit them quite easily to the inside handle instead.
they are tiny leds on a soft touch resin self adhesive strip.
they come in red or blue, i chose red to match the dash lights.
remove the front door handles and door card, you will need to drill through the actual chrome handle but you cant see the hole once refitted, you have to do this as the led strip is longer than the handle so will have to pass through it.
positioning of the led strip is easy but you want to make sure you get it right 1st time as you cant get it off again, you want to position it towards the rear of the handle (towards the rear of the car) or it might show and be unsightly.
also in this position the leds cant be seen only the light they emit, which is what you want.
all this will become clear as you work.
the hole needs to be just big enough to pass the led strip through but not so big that it weakens the handle.
without removing the backing of the light pass it through the hole wires first and choose the position, it will be about 1/4 inch back from the end of the handle so it cant be seen and so it feels right when you use it. then peel off the backing and stick into place.
to wire it up find a suitable earth such as a bolt on the door frame then find a place where you can get a connection that is only live when the ignition is on.
i do this by using a bulb with 10" of wire on, use your earth point you used for the negative of the led strip and put the other end on a live from somewhere on the door with the ignition on, this will test the earth connection you are using, and give you a possible connection for the positive, now turn the ignition off and see if the led strip goes off, it may not go off straight away depending on the live you have selected as part of the wireing in the door remains live till you open the door, this is the prefered live as when you turn the car off the door handle stays lit up till you open the door or after so many seconds, this delay effect only works on the drivers door and depends on the live source you use.
it may sound complicated but it should make sence as you work through it.
be carefull where you route the wires to avoid pinching and shorting and make sure all connections are secure with no bare wire.