Mods - please move this to the DIY section - Thanks

I never understood why there was no underhood light on the G8, so I decided to make one myself. (I'm a big fan of inexpensive, functional modifications.) The pictures below are a work in progress, so keep that in mind, please.

Here is a picture of underhood, taken only by the light of the underhood light itself. There are 2 lights in this picture, a white one on the hood, and a red one near the firewall. The red one will probably be replaced with white in the future - it was just an experiment. You will get plenty of light from just this hood light mod, the firewall lights are unnecessary.

http://www.g8board.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=8146&stc=1&d=1273240013

In order to avoid glare, I mounted the underhood light behind the rubber seal strip on the hood - this gets the light up high for better illumination and allows the use of a relatively large light strip.

http://www.g8board.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=8147&stc=1&d=1273240013

To avoid having to use a manual switch, I used an mercury switch instead to turn on the lights when the hood is raised.

http://www.g8board.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=8148&stc=1&d=1273240013

Parts List -

LED Light Strip - search eBay for '72 cm 72 LED white" - here is one chosen at random - http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/LED-S...#ht_5298wt_927 - $7 shipped

Mercury Switch - you are on your own for this - I happened to have one in the junk drawer - Mercury switches are increasingly hard to find because mercury is so Evil for the Environment. You can substitute a solid state tilt switch available at most electronic parts suppliers, or a manual switch.

Mini Inline Fuse Holder - most Auto Parts Stores

Corrugated Wiring tubing - small

Double Sided Foam Sticky Tape - used to mount the LEDs

Ring Terminal Crimp Connector - used to provide power (1/4 inside diameter hole)

Wiring, Crimp Connectors, Electrical Tape, etc.

Please read the instructions first before attempting.

1. Figure out which wire from the LEDs is positive. The LEDs will only work when connected correctly. Connecting them backwards won't hurt anything, they just won't work.

2. Mount the LEDs - straighten out the LED strip and apply the foam tape to the back side. The tape will be wider than the LED strip, so trim to fit. Center the LEDs behind the rubber hood seal and press into place with the LEDs pointing down.

3. Extend the LED wires using your spare wire - long enough to reach to the underhood jumper cable attachment point. Conceal the wires behind the hood blanket where possible. Use corrugated wiring tubing for a professional look.

4. The power comes from the underhood jumper cable attachment point. Remove the round cover and then remove the red cover from the attachment point - pry carefully and it will come off. It helps to use multiple screwdrivers to hold the cover away from the clips.

5. Attach a ring terminal to one end of the inline fuse holder. Unscrew the jumper cable attachment point (it is just a fat bolt, after all), place the ring terminal under it, and screw it back down. Feed the wire out the back of the attachment point and replace both covers. You now have unswitched fused power available under the hood. (Since I have other uses for that power, I attached the other end of the inline fuse to a junction block I mounted under the hood - this step is not necessary, but will come in handy in the future).

5. Mount the Mercury switch or manual switch if that is what you are using. I mounted the mercury switch to the bottom end of the hood strut rod using 2 tie wraps.

6. Take the fuse out of the inline fuse holder.

7. Do the wiring. The safest route is: from the inline fuse to the mercury switch, out of the mercury switch to the positive LED wire (from #1 above), out of the negative LED wire to a chassis ground. (The nearest chassis ground to where you are working is the horn mounting bracket). Use another crimp ring terminal so it looks like you know what you are doing.

8. Doublecheck the connections and then replace the fuse in the fuseholder. Check for function.

Enjoy! You will probably be surprised how bright it is. This can also be done with a shorter LED strip than the one I used, but a little overkill never hurt anyone

Good write-up Tom. Seems like a quick DIY mod

I like it... nice right up. I need some kind of engine light. I like the red, looks mean!

Good write-up Tom. Seems like a quick DIY mod


...+1

So the pics you posted are in a room void of light? If so then those underhood lights illuminate the engine bay pretty good. You should think about embedding some deeper down into the engine recesses. Theres been plenty of times when I dropped something in there (screw, nut, cap, tool etc. etc)

Very nice, thanks. This is now on my mod-to-do list.
Bill

Nice mod. If you use a mercury switch to turn on the light, won't the light be triggered on hard acceleration? It might make for a nice effect if you do a hard launch one night at a traffic light, scaring the pants off of the guy next to you... :wink2:

this is a good idea. I used neon tubes back in the day on my Cougar, with a manual switch. makes the engine bay look really nice at night.

In the past I to used a flouresent light out of a camper and i took an old droplight and cut the plug and light off of each end. I then took a two wire plug and placed one end on the Positive and placed an inline fuse on the shielded side and the other at the light was reversed. By using the old droplight wire it was about 15 ft long you could use the light in other areas as needed. for under the hood I placed some Velcro strips to the bottom of the hood and on the light so it could be hung when needed and stored in the trunk when not. The light had a on/off switch made into it. Just a little different idea.

awesome under your hood looks awesome

Very nice write up. Definitely on my 'to do' list. Thanks.

Looks good!! Definitely a "useful" mod!