Hello! I just ordered LEDs for the interior. I know how to install all of them and have done it before but I want something different for the footwells. For the foot wells I bought two LED strips. If it's possible I'd like to have them stay on while I'm driving and the car is on. My search didn't reveal much (and my mistake if I missed a thread) but what I found out is that if I wire to the fuse box in the passenger well, they will stay on for 30 mins after the cars off. I don't know if that's correct or not, but that's what I read. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks! -Nate
Led help
- Thread starter Nateff91
- Start date
G-RELL
FULLY DIPPED LS
many ways to wire them in... easiest will be a 12v like the cig lighter and then place them on a toggle switch. IF the cig lighter has a delayed shut off, worse case is you forget to shut off the switch and they stay on for a little while. You'll want the ability to shut them off when while driving anyway... In low light night driving, that little bit coming from the footwells will be huge (ei a highway with no streetlights)
1LoudLS
Dedicated LVC Member
personally, I would not use the radio's acc circuit, this will have them be on 100% of the time the key is turned on, including during the day
i also would not use the cig socket/ power port as they are constant circuits and are live all the time, so you would need a switch to turn them off, and then you got to make sure that you dont forget to turn them off when you get out of the car
if you want them on while you drive at night, i would go to the wire in the ash tray that turns on with the headlights, that way that sh!t is automatic, I would also have a switch put in so the you could turn them off when if you wanted... I would also use a couple of diodes to isolate the circuits but I would also connect them to the OEM footwell lights so they come on anytime the door is opened.
i also would not use the cig socket/ power port as they are constant circuits and are live all the time, so you would need a switch to turn them off, and then you got to make sure that you dont forget to turn them off when you get out of the car
if you want them on while you drive at night, i would go to the wire in the ash tray that turns on with the headlights, that way that sh!t is automatic, I would also have a switch put in so the you could turn them off when if you wanted... I would also use a couple of diodes to isolate the circuits but I would also connect them to the OEM footwell lights so they come on anytime the door is opened.
joegr
Dedicated LVC Member
On the ashtray on my 06 (haven't checked the 04), there is a small switch that keeps that light from coming on unless the ash tray is open. Of course, he could wire the LEDs in before the switch, not at the bulb, which is after the switch.
(Having that switch on the ash tray certainly seems like overkill to me. Why would I care if the ashtray light is on at night while the tray is closed?)
hite337
Hite Performance
Why do you want them on when driving? Do you want to see your feet? Do you look down when you are walking?
G-RELL
FULLY DIPPED LS
how else do you know which petal to push... seems smart to me 
How much heat does the bulb generate? What if it were on for 10 hours? Just running this up the flag pole.....
G-RELL
FULLY DIPPED LS
most cars leave it on when the lights are on... sounds like lincoln over-engineering to me!!
joegr
Dedicated LVC Member
What if I had the ashtray open for 11 hours? I don't think heat would be an issue. All my other cars left the light on anytime the headlights were on. Is/was there an issue where you could see the light through the cracks around the closed tray?
Were the tray open the light would be ventilated. I was just throwing that out there as a question. I don't think heat would be an issue. On our old Sable the light was visible through the crack. It was one of those things that once you knew you could not un-know.....
You could use a couple of capacitors on a breadboard and solder them into the led assembly. Hook the wire into the courtesy light on the doors. That's what I was planning to do until school started -_-. To find capacitors that drain as fast as you want it to will be a bit of a hassle though.
I actually do look at my feet walking a lot.... Lol But anyways I kinda would like the glow just for look while driving you know? Just I thought it was neat.
I will try the ashtray bulb assembly!
Maybe I can wore it at the bulb and then to where the actuall foot well light is so whenever I open the car they come on, and then the ash tray is like a button! Haha
Thank for the replies guys! Tons of help!
1LoudLS
Dedicated LVC Member
correct, i tapped into the wire in the middle of the harness where there is plenty of room and its easy to reach. this would be before the switch.