OEM Off-Road Light Switch Install

[Silverado1475]

5 minutes ago, pgamboa said:

Bummer, considering I paid $135 for my red version. LOL. Also... look at that sticker. Gonna take a stab and say blue sticker = blue led, red sticker = red.






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the code on the back of the blue one doesn't match either of the codes posted?

[TinkeringFox]

3 minutes ago, pgamboa said:

Also, if you notice the blue switch that I have, the icon for the ORL is slightly different looking. The red version has an arrow pointing upward.

8492 seems to have the arrow pointing upward on that blue version.


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I’ll bet that’s why we got them so cheap...GM probably decided that there needed to be a more pronounced difference between the two buttons. A microscopic arrow will definitely help decern between the two bouncing down the road at 50.

[TinkeringFox]

4 minutes ago, lapoolboy said:

Will these plug into the OEM harness and function properly until *someone* makes the custom harness?

Yes, they’ll operate headlights and fogs no issues.

[colonel00]

I don't even have immediate plans to add lights but I'm tempted to pick up a blue switch at $25 while they are still in stock.  Guess I need to figure out what lights I'd want while I wait on a sweet harness to be created.

 

Also, since I've done the diode jump to have my fogs on with the headlights all the time, would there be a way to find an alternate use for the fog light button?  Perhaps the fog button would turn on lights in the rear and the ORL button would turn on lights up front?

Edited September 18, 2018 by colonel00

[TinkeringFox]

2 minutes ago, Silverado1475 said:

the code on the back of the blue one doesn't match either of the codes posted?

That one was from eBay, likely a mistake GM made and decided to change the final product selling what they had produced to a reseller. Reseller maybe paid $5/ea. and sold for $28 ea. still a great deal.

[TinkeringFox]

5 minutes ago, colonel00 said:

I don't even have immediate plans to add lights but I'm tempted to pick up a blue switch at $25 while they are still in stock.  Guess I need to figure out what lights I'd want while I wait on a sweet harness to be created.

 

Also, since I've done the diode jump to have my fogs on with the headlights all the time, would there be a way to find an alternate use for the fog light button?  Perhaps the fog button would turn on lights in the rear and the ORL button would turn on lights up front?

Rear fogs is something I’m definitely interested in. I’ve also considered using that for activating trailer work lights by accessing the trailer reverse circuit.

[colonel00]

Just now, TinkeringFox said:

Rear fogs is something I’m definitely interested in. I’ve also considered using that for activating trailer work lights by accessing the trailer reverse circuit.

I like that idea a lot.  I was actually thinking about those lights that people are putting in the step bumper steps.  Mostly for use when backing up in the super dark like backing a trailer.  Accessing the trailer circuit would also be nice.  I do a lot of duck hunting and putting a boat in the water, sometimes by myself, in the pitch black and cold can be a challenge.  Adding a ton of backup light and illuminating the boat/trailer would be very nice.

[pgamboa]

the code on the back of the blue one doesn't match either of the codes posted?

Yep. Mine has a slightly different icon that Tinkering fox posted. Operates the same way.

If you want the one with the arrow pointing up, get the one he posted.


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[TinkeringFox]

8 minutes ago, colonel00 said:

I like that idea a lot.  I was actually thinking about those lights that people are putting in the step bumper steps.  Mostly for use when backing up in the super dark like backing a trailer.  Accessing the trailer circuit would also be nice.  I do a lot of duck hunting and putting a boat in the water, sometimes by myself, in the pitch black and cold can be a challenge.  Adding a ton of backup light and illuminating the boat/trailer would be very nice.

If you use a 7way plug you already have reverse light power going back there. I added oval white reverse lights to my car hauler and it works great. Having those stay lit while loading is great. I can accomplish this through my Warn winch but just having a circuit on the dash would be much more efficient.

[TinkeringFox]

12 minutes ago, colonel00 said:

I like that idea a lot.  I was actually thinking about those lights that people are putting in the step bumper steps.  Mostly for use when backing up in the super dark like backing a trailer.  Accessing the trailer circuit would also be nice.  I do a lot of duck hunting and putting a boat in the water, sometimes by myself, in the pitch black and cold can be a challenge.  Adding a ton of backup light and illuminating the boat/trailer would be very nice.

Another cheap option we use sometimes backing empty to see the trailer is those yellow balls on a magnetic telescoping rod from Harbor Freight. They’re meant for help aligning the ball to the tounge but we just put them on the tail lights to provide visibility of the rear corners. You could put a couple of dog collar LEDs on the balls for backing your trailer in the dark.

[colonel00]

2 minutes ago, TinkeringFox said:

If you use a 7way plug you already have reverse light power going back there. I added oval white reverse lights to my car hauler and it works great. Having those stay lit while loading is great. I can accomplish this through my Warn winch but just having a circuit on the dash would be much more efficient.

Hmm, I'm a little confused.  Are you saying the reverse light power from the 7 way plug is always on or just in reverse?  But, to your point, I would want the light to be switchable when the vehicle wasn't in reverse.  Basically, added work light for when I'm out of the truck.  However, I"m just guessing that all of the lines of the 7 way are already in use so you wouldn't be able to switch one of those so you'd have to run another connection, right?

[colonel00]

1 minute ago, TinkeringFox said:

Another cheap option we use sometimes backing empty to see the trailer is those yellow balls on a magnetic telescoping rod from Harbor Freight. They’re meant for help aligning the ball to the tounge but we just put them on the tail lights to provide visibility of the rear corners. You could put a couple of dog collar LEDs on the balls for backing your trailer in the dark.

Yeah, that's a good idea for the backing portion.  Mostly though, I was more looking for just auxiliary light for loading and unloading gear from a boat or trailer.  Again, not the most crucial though.  I think just having an ability to re-purpose  the fog button to control different lights would be a good start.

[Cburge95]

I like that idea a lot.  I was actually thinking about those lights that people are putting in the step bumper steps.  Mostly for use when backing up in the super dark like backing a trailer.  Accessing the trailer circuit would also be nice.  I do a lot of duck hunting and putting a boat in the water, sometimes by myself, in the pitch black and cold can be a challenge.  Adding a ton of backup light and illuminating the boat/trailer would be very nice.

I did something similar with my Silverado. Not long after I bought it in 2014 I added lights to the steps in the bumper. Wired them in to the cargo box lighting. They practically look factory. I’ve considered either contacting GM to suggest they make them an option in new models or going to my dealer and showing them. Here’s how they look.


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[colonel00]

6 minutes ago, Cburge95 said:

I did something similar with my Silverado. Not long after I bought it in 2014 I added lights to the steps in the bumper. Wired them in to the cargo box lighting. They practically look factory. I’ve considered either contacting GM to suggest they make them an option in new models or going to my dealer and showing them. Here’s how they look.


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Nice.  Do those throw the light anywhere or just illuminate the steps?  I actually like the illumination idea and having that tied into the cargo lights would work well.  I'd just tie them into my bed lights as I did the diode mod to turn on the bed lights when the cargo lights are on.  That would be great for finding those steps in the dark.  I'll see if I can find the photo of the lights installed in the step like I'm thinking of.

 

Edit:  Here's one option but I wouldn't want to loose the use of the steps with the big cubes.  My old joints really appreciate those steps.

 

 

There's a much cleaner, flush mount that someone did on here that I'm trying to find.

 

There are a bunch of ideas in this thread:

 

Edited September 18, 2018 by colonel00

[Cburge95]

Nice.  Do those throw the light anywhere or just illuminate the steps?  I actually like the illumination idea and having that tied into the cargo lights would work well.  I'd just tie them into my bed lights as I did the diode mod to turn on the bed lights when the cargo lights are on.  That would be great for finding those steps in the dark.  I'll see if I can find the photo of the lights installed in the step like I'm thinking of.
 
Edit:  Here's one option but I wouldn't want to loose the use of the steps with the big cubes.  My old joints really appreciate those steps.
 

 
There's a much cleaner, flush mount that someone did on here that I'm trying to find.
 
There are a bunch of ideas in this thread:
 

They don’t throw light outside of the step well. They’re just for illuminating that step at night which is great. I always get compliments on it and asked how I did it.

I added the cargo box lights after I bought the truck as mine didn’t come with them. I bought the kit on eBay for like $100 and it is literally PnP. There is a junction box above the spare tire that you remove a dust cap from and plug the cargo box lights into and that circuit is already tied into the cargo lights. Then I just spliced into that circuit on each side with those little LEDs in the steps.


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