arrrgh I'm rapidly going off this thing...

[fredt]

so if you wanted to do a W8 interior light conversion in a deli, how would you connect it up? so far I have burnt out three tracks on the board and blown countless fuses! its getting to the stage where I'm thinking about setting fire to the damn thing! I have fitted the same light in several cars without any problems, but the deli is turning out to be an F'in nightmare! give me a VW to work on any day or even a bloody scooby! and I hate them!

W8 conversion ..... http://wiki.the-corrado.net/passat_w8_i ... rsion.html

[Big-Bird]

That looks like an interesting project. No reason the Deli's electrical system should cause misery.

[fredt]

That looks like an interesting project. No reason the Deli's electrical system should cause misery.

well lets put it like this... there are two wires that feed the oe light, one's live till you open the door then the one that wasnt live now is! enough said! oh and then the one that was live now becomes ground! yeah there's nothing too complicated about the deli's electrical system.......

[Big-Bird]

I stand corrected. But the problem needs a wiring schematic.

This has something to do with how the power door locks and door jam and interior switches are wired into the brain box on the Deli. There is a relay somewhere in the system that needs to be located, it changes the contact polarity depending on if a door isopen, remote door locks or interior switch are activated.

[tonydca]

I have to ask why you wanted to choose this upgrade path; seems rather complicated.

The interior lights on my L400 were certainly the grunts, so for around $8 ea I purchased three interior LED replacement bulbs from a local LED importer/retailer - I have since noticed several auto parts stores stock them.

Made in China (no surprise); each unit is a small panel of (IIRC) 12 white LEDs with a pigtail and adapters for all of the standard press-in bulb types.

Took about 10 minutes to swap the old bulbs out and wedge the LED panels in place behind the plastic light covers (kept the two smaller incandescent map lights up front and the door warning lights the same) but now my three larger interior lights are retina-scarringly bright. Did so quite a while ago and no issues since.

[jelbon]

Are you on the grounding side of the dome light?
If you are between the light and the door switch it will be hot - until the door is opened and the circuit is closed to ground thru the door switch.
Should you have wired a hot lead onto that side of the dome light circuit it will blow a fuse, the amperage is going directly to ground and not thru any load.

[fredt]

I believe I have sorted it! the proof of the pudding will be tomorrow when I wire it into the van!
I need to run a perminant and an ignition switched hot wire up the light, the perminant hot wire to switch the W8 on manually and then via the switchable ground/hot wire from the interior light door switch, fire off a relay connected via a diode to switch the W8 on via the doors.... well that all worked when I was testing it just now on my desk, I'll let you know around mid day Uk time tomorrow if it works for real....


ps. the number for the fire service is 999, if you could program it into your phones and hit dial as soon as you hear the bang or my screams of OH! CRAP THAT WORKED LAST NIGHT! it would be much appreciated

[fredt]

It's in an working as it should :) no need call the fire brigade! No relays of diodes needed as I took the ground switching for the doors straight from the drivers door switch, again not a simple job! The door switch is a double pole switch, both poles switch to ground but only one operates the light from all the doors! One is just for the drivers door, seems my alarm guy used the wrong pole! The alarm would only sound if the drivers doors was opened!
Will stick up a couple of pictures later when it dark so you can see the effect of the night glow LEDs
But for now here's the light in place , it looks like it was meant to be as it matches the shape of the stamping in the headlining

[fredt]

light fitted
http://i668.photobucket.com/albums/vv50 ... 8b8b4a.jpg

night glow led's
http://i668.photobucket.com/albums/vv50 ... e6e791.jpg

doors open full illumination
http://i668.photobucket.com/albums/vv50 ... 2ef7b5.jpg

map readers on only
http://i668.photobucket.com/albums/vv50 ... 43fa92.jpg

its getting dark so i'll pop out and get a shot of the night glow effect in a bit