Interior Door Handle Lights
There is a slit on the top of the inner door handle cups that Limited
editions have with a light that shines down on the door handle cup area.
This gives a soft glow that is not distracting but makes it easier to
see your door handles at night. It also looks really cool which is why I
did this.
You can order the limited
parts for around
$15 each x 4 but you still have to wire them yourself. This way was much cheaper and
works well. It is not very difficult but takes a little patience. I
decided on blue over white LEDs just because I thought it would look
better.
I ordered 12v LEDs that were pre
wired with resisters (50 pc, 5 colors X10 $6.13) This gives me many
options for colors and LED clips (50 pc
$4.57) from Amazon.
I had a 2' x 3' sheet of 1/8" lexan laying around.
I used HF super glue
I started by cutting out a 1/2" strip of 1/8"
lexan. I cut the main part about 2" long
and cut 4 1/2" squares. I drilled a hole in the center of the main part for the LED and
clip.
Next I super glued the squares to stack it up for LED clearance. I ground
the end of the LED flat beforehand to give a more even glow and to save
space then wet
sanded it with 1600 grit sand paper to clear it up a bit.
I removed the door panel which is pretty
easy. use a panel tool to pop out the cup behind the handle. There are
two other screws behind little doors that a panel tool makes it easy to
open them. The screws are all phillips heads.
Pull out the door panel from the bottom. It takes a firm tug. there is a
place below the speaker that you can grab. Just pull strait out.
Remove the power connector and the door lock and door opening cables. When
replacing green goes on the bottom. On the front panels the puddle
lights are on a seperate wire and will have to be reconnected before
popping the panel into place. The rear panels are wired internally and
don't have that problem.
If you have a 4Runner check it out, I bet you have the slit in the door
panels. Many Toyotas and Lexis seem to have them.
The stack is glued directly over the slit. If
not centered the light will not make it down to where you want it.
I stripped off 1/4" of the wires to the
purple (ACC) and the white/black (ground) and soldered to them. A zip
tie was added to keep it clean. I used electric tape after cleaning off
the flux to cover the solder joints. The I reassembled the door panel
and tested it out.
All four doors use the same colored wires.
This is the front door panel view.
The back door panels are very simular to
the front.
Three more sets made and ready to install. They don't have to be pretty
just made right.
This took me a few hours for the
first door since I was testing and taking my time. I did the other three
doors in about an hour.
I got my idea after looking at Antman
and sp8ball's writeup on T4R.org. After looking it over many times and
also the limited inserts you can purchase this is what I came up with.
It saves having to disassemble the
door handle assembly and you don't have to drill into the door handle
cup it'self.
I only used the lexan since I had it
laying around. you could use any plastic that is the same thickness.
|