DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting.

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

TriNiCorD99 said:

great write up man!! looks good. only thing is that you see the wires in the dome light once it is on....just being picky....lol good job tho!!

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Thanks. I have an idea for how to high the wires, but it would require drilling through the dome lamp's base. Should work great, I just like to keep my mods reversible. For those who don't care, go for it! It would work great.


I added a guide on the trunk lighting today. The trunk lighting was a PITA to troubleshoot and figure out, but with what i learned, it shouldn't be too hard. Hardest part will be remembering which direction the diodes go.



I have thought about putting together a few "kits" for these guides and selling them. They would have all the wires sleeved, and I'd put a fuse and resistor into the circuit for safety and longer life, and any color available for cathodes could be chosen. Maybe even get a male plug for the stock wiring, to make it literally plug and play. I would do the trunk internal lighting and the license plate lamp, I'll have to figure out the parts costs to determine a reasonable price. The trunk lighting would be very nice since many people will be turned off to the idea because of the difficulty to make it yourself. If anyone is interested, just shoot me a PM and I will get back to you when I have more details and a better idea of pricing.

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

great write up man

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

very nice write up. one of the best I've seen on this forum.

I will be doing this very soon. =))

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

Hey could we see some shots of the inside of the trunk at night? Dying to see how the 3 tubes light up the trunk

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

I connected my wires directly to the trunk light and it works perfectly.

But I took them both off and I put them in somewhere on my car

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

Zero-Defect said:

Hey could we see some shots of the inside of the trunk at night? Dying to see how the 3 tubes light up the trunk

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There are 6 lamps in my trunk, three sets of two. My camera is on the other side of the continent, so only cameraphone pictures for now:

Dtownz Thrillah said:

I connected my wires directly to the trunk light and it works perfectly.

But I took them both off and I put them in somewhere on my car

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Yeah, I don't know if my electrical problems were normal or abnormal, the stock bulb does use a diode, so I would assume it is normal. It may vary from year to year though.



I am starting to piece together parts to make and sell license plate/trunk cathode kits, Just a few first and more if they sell. They will be pre-wired, sleeved in carbon sleeving, and be wired with diodes and an in-line fuse. I am still trying to find the proper male connector to make it completely plug and play, but for now it looks like it will require splicing or inserting the wires as done in the guide. Just white and maybe blue at first.

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

kevinbo03 said:

Yeah, I don't know if my electrical problems were normal or abnormal, the stock bulb does use a diode, so I would assume it is normal. It may vary from year to year though.



I am starting to piece together parts to make and sell license plate/trunk cathode kits, Just a few first and more if they sell. They will be pre-wired, sleeved in carbon sleeving, and be wired with diodes and an in-line fuse. I am still trying to find the proper male connector to make it completely plug and play, but for now it looks like it will require splicing or inserting the wires as done in the guide. Just white and maybe blue at first.

Click to expand...

Yeah I thought it wouldnt work but I just spliced them and it worked well.

And also with the pre made license plate ccfl kits I have an idea.

PM me because I saw some ideas on eBay and maybe you can incorporate those into your kits

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

definitely a great write-up! cathode are nice if you have enough space for it. if not, LED is better because it takes up less current and it's small compact size make its beam pretty bright.

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

I don't know how they compare to the LED's, but the cathodes are quoted by the manufacturer @ 5 milliamps, so they also use a very small amount of power. I feel that the cathodes are a great choice for the license plate and trunk, to achieve an even lighting. For the dome lamp however, it's just a cost saving method. I added two more 4" cathodes to my dome lamp, it's now brighter then ever. If there was a built in reflector in the dome lamp the gains would be better, but making one would be quite a chore.

Re: DIY Cathode Lighting: License Plate, Dome Lamp, Trunk lighting... **56k=certain d

excellent write up!

I used the 10" CFL instead of the 2 small ones couple of years ago, it gives a more even light distribution instead of the 2 little ones. But thanks for the DIY!

And yea, the CFL last a while.... 2+ years and counting.