Added DIY LEDs To Engine & Cargo Bay

I added some LEDs to my engine bay and cargo area! There are lights under the Ford Security Enclosure lid and on the hard top.

Hood lights come on when the hood is open.
Cargo lights come on when I open the tailgate.

I configured this so I can disconnect the enclouser if I want to remove it.
The hardtop is configured so I can disconnect the lights when I remove the hardtop too.

You are not worried about giving away your position or insects @ night. Looks COOL!

Does it double as a tanning bed

Seriously, looks good. I like a bright interior and engine area. What product did you use? Assuming you were able to cut it?

Lights used? How are you activating under hood? Does ignition need to be on?

All of it together, is a bit much for me, but I can see how this would be really helpful if you camp remotely a lot and need to get in and out of your vehicle. I may implement a similar solution just under the hood, though.

bkfit said:

You are not worried about giving away your position or insects @ night. Looks COOL!

Click to expand...

They have IR LEDs you can put in so you can use your night-vision and not blow your secret camping spot... behind Wal-Mart.

Sick! Where did you get the lights? Been wanting better lighting for the cargo area

HorizonHunter said:

Lights used? How are you activating under hood? Does ignition need to be on?

Click to expand...

Here's a summary of how I installed these lights.
Disconnect battery during installation.

I forgot to mention in my write up, make sure you use the wire loom on all your wires! It's kind of a pain in the butt, well worth the effort for a clean and professional looking install.

Purchased the following items:
I purchased a big amount because I have more lightening projects in mind.

LED Rope https://a.co/d/d9CcYsu
Hood Triggers https://a.co/d/7nA3kBC
Inline Fuses https://a.co/d/4PJB1ZP
Butt Connectors https://a.co/d/3Ess8TV
Loom https://a.co/d/7wBDPIx
Heat Shrink https://a.co/d/hBNr1T6
2 Pin DT Connectors https://a.co/d/5kAAQio
6 Pin DT Connectors https://a.co/d/8GDeay4
Wire Cutter https://a.co/d/06MNrlw
DT Crimpers https://a.co/d/gp5DHAX
Wire https://a.co/d/0FSnhnk
90 Degree Connectors https://a.co/d/1lIklI1

For the hood lights.

1. Pop your hood so you can work under it.
2. Attach a ground cable to a ground spot under your hood.
3. Attach that ground wire to the hood trigger but not on the spade unless you want to remove paint to make a ground point for the trigger.
4. Mount the trigger in the fender.
5. Cut the plug connector off the LED rope.
6. Use a razor to cut the sheath and expose the red and black wires.
7. Snip the ring off the black ground wire for the hood trigger. Give you a couple of inches because you’ll use the connector later.
8. Butt connect the trigger ground wire to the LED light.
9. Connect the spade end to the trigger.
10. Figure out how you want to route your 12v+ wire. I ran mine from the battery, between fender and fuse box and up to the hood.
11. Cut the wire and loom to length of the route you’ll run your hot wire.
12. Feed your hot wire thought the loom.
13. Butt connect hot wire to hot wire of LED rope.
14. Figure out where you want the inline fuse to go and cut the loom and wire at that point. I put mine between the fender and fuse box.
15. Butt connect the inline fuse to the hot wire. I use a 5-amp fuse. The light uses 50-watt max on a 12v source which equals 4.16 amps.
16. On the hot wire that will connect to your battery, connect the ring connector you cut off previously and butt connect it to the hot wire.
17. Figure out how you’d like to run your light. I tried using 90° connectors to make clean turns and that didn’t work so I decided to finesse the corners instead.
18. Use alcohol to prep the surface. Wait for it to dry. Then start peeling off the paper to start adhering the light to your hood.
19. Connect hot to battery.
20. The lights shall illuminate.
21. Test the hood trigger by pressing it down, the light should turn off. If they do not, check your hot and negative connections.
22. Lastly, close your hood to make sure the lights turn off.
23. Adjust hood trigger as needed.

For Cargo Bay

1. If you have an enclosure, you will need to move it out of the way as you will need access to the passenger side of the cargo area.
2. Remove the passenger side panel so you can access the 12-volt accessory outlet.
3. Disconnect the plug on the outlet. This is where you will power the light with constant 12-volts. (for later)
4. Remove the rubber tailgate stopper on the driver side, you can unscrew it.
5. Put it in a vice and drill a hole through the center of it so you can fit the door trigger in it.
6. On the backside of the rubber stopper, I used a spade bit to bore a whole so the triggers spade connect would fit.
7. Remove the 10mm screws and the plastic screw pins off of the trim piece behind the taillight.
8. Take a ground wire and feed it though the hole below the hole for the rubber stopper and back through the rubber stopper.
9. When putting the trim piece back on, make sure to attach your ground wire to the screw closest to the rubber stopper home. It will take some finessing.
10. At this point you should have one ground wire coming out from the rubber stopper home.
11. Now get another ground wire and cut to length. Make sure to give yourself plenty of slack.
12. I used this path (hope I can describe it well enough). Pull the wire through the rubber stopper home, then through a rectangular hole on the threshold of the tailgate opening. I think this is the area where the soft top mounts.
13. Feed that down the trim piece on the left panel, going past the trim piece closest to the tailgate opening, up the side of the passenger panel.
14. I used a 6-pin DT Connector here. If you're just doing lights for the hardtop, you can get away with using a 4-pin DT Connector. I used the female end for this process.
15. Get about a 4" piece of wire and strip both ends, strip off an end of the ground wire you just ran from the driver side.
16. Twist the driver side ground and one side of your 4" wire together and crip a pin for the DT Connector on both the wires that are twisted together.
17. On the opposite side of the 4" wire, crimp another DT Connect pin on to it.
18. Insert both pins in your DT Connector.
19. This gets you ground.
20. Wrap your hood trigger with the ground wire that you attached to the screw on the driver side and insert the hood trigger to the rubber stopper.
21. Attach the ground wire you ran to the passenger side and attach it to the spade connector on the trigger.
22. Screw in the rubber stopper and adjust your trigger as needed. There is limited amount of space so use care.
23. Snip off the very end of the LED Rope connector. Make sure you snip the plug in side and NOT CLOSE TO THE LED ROPE.
24. Carefully use a razor (box cutter) to cut the sleeve so you can expose the RED/BLACK wires.
25. Strip off the ends of the wire and connect a MALE DT Connector to them, make sure to match up the male side to the female side of the connector you made previously.
26. Figure out how you want to run your lights.
27. After deciding how you want to run your lights, use a cloth and rubbing alcohol to clean the path. I did this a few times, let it dry before continuing.
28. If you are going to use the 90-degree connectors, here is the time to install those.
29. Let's say you're going up one side, across the top and down the other side. You will need to measure your first length going up one side. Cut the just past the two copper pads (12+ and -).
30. Insert the rope light upside down in the 90-degree connector. This means the flap that needs to click closed is on the sticky side and not the LED side. (this is what worked for me)
31. Follow the procedure for the rest of your cuts.
32. For the second set of lights, unroll the rest of LED rope and you will see two leads there red/black.
33. Alcohol the hard top along the top side (above the side windows) and above the plastic hump by your tailgate window.
34. Find the center point of the hard top on the tailgate window side. Easily identified by a screw conveniently placed in the middle!
35. Start installing the LED from the midpoint making sure that the leads are on the passenger side.
36. Use butt connectors to connect wire from the LED leads to where you're going to have your DT Connector. I put mine on the corner closest to the tailgate.
37. I also used shrink wrap on these connections to strengthen them.
38. Use male DT Connector pins and crimp them on these wires, making sure to insert them to match the colors of the female end.
39. Cut to length a wire that will run from the 12-volt outlet to where all your final connection will meet.
40. Strip off one end and insert it to the 12-volt outlet connector. Plug the connector into the 12-volt outlet. This wire is between the outlet and the connector.
41. Cut a 4" strip of red wire, strip both ends off.
42. Strip the end of your always hot wire that is connected to your 12-volt outlet.
43. Twist the always hot wire to one of the of the 4" red wire.
44. Crimp a female DT connector to them.
45. Get the opposite end of your 4" wire and crimp a female DT Connector to it.
45. Insert each pin into the DT Connector and finish installing the DT Connector inserts to each connector.
46. Unite the male and female parts together.
47. Connect your battery.
48. Test your lights!
49. If all tests well, put your Bronco back together.
50. Profit (because I needed the number 50)

Hope this is helpful. I did not check speeling!

Very nice! Thanks for the write-up!

Squatch said:

All of it together, is a bit much for me, but I can see how this would be really helpful if you camp remotely a lot and need to get in and out of your vehicle. I may implement a similar solution just under the hood, though.



They have IR LEDs you can put in so you can use your night-vision and not blow your secret camping spot... behind Wal-Mart.

Click to expand...

LMAO.

Here is how I plan to do mine using the hood ajar switch and a relay. When the hood is ajar, the switch connection is grounded. When the hood is closed the switch connection is open.

Using a SPDT relay, tap into the BLK-GY hood switch wire and connect to pin 86 of the relay. Connect relay pins 30 & 85 to fused 12v source. Connect relay pin 87 to the + light wire (connect - light wire to ground). Pin 87 will now act as a 12v switch when the hood is opened - thus turning on the light.

Nacho The Bronco said:

I added some LEDs to my engine bay and cargo area! There are lights under the Ford Security Enclosure lid and on the hard top.

Hood lights come on when the hood is open.
Cargo lights come on when I open the tailgate.

I configured this so I can disconnect the enclouser if I want to remove it.
The hardtop is configured so I can disconnect the lights when I remove the hardtop too.

Click to expand...

Oh my goodness.. I need Sun glasses

Nice job by the OP.

I think some of you are overthinking it. I installed a mini LED strip to illuminate the engine bay. It cost $15 + 1 washer. Easy and well worth the cost/time to do it.

Arokcrwlr said:

Here is how I plan to do mine using the hood ajar switch and a relay. When the hood is ajar, the switch connection is grounded. When the hood is closed the switch connection is open.

Using a SPDT relay, tap into the BLK-GY hood switch wire and connect to pin 86 of the relay. Connect relay pins 30 & 85 to fused 12v source. Connect relay pin 87 to the + light wire (connect - light wire to ground). Pin 87 will now act as a 12v switch when the hood is opened - thus turning on the light.

Click to expand...

I like this! Don't have to worry about a hood pin....

Beach_Bum said:

Nice job by the OP.

I think some of you are overthinking it. I installed a mini LED strip to illuminate the engine bay. It cost $15 + 1 washer. Easy and well worth the cost/time to do it.

Click to expand...

A relay is $3

Arokcrwlr said:

A relay is $3

Click to expand...

... and the LED Strip, wiring, ground trigger switch? Maybe I got gouged. I don't think I did. Biggest obstacle was popping two clips on the hood insulation to run the wire.