Really, this install could not be easier. I picked up a cheapo boost/vacuum gauge from Harbor Freight for about $20, came with about 3-4 feet of vacuum tube, a plastic tee connection, and some crappy bracketry. Not only was it cheap, but it is extremely cheesy as well, allowing the user to select any number of colors to look super cool! Being that my SD is already cool and particularly riced-out on the inside, this fit perfectly within the decor. The easiest place to tap into the boost is with the overboost protection line running from a banjo bolt on the intake manifold over the top of the valve cover into a little cylindrical gizmo on the driver's side fender. What this does is it monitors the boost and sends a signal to the ALDA which eventually regulates the amount of fuel going into the injector pump, thus limiting boost. However, most turbos 30 years old are not putting out a whole lot of boost - thus the case for a boost gauge. While you're working on the boost line, it is a good idea to unscrew the banjo bolt (don't lose it like I did last year...) and give it a really good cleaning. They can get clogged up with soot and stuff over the years which will limit the performance of your car as well as render the boost gauge inaccurate. Furthermore, it only takes 30 seconds of your time and is a good practice every couple years.
Anyways, regarding the gauge - I tapped in right before the overboost protection solenoid in order to give me as much vacuum hose as possible going into the cabin. Unfortunately, being a piece of crap, the tee that came with the gauge broke almost immediately. Luckily I had another tee on hand that fit a little better, and used that to tap into the line. A boost gauge such as this requires the vacuum/boost hose to go through the firewall into the passenger compartment, and there are a few ways to do this. The tubing that came with the crappy gauge was very thick and I didn't have any spare hard tubing available. Therefore I chose to route it in the same grommet as the hood release cable, between the fuse box and fender. There was a plugged space available (not sure why...), all you need to do is unplug it and route the hose through. A good trick is to stick an unbent coathanger in the tubing to stiffen it, then route it into the cabin. That way, the flexible tubing won't bunch up and you won't have to crawl uncomfortably around the pedal area.
You can mount the gauge wherever you please, but the most logical for me was right under the ignition tumbler, since it was out of the way yet still visible. There is a trim piece that uses a screw along with a trim clip to secure against the top dash. This was solid enough to mount the gauge. I had some 90* steel brackets left over from an electronic drum kit I made, so I bent one to shape and screwed it in. Attach the boost line to the back of the gauge and you've got a working gauge. As far as wiring, I installed a radio at the same time, so I decided to use the 12V+ and illumination wires from that to also power the gauge LED. The ground just went to a chassis spot. In all, it took me longer to write this than it did to install the gauge in the car. Any questions just comment and I'll be happy to answer.
Pics are still coming. I had written this a while ago, never got around to posting it, but unfortunately my camera is MIA :(
Showing posts with label safety. Show all posts
Showing posts with label safety. Show all posts
Friday, March 25, 2011
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
W126 LED taillight project
I wrote this up for one of the forums but it went underappreciated...it is definitely useful however, so it will live in eternity on my blog, woo!
A common criticism of driving an old mercedes (particularly a diesel with a cloud of black smoke behind) is the lack of visibility at night. I can always pick out a w123 or w126 from a distance because of the dimly lit, downward-facing running lights. Stepping on the brakes does not do too much either, unless you are blessed with a third center brake light. With that in mind, I realized that there was a large portion of the w126s taillights that are NOT being used at any given time. There is the inside red lens where the euro fog lights would go (but U.S. versions have nothing) as well as only half of the main red area being used for running lights. Since I have a spare w126 laying in the yard, I took one of the tails off of it to experiment and this writeup is a result of that experimenting. I have a working prototype and will be converting the other taillight as soon as I can run down to the parts store for another LED light. Advantages of this LED light setup:
Disclaimer: I am not responsible for any harm or damage as a result of your following these directions. I am not implying or expressing that these taillights may be street legal in your local area.
Ok, so here is what you need:
- figures 1.1, 1.2: a DOT-approved 3 prong LED taillamp from NAPA, the type that you see on trailers and trucks. Cost about $25 if I remember correctly. Mine was about 3.5" diameter, filling up the whole red area of the tail light
- w126 tail lamp assembly
- soldering iron plus flux, shrink wrap, solder, and bullet-type electrical pins
- some way to cut plastic. Doesn't need to be pretty. I used a dremel with a variety of tips
- super glue
- about 1-2 hours of time
1. Completely disassemble the tail lamp. You'll have to separate the gasket (good time to replace it too), lens assembly, "reflector" assembly, and the metal strip with light sockets.
2. cut out room for the LED lamp in the reflector assembly. This takes some time and patience to get perfectly right. I got it after about an hour of trimming. You have to make sure to take the middle light separator out. Interesting note is that the plastic is crudely painted "reflective" silver. I can't imagine it doing much good in terms of light reflectivity.
3. Eventually get the LED snug in the reflector assembly so that it presses up against the lens/refractors (figures 3.1, 3.2). A couple dabs of super glue to the reflector assembly will make sure it doesn't go anywhere. Secure the screws to the lens, making it all one piece again. A good idea to test out the LED on a car battery for proof of concept (figure 3.3)
4. Wiring! Everybody's favorite thing! Actually it couldn't get ANY easier than this. First off, take either the bulb socket for the running lamp or the taillight and snip the wire off of it. Put that bulb socket in the "blank" space, where the euro fog light would go. The LED bulb I had already had the appropriate connections molded into the plastic: "tail", "ground" and "brake".
5. Plug it in and try it out! (Figure 5.1) See the difference--I apologize my camera is NOT good at taking night shots so it is difficult to see. The camera actually makes it look a bit worse than stock but I can guarantee you in person the difference is dramatic. Remember that LEDs produce one wavelength of light and bulbs produce a spectrum, I think that whatever the wavelength is for these LEDs is not well reproduced by my cheap camera whereas the spectrum is sort of a "flood" of light. Anyways, I noticed the normal taillights are not only pointing down and using 1/4 or so of the available space, but they are also amber colored. Using the LEDs brought light to the entire surface including the part FACING drivers behind you, and they light brighter as the brakes are hit. The biggest difference is the added brake light. Originally I used a larger bulb in the socket but it was too bright (figure 5.2). Putting a smaller bulb (like that used in the old running light socket) was perfect.
I will feel much more comfortable cruising around at night in my 300SD now knowing that people behind me will actually know I am there now, and know when I am braking. The addition of a center brake lamp will also compliment the enhanced visibility of this project, that is certainly on the list for me. I hope you guys find this useful!
Figures:
1.1, 1.2: The LED lamp that I used. Typical truck lamp.
Figure 3.1, 3.2: The aftermath of a lot of cutting/trimming
Figure 3.3: proof of concept hooked up to car battery
Figure 4.1: wired and ready for assembly
Figure 5.1 brakes on:
5.2: with the "euro" bulb that was too bright
- Using the ENTIRE tail light area as running lights, therefore increased visibility--meaning running lights are angled towards other drivers and not just the ground as stock is set up
- brighter and truer red color
- much quicker response time compared to normal bulbs
- using the typically blank euro fog lights for additional brake lights - increased visibility
- LEDs last much longer and usually do not have to be replaced as long as they are not subject to varying current
- Its really easy
Disclaimer: I am not responsible for any harm or damage as a result of your following these directions. I am not implying or expressing that these taillights may be street legal in your local area.
Ok, so here is what you need:
- figures 1.1, 1.2: a DOT-approved 3 prong LED taillamp from NAPA, the type that you see on trailers and trucks. Cost about $25 if I remember correctly. Mine was about 3.5" diameter, filling up the whole red area of the tail light
- w126 tail lamp assembly
- soldering iron plus flux, shrink wrap, solder, and bullet-type electrical pins
- some way to cut plastic. Doesn't need to be pretty. I used a dremel with a variety of tips
- super glue
- about 1-2 hours of time
1. Completely disassemble the tail lamp. You'll have to separate the gasket (good time to replace it too), lens assembly, "reflector" assembly, and the metal strip with light sockets.
2. cut out room for the LED lamp in the reflector assembly. This takes some time and patience to get perfectly right. I got it after about an hour of trimming. You have to make sure to take the middle light separator out. Interesting note is that the plastic is crudely painted "reflective" silver. I can't imagine it doing much good in terms of light reflectivity.
3. Eventually get the LED snug in the reflector assembly so that it presses up against the lens/refractors (figures 3.1, 3.2). A couple dabs of super glue to the reflector assembly will make sure it doesn't go anywhere. Secure the screws to the lens, making it all one piece again. A good idea to test out the LED on a car battery for proof of concept (figure 3.3)
4. Wiring! Everybody's favorite thing! Actually it couldn't get ANY easier than this. First off, take either the bulb socket for the running lamp or the taillight and snip the wire off of it. Put that bulb socket in the "blank" space, where the euro fog light would go. The LED bulb I had already had the appropriate connections molded into the plastic: "tail", "ground" and "brake".
Connect and solder:After that is all neatly done you can connect everything back up (figure 4.1)
- black and red wire to the "brake" connector. Solder this to a bullet type connector and plug in. Solder in another wire to the bullet connector (so it will have two coming off of it) and solder the other end to the socket you just popped in the euro fog spot. Having these two in series will trick the car into thinking there is no bulb out (LED resistance is negligible in comparison) and they will light in unison.
- Connect the Green/white wire to the "tail" plug via another bullet-type connector
- Solder the ground wire/bullet anywhere on the metal strip holding the bulb sockets. The whole thing is a ground.
5. Plug it in and try it out! (Figure 5.1) See the difference--I apologize my camera is NOT good at taking night shots so it is difficult to see. The camera actually makes it look a bit worse than stock but I can guarantee you in person the difference is dramatic. Remember that LEDs produce one wavelength of light and bulbs produce a spectrum, I think that whatever the wavelength is for these LEDs is not well reproduced by my cheap camera whereas the spectrum is sort of a "flood" of light. Anyways, I noticed the normal taillights are not only pointing down and using 1/4 or so of the available space, but they are also amber colored. Using the LEDs brought light to the entire surface including the part FACING drivers behind you, and they light brighter as the brakes are hit. The biggest difference is the added brake light. Originally I used a larger bulb in the socket but it was too bright (figure 5.2). Putting a smaller bulb (like that used in the old running light socket) was perfect.
I will feel much more comfortable cruising around at night in my 300SD now knowing that people behind me will actually know I am there now, and know when I am braking. The addition of a center brake lamp will also compliment the enhanced visibility of this project, that is certainly on the list for me. I hope you guys find this useful!
Figures:
1.1, 1.2: The LED lamp that I used. Typical truck lamp.
Figure 3.1, 3.2: The aftermath of a lot of cutting/trimming
Figure 3.3: proof of concept hooked up to car battery
Figure 4.1: wired and ready for assembly
Figure 5.1 brakes on:
5.2: with the "euro" bulb that was too bright
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