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Courtesy
light upgrade on an MGBGTV8
One issue that some enthusiasts may find a little frustrating
with the Factory V8 compared to a modern car is the lack of
sufficient courtesy lighting. Whilst it obviously isn't an issue
during the day, the somewhat feeble amount of light emitted
from the lamp mounted on the radio console below the dash can
make using the car at night difficult if you need to read maps
or find things in the car. Here Jonathan Moulds describes a
very worthwhile improvement at little cost which is relatively
easy to carry out.
(Oct 11)
There
is a simple solution to the problem in the form of LED type
flexible strip lights with an adhesive backing. These can be
sourced relatively cheaply on the internet or from your local
electronics store and fixed to the underdash cross brace and
wired neatly into the MG's original wiring harness. The current
consumption of LEDs is very small so the extra battery drain
is insignificant.
To fit
the strip lights the centre console must be removed by taking
out the four chrome screws around the gear lever (noting from
which of the four positions the shortest of the four screws
was affixed) and by also removing the single screw at the rear
of the inside of the centre console pocket. Also you may find
it more convenient to unscrew the gear knob and its lock nut.
The entire assembly must now be slid back around an inch, lifted
over the gear lever and set aside. At this point you must also
remove the L shaped brace for the glove box as this will impede
the fitment of the passenger side strip light later on.
The
lower dash assembly must now be withdrawn to access the wiring
behind the courtesy lamp. To do this, there are four chrome
screws on the sides of the lower dash panel which must be removed.
It may also be necessary to remove the front facia of the radio
(where fitted) to allow the lower dash panel to slide forward
exposing the wiring harness.
You
can now mock up the LED strip light by holding it against the
1 inch square box section brace that runs behind the dashboard
and taking an approximate measurement you will need to extend
the wiring for the strip lights. An appropriate length of wire
can be soldered onto the positive and negative wires on the
strip lights and Lucas type bullet connectors soldered onto
the ends. LED strip lights must be connected up with the correct
polarity in order to function. If they are connected up incorrectly
they will not illuminate. |
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Improved courtesy lighting.
Look
for the purple wire feeding the back of the courtesy light.
There will be a single inline type connector fitted between
it and the main dash harness. The single inline connector must
be replaced with a four way type connector. The courtesy light
can then be reconnected to the main harness and the positive
wire from the LED lights connected into the remaining two connectors.
The earth side of the LED strip lights must be connected to
the same connector as the earth lead from the courtesy light.
This earth lead is the one interrupted by the courtesy light
switches. You will need to either exchange the four way connector
for a 6 way connector or, run a short lead from the remaining
space in the original four point connector block to another
four point connector block. The strip lights are now wired up
such that they will now illuminate both when the doors are opened
and also when the switch is activated on top of the courtesy
light.
Fitting
the LED strip lights is a simple case of peeling off the plastic
backing and pressing them firmly to the underside of the 1 inch
box section brace which runs across the width of the car. The
dash can then be reassembled in reverse order as above.
For
the installation on my V8 (Flamenco 2538) I chose to use two
15 bulb LED strip lights as they are approximately 30cm in length
which is just about right for each side under the dash. I also
chose to use green strip lights to compliment the backlighting
of the instrument dials. However, there is of course a wide
selection of choices. White or yellow light would be just as
effective.
See our illustrated note. More |
