Driving light options

[gwatpe]

Will need to travel for an extended period across outback Australia and the issue of how to add some decent long range and mid range lighting to a car that has essentially no options for nudge or bull bars onto which additional lights could be mounted was needed.

I wanted to install lights with no cutting of the electrics and no mods to the front end plastic bumper and no additional switches on the dashboard and no holes in the firewall.

The spot lights had to be pencil beam for long distance vision and had to be able to be disabled from the high beam at times.

The PHEV has 2 independent light circuits. The normal driving LOW / HIGH beams with HID and Halogen bulbs, and the fog light circuit. Both these systems have on stalk controls as well as instrumentation panel indicators.

I was able to splice a sense wire into the wiring of the high side of each of the halogen bulbs of the high beam and fog lights. The sense wire on the fog light drives a relay coil. The switched output of this is combined with the sense wire from the high beam and drives the coil of a second relay. The switched contacts of the second relay control power to the HID spot lights, so the only time the spot lights can be driven is if both the fog light and the high beam is activated. I have replaced the 55W H11 halogen fog light bulbs with yellow LED equivalents. I have added a 34W LED light bar that is operated directly in parallel with the high beam halogens to give more white fill above the white line from the STD HID low beams.

The result is that the annoying line across the middle of the vision region is gone and the yellow pools of light from the halogen high beams is complemented with white. When the HID spot lights are activated then an additional pool of light is added that goes off into the far distance.

The additional power of about 40W with all light blazing will not tax the electrics.

Here is the front end look.

I have tested the operation of the FCM and it is not affected. There is minimal air obstruction for radiator cooling. The best part is that the car was not modified. The mounting of the spot lights is very rigid, essentially part of the steel cross member, and not connected in any way to the plastic bumper. The lights have plastic housings and the support brackets are bolted together, so can be removed completely. All is designed to work in with the crumple features of the car.

The clip system on the panel covers allowed relatively easy access to the back of the fog lights and mounting of the aluminium light support brackets.

 

[Kim]

Veery nice!!
Now I want one, too

 

[gwatpe]

The company that sold me the LightForce Venom pencil beam lamps was even impressed. Lights now set up with relay interlocks with high beam and fog light switch interface. Now have yellow front fog light lamps. Night vision is now amazing. Is great to at least now have some confidence night driving with a flash new car. Have just clocked 10000km, in addition to 11000 and 8000 on previous 2 PHEV's. will clock up another 14-15000km over the next few months, with most being driven across un-populated outback Australia. Kangaroo, cattle, wombat etc providing the usual night time dodgem playground.

 

[tun]

The company that sold me the LightForce Venom pencil beam lamps was even impressed. Lights now set up with relay interlocks with high beam and fog light switch interface. Now have yellow front fog light lamps. Night vision is now amazing. Is great to at least now have some confidence night driving with a flash new car. Have just clocked 10000km, in addition to 11000 and 8000 on previous 2 PHEV's. will clock up another 14-15000km over the next few months, with most being driven across un-populated outback Australia. Kangaroo, cattle, wombat etc providing the usual night time dodgem playground.

Out of curiosity, what kind of mpg are you getting with such an extensive driving?

 

[gwatpe]

The petrol ONLY driving is around 8L/100km. May have up to 3 fill ups in a day depending on fuel availability. Am used to driving up to 1500km in a day in other cars, so will see how the PHEV compares. Other car had 1000km range [dual fuel]. The very small petrol tank will mean carrying a few jerry cans. Have an unlimited speed section of flat road available, so will get to see economy at high speeds as well. Real time OBD2 mpg tells a story.

 

[tun]

The petrol ONLY driving is around 8L/100km. May have up to 3 fill ups in a day depending on fuel availability. Am used to driving up to 1500km in a day in other cars, so will see how the PHEV compares. Other car had 1000km range [dual fuel]. The very small petrol tank will mean carrying a few jerry cans. Have an unlimited speed section of flat road available, so will get to see economy at high speeds as well. Real time OBD2 mpg tells a story.

Thanks...

 

[thegurio]

Just to add weight to your fuel figures, that's pretty much what I get and most of my driving is around 110 kph.

Would it be possible to have photos of where it attaches to the thr possibly a link off here yo yu bougtti have a friend who has a non PHEV, and she put a Norma nudge bar on and had all sorts of troubles with the electric systems, but this could be of interest to all.

 

[gwatpe]

I purchased a std aluminium angle number plate light mounting bracket. This is just a plate of aluminium about 500mm long with a fold and a piece of pipe welded to the top flat edge that protrudes forward, to make it safer for hitting pedestrians. I mounted this bracket with square spacers through the plastic bumper bar into the steel cross member. The number plate is pop reveted to the bottom of the vertical surface of the plate. I cut a 35mm x 35mm x 4mm aluminium angle extrusion 160mm long. The bracket that holds a radiator to the cross member I used as a template to drill some holes in the angle section, so both could be re-attached to the steel cross member with the same bolts. This provided a horizontal flat surface at the right height to allow direct access through the grill. I made 2 T section brackets to link the internal bracket to the number plate bracket through the grill. I now had a very strong bracket that was mounted directly to both sides of the steel cross member, that was not interfering with the plastic bumper and was well away from the Radar.

Mitsubishi would not supply any nudge bar option available for other outlanders for my PHEV, and after market suppliers took a similar stand. Very expensive option anyway, over $900. Bar still has flex due to the big distance between the car and the light mounting points.

I spent $55 on the number plate bracket and another $35 on aluminium and stainless bolts and screws. Just used a hand saw and hand drill to make all the brackets and I did no welding. I was able to mount a light bar and 2 pencil beam spot lights on the bracket. I have added a rubber spacer behind each of the pencil beam lights to keep them super steady with the car on really bumpy roads. Would not be needed on less directional lights. I spent my saved cash on the most powerful lights I could fit that looked in proportion with the car. Was able to check out different model lights to see which looked good. Was important to have good fixings for the lights and also minimal rear protrusion behind the mount.

I have to add that as I mentioned before getting the systems wired in a way to not need any mods to the dash or firewall or cutting car wiring needed some lateral thinking. The battery is a long way away and I looked at running a dedicated power lead, but decided it was too hard. I tapped into the fuse for the motorized tailgate for power. This is a 35A cct and I will never operate the tailgate and the spot lights together. Replaced the 35A fuse with a 25A one and it has not blown. The double interlock with fog light and high beam cct allows operation of high beam without spot lights for normal driving without additional dash switches. Fog lights can still work independently when needed.

The total lights power is 10W more than std, and the lower wattage of LED and HID bulbs helps.

It is important to not obstruct the Radar on the passenger side of the car. The grill is slightly obstructed by the lights and number plate, but I have an insect screen that obstructs the air a bit and have not had any overheating during summer in 46C+ driving.

All systems on the car are still operating as usual. Still have a few more weeks before the big trip to check systems some more with city trips and night driving home.

The internal bracket in front of the radiator was a bit tricky to remount, so at this point I will not take it all apart for photos.

 

[thegurio]

Thanks for that gwatpe, some food for thought as we are heading in to a Tassie winter with darkness abounding... Might have to do some investigation to get in to my mind what you did, but that basics are there so thank you.

 

[gwatpe]

No worries fellow Australian Taswegian. After my travels, I will disassemble all the components, check for any wear or flex and attend to if needed. I am looking for threaded rivet type inserts for the front mounting bolts to the car cross member. This will be icing on the cake.

 

[gwatpe]

Have found an Eclipse brand threaded insert tool. I will be making permanent 8mm threaded holes in the cross member and rear adapter bracket. The Tek screws were ok for the initial testing. Will be able to now finish the install. Will use wing nuts for the final fixings. The whole unit will be removable and hopefully can be re-attached without losing the alignment. More in keeping for the way the rest of the PHEV fits together.

PS edit: Lights are back in with threaded inserts on the brackets. Much neater solution than Tek screws and threads in Aluminium. All went back with no alignment adjustment needed.

 

[gwatpe]

Have had heavy rain and fog locally for a few days now and was able to test the new lights coming home from the city.

The original factory lights are really not up to the task.

New setup is like driving in a strip of daylight. My significant other passenger, commented on how well the road was lit up and away off into the distance in addition to the road verges. The really big road signs reflect a lot back, and some slight alignment changes may be needed. Will need to find a new balance of when is best to turn on the pencil beams. Yellow fog lights could be a little more powerful, but are really only used as the spot light activation interlock with the high beam.

Won't be daunted by night driving like the last trip to Sydney.

AUX battery stays at 13.4V, so battery will not suffer from extended lights operation with night driving.

 

[gwatpe]

As the last phase of my PHEV's lighting upgrade, I have replaced the dreadful yellow 55W halogen high beam lamps with 35W HID. I had purchased these lamps quite a while ago and they would not work as a direct replacement. Some aspect of the PHEV's wiring was preventing the HID lamps firing.

Solution of course was to just add a relay and drive them directly off a suitable fuse in the main panel. Is now done. Small delay, with first use of the high beam, but well worth the wait.

A good combo is with HID and LED bar. LED is instant ON. Will get a pic

Honey I'm home

and a bit less dazzle.

The lights at the bottom are my LED fog lights.

Can now drive at night with my own strip of daylight. PHEV looks just the same as the first pic, but with better night vision.

 

[gwatpe]

Have just driven a few thousand kilometers across outback Australia, with about 6 hours of night driving over 2 nights. Good lights made a huge difference.

I would recommend replacement of the Halogen high beam with HID lamps. I had to drive them with a relay, as for some reason the wiring prevented the HID lamps from striking properly. My HID replacements came as a kit for under AU$100.00 local retail and were well worth the money.

I also added an LED light bar to provide instant light, like a filament bulb.

My HID have an initial warmup time of around 5sec on first striking to achieve 95% full brightness.

I really am appalled at the quality of the lights as supplied standard and we should be offered some lighting options.

The 50W HID spot lights are icing on the cake and even make the light output of the lower power HID high beam upgrades look inferior. I really had not noticed how yellow the standard HID low beam lights look in comparison.

Will try and get some side by side comparison pics with a standard PHEV.

The pics above, are quite accurate with the colour. The HID provides really white light, offering better colour definition, allowing objects to be seen more clearly, and this helps with night driving.

 

[tun]

Have just driven a few thousand kilometers across outback Australia, with about 6 hours of night driving over 2 nights. Good lights made a huge difference.

I would recommend replacement of the Halogen high beam with HID lamps. I had to drive them with a relay, as for some reason the wiring prevented the HID lamps from striking properly. My HID replacements came as a kit for under AU$100.00 local retail and were well worth the money.

I also added an LED light bar to provide instant light, like a filament bulb.

My HID have an initial warmup time of around 5sec on first striking to achieve 95% full brightness.

I really am appalled at the quality of the lights as supplied standard and we should be offered some lighting options.

The 50W HID spot lights are icing on the cake and even make the light output of the lower power HID high beam upgrades look inferior. I really had not noticed how yellow the standard HID low beam lights look in comparison.

Will try and get some side by side comparison pics with a standard PHEV.

The pics above, are quite accurate with the colour. The HID provides really white light, offering better colour definition, allowing objects to be seen more clearly, and this helps with night driving.

Dude.. I will hate driving opposite side of you man

But I am looking to upgrade the main beam too but not to HID. My previous experience on those self install HID with a relay doesn't last long (less than a year)

 

[gwatpe]

I guess the issue comes back to courtesy. As soon as I see someone else's lights. I dip the spot lights. Only need them on straight sections of road really. This is why they are on a switched cct with the normal high beam. You only need to be flashed once, to work out appropriate time to dip the high beam. Factory set low beam was far too high and I was flashed all the time. This is a trending problem with the sharp cutoff on the std HID low beams. After adjusting lower, I found that the high beams were only for show.

These HID high beam upgrades are already a few years old, having lived in a previous car. Worked out of the box in the previous car, but needed a relay to drive them in the PHEV as the existing wiring had too much resistance to strike the lamps properly. This may be a generic problem with the PHEV design and why what should be good halogen lighting ends up yellow.

Time will tell how long they last, and is why I have not modified any original wiring and keep the halogen bulbs as spares.

 

[gwatpe]

Have just returned home from the first stage of my outback holiday. Driving lights have had a real workout.

Some feedback for interested readers.

On a straight section of road, the cats eyes and signage is easily distinguished, even at 4km away. The range may only be affected by the length of the straight section of road and the road markers. The factory installed lights are so inferior as to not really be worth a mention.

Just need to sort out the auto adjust systems to stop the low beams from doing their own thing while the car is moving.

 

[sawman82]

Really good post Gwatpe! Thanks for sharing your experience around and the design of your driving lights. We are thinking of heading up to the NT in September and I am worried about any night driving that may need to be done with no bullbar and only the standard lights.

I might look into what you have done and see if it is possible to get some spot lights on there and up and running before we go. I've hit to many Kangaroos in previous cars which has cost mega $ and I don't want to ruin a new PHEV.

Also, you may have mentioned in a previous post, however do you have a spare tyre for the PHEV? If so what did you get and where?

 

[gwatpe]

I normally drive with lights ON, when driving on country roads. A habit from days when roads were mainly dirt. Most new cars now have DRL of LED variants. My AUS shipped PHEV did not come with any options for DRL, only fog lights. Found on EBay, LED DRL rings, made specially for the Outlander 2013-15 models. Have now fitted them and they fit perfectly. The clipped in plastic surround between the bumper and the fog light is replaced with a silver plastic moulding with an LED ring. They look similar to the chromed plastic original moulding, but are a DRL.

Finding a switched fuse was the next thing. Was able to tap into the smaller AUX fuse box and get a connection from a cooling pump cct. Not many to choose from as most fuses seem to be direct to the battery connections and unswitched to the ignition system. Lights are ON with ignition power, as well as when the battery is recharged from a cord. OK for now.

Car is very visible now and has a distinctive high class look. The ring LED's are more attractive than the couple of individual LED options you see around on many modern cars.

Will save some wear and tear on the stalk light switches as a bonus. As with any accessory with custom mouldings, the lights were not cheap, but being seen by other drivers is the objective..

 

[gwatpe]

Some follow up info re DRL mod.

Was pulled over at night for a random breath test, and officer mentioned I was driving with fog lights ON. I replied that they were not, but the car had running lights ON, as the car was running. Officer mentioned that they were supposed to only work in the day. Officer was not at all concerned about my driving lights, but only the ring LEDs.

As a consequence of this conversation I continued on my way, but have since modified the operation to turn OFF automatically at night with a light sensor.