LostKiwi
Senior Member
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2006
- Messages
- 31,349
- Reaction score
- 21,612
- Location
- Midlands / Charente-Maritime
- Your Mercedes
- '93 500SL-32, '01 W210 Estate E240 (RIP), 02 R230 SL500, 04 Smart Roadster Coupe, 11 R350CDi
This is a repost of Television's original guide with photos fixed (thanks Photobucket! - NOT)
Its never easy adding things like driving lamps without them looking stuck on or very wrong and not suiting the car at all. I have been watching Ebay for over 12 months now and all are too big, mainly the length is too long, but 2 weeks back a seller had these flexible self-adhesive lamps with just 6 LED’s. This is the appearance of them fitted to my SL (09model) but near enough the same for most 230’s.
To start with it’s a matter of removing the grills from the fog lamps, most just unclip from the bumper. As there is nothing much to stick them on, I made up a plastic backing from a side of an old TV case. In this case just 20mm wide, and the length to suit the lamps. I screwed them to the grills with 2 2.5mm countersunk screws. Aluminium would do just as well painted black.
The next job was getting access to run the wires to the drivers side only in my case, so off with the grill (please ask if you want to know how to remove the grill) and the two fog lamps. It was now a matter of pushing a draw wire through to pull the thin cables through.
You will need an auto switch circa £10 Ebay so that the parking lights turn them off. In my car it was a dream to do as the wiring is all in trunking. There is a good ground terminal in front of the drivers side fuse box, the rubber grommet where all the wires go in is split, and the main plus just needs an ignition on point. Again a spare one was found and I connected up via a 2 amp fuse that just tucks down into the side of the box. The tiny switching box is in a pocket behind the head lamp
Next you need to connect the wire to the side lamps, in my case Grey/black was laying in the trunking, so I just joined to it and replaced the trunking lid.
They look OK to me and not too stuck on
To summarize just need the pair of lamps approx £5. they come with 6, 9 or 12 LED’s I bought 2 sets so I have spares, a switch box. Just join the output of the box to both running lamps. For the input, just black to ground, red to ignition on feed, and the switching wire to the side lamps.
I will do my CL500 next and add some more
If any member wants to know how to take parts off their car to do the same please ask in the thread.
Please note, Malcolm sadly died 11th August 2017.
Its never easy adding things like driving lamps without them looking stuck on or very wrong and not suiting the car at all. I have been watching Ebay for over 12 months now and all are too big, mainly the length is too long, but 2 weeks back a seller had these flexible self-adhesive lamps with just 6 LED’s. This is the appearance of them fitted to my SL (09model) but near enough the same for most 230’s.
To start with it’s a matter of removing the grills from the fog lamps, most just unclip from the bumper. As there is nothing much to stick them on, I made up a plastic backing from a side of an old TV case. In this case just 20mm wide, and the length to suit the lamps. I screwed them to the grills with 2 2.5mm countersunk screws. Aluminium would do just as well painted black.
The next job was getting access to run the wires to the drivers side only in my case, so off with the grill (please ask if you want to know how to remove the grill) and the two fog lamps. It was now a matter of pushing a draw wire through to pull the thin cables through.
You will need an auto switch circa £10 Ebay so that the parking lights turn them off. In my car it was a dream to do as the wiring is all in trunking. There is a good ground terminal in front of the drivers side fuse box, the rubber grommet where all the wires go in is split, and the main plus just needs an ignition on point. Again a spare one was found and I connected up via a 2 amp fuse that just tucks down into the side of the box. The tiny switching box is in a pocket behind the head lamp
Next you need to connect the wire to the side lamps, in my case Grey/black was laying in the trunking, so I just joined to it and replaced the trunking lid.
They look OK to me and not too stuck on
To summarize just need the pair of lamps approx £5. they come with 6, 9 or 12 LED’s I bought 2 sets so I have spares, a switch box. Just join the output of the box to both running lamps. For the input, just black to ground, red to ignition on feed, and the switching wire to the side lamps.
I will do my CL500 next and add some more
If any member wants to know how to take parts off their car to do the same please ask in the thread.
Please note, Malcolm sadly died 11th August 2017.
