Day time running light
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Prolly something wired via relay and triggered by something key controlled.
Perhaps for example the coil+ to trigger #86 when you turn the key on, main battery cable at starter motor for primary power to #30, #85 to ground, #87 to + on light(s).
If you have an 82~89 and wanted to get real sexy about it, you could use the + feed for the fuel pumps to trigger #86 which would allow the light(s) to come on whenever the fuel pumps are (engine running or during cranking) but off the rest of the time regardless of key position.
EG: like if you perhaps wanted to do some electrical testing that involved leaving the key on/engine off for X amount of time but you didn't want to drain the battery running lights at the same time.
'Course just turning on the headlights before you drive off works too.
Point of note: if you're thinking insurance discount, don't bother.
NY insurance laws don't see the addition of daytime running lights as a safety feature worthy of discount.
If the car didn't come with the factory with DTR, then it doesn't and won't ever have DTR regardless of how many lights and whistles and reflectors you put on it.
Neither will the opposing insurance company recognize that you have them in the event of a claim against you, and for the same reason. If it didn't come with it, it doesn't have them, period.
Perhaps for example the coil+ to trigger #86 when you turn the key on, main battery cable at starter motor for primary power to #30, #85 to ground, #87 to + on light(s).
If you have an 82~89 and wanted to get real sexy about it, you could use the + feed for the fuel pumps to trigger #86 which would allow the light(s) to come on whenever the fuel pumps are (engine running or during cranking) but off the rest of the time regardless of key position.
EG: like if you perhaps wanted to do some electrical testing that involved leaving the key on/engine off for X amount of time but you didn't want to drain the battery running lights at the same time.
'Course just turning on the headlights before you drive off works too.
Point of note: if you're thinking insurance discount, don't bother.
NY insurance laws don't see the addition of daytime running lights as a safety feature worthy of discount.
If the car didn't come with the factory with DTR, then it doesn't and won't ever have DTR regardless of how many lights and whistles and reflectors you put on it.
Neither will the opposing insurance company recognize that you have them in the event of a claim against you, and for the same reason. If it didn't come with it, it doesn't have them, period.
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No, you need something that is key controlled unless you want the light on all the time until the battery dies.
Coil + would likely be acceptable, but without a relay in the circut you're likely gonna be asking a lot of some wires that aren't all that well suited for that use.
In fact I would reccomend not doing it at all if you're not going to incorporate a relay.
I could scribble up a quick & simple diagram if that would help.
And a fuse. Forgot to mention that in the reply above.
Gotta have a fuse regardless of anything else.
It would belong in the power wire between the power source and the relay terminal #30 and as close to the source as feasable.
Coil + would likely be acceptable, but without a relay in the circut you're likely gonna be asking a lot of some wires that aren't all that well suited for that use.
In fact I would reccomend not doing it at all if you're not going to incorporate a relay.
I could scribble up a quick & simple diagram if that would help.
And a fuse. Forgot to mention that in the reply above.
Gotta have a fuse regardless of anything else.
It would belong in the power wire between the power source and the relay terminal #30 and as close to the source as feasable.
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62 Posts
The light I have does have a fuse and also a switch to turn on/off. In the direction, it said to attach to a battery so I assume that I can attach to any hot wire in the car? That does not make sense. I hate to run the wire to the trunk for this.
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Ah, you didn't say you had a switch and fuse.
Tapping at the main battery cable where it connects to the starter motor is as close as you can get to connecting to the + terminal of the battery without running your own wire.
That connection already has wire WAY heavier than you'd likely run anyway and it's coming from exactly where you need it to.
Tapping at the main battery cable where it connects to the starter motor is as close as you can get to connecting to the + terminal of the battery without running your own wire.
That connection already has wire WAY heavier than you'd likely run anyway and it's coming from exactly where you need it to.
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62 Posts
Ok, thanks, I will try this.
The reason I am adding another light is to see better at night. I also do not like the 77 bumper so I took it out but do not want to replace with the pre-74 chrome (too expensive and I do not think it fit in the spider. I put in a black metal grille and I think adding two daytime running like in that space make it looks better. I like to be able to put small chrome trim around the grille but that will need to be custom made. I will post some picture when done.
The reason I am adding another light is to see better at night. I also do not like the 77 bumper so I took it out but do not want to replace with the pre-74 chrome (too expensive and I do not think it fit in the spider. I put in a black metal grille and I think adding two daytime running like in that space make it looks better. I like to be able to put small chrome trim around the grille but that will need to be custom made. I will post some picture when done.
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I thought the purpose was to create a day time running light?!?
If you're thinking of using it at night and setting it to splay light onto the ground more or less right in front of the car you're making a very grave mistake.
While it will indeed light the hell out of the road 10~20 feet in front of you, it'll also effectively 'blind' you to distances further out in front of the car as your eyes will want to focus on the easiest thing to see.
IOW, you will (not 'may', not 'possibly', not 'could', but will) end up looking 15 feet in front of you where the light cone on the ground is brightest and never seeing that deer/kid/cow/horse/parked car or whatever 50~100 feet out until its far too late. Well, you could see it if you were looking and straining to focus on some dim something out there around the glare of the close aimed light but you won't be because the brighter light ring in front will be attracting a huge portion of your eyes attention most all the time and your brain will go into drone mode making for greater and greater time lapses between attempts to see what you won't be able to see even if you're looking until you start to simply faze out and don't see potential dangers until a millionth of a second before impact.
Well, that and an excess of light nearby causes your eyes to start to shift from night vision mode to day vision mode, so you lose even more perception of things out in the darker areas.
Now if you aim an auxillary light in such a way that it doesn't flood the area directly in front of the car, you'll prolly end up with it blinding the crap out of oncoming traffic or annoying some cop just looking for an excuse.
If they stop you, you're almost assured to get the 'improper use of fog or offroad lights' ticket regardless of the aux light being a fog light or not.
If you'd have said right off that you intended to use it at night to enhance vision, likely replies would have been geared more toward 'no don't do it' or 'just make sure your existing lights are in good order and properly aimed'.
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62 Posts
Now you are scaring me. The light set is for daytime running light. I assume I can use both lights( regular headlight and daytime running light) at night. Does a car with daytime runing light turns off when the headlight turns on at night? I don't intent to use it all the time at night but will turn it on for daytime driving beside for all the other reasons.
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Yes and no.
Most daytime running lights are the conventional headlights running at half power on the high beam filament while others have a special secondary bulb within the headlight housing that lights up when the headlights are off.
As soon as you turn on the headlights the secondary bulb type simply extinguishes and the half high beam versions revert to full power low beam unless they were left on high beam last time they were used, in which case they'd come on full high beam.
Those small round lights in the air dams you see on new cars aren't daytime running lights, nor are then supplimental night lights, they are simply fog lights that either through ignorance or some attempt at 'cool factor' the owner hasn't worked out how to actually turn off.
(usually about the time someone actually needs to use them in fog, they've been burnt out for over a year and they didn't want to replace because they cost X$ too much to do so and they can get around to it later since at least one actual headlight prolly still works)
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