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-   -   Off road light switches location (https://www.ranger-forums.com/snapshots-69/off-road-light-switches-location-166923/)

MazRanger Oct 5, 2021 05:15 PM

Off road light switches location
 
Just finished my LED light installation. Light bar on roof rack, 3 driving lights on bumper, one back up spot light and flood lights on each side for lighting up camp, trails or what have you. Given the small size of the cab I figured I could lose one vent and not notice.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.ran...f9bb191e05.jpg
Custom switches from Amazon
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.ran...aaa3b7e6f0.jpg
22" light bar, 2 floods and one spot on bumper, side floods, rear flood
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.ran...8a31c9bf8a.jpg
Rear flood (F/U light)

MazRanger Oct 5, 2021 09:06 PM

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.ran...febf09c0b2.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.ran...7be7fd5ce7.jpg
The switches light up. Hard to tell in the first pic as the camera makes them look brighter than they are. They light up when headlights are on. When you hit the toggle switch the icon lights up as well.

Dewey Oct 6, 2021 06:32 AM

Interesting, ive never seen switches there before. But it definitely works and looks better than I would expect deleting an A/C vent.

MazRanger Oct 6, 2021 07:27 AM

My son did it on his Nissan pickup. It worked well for him so I thought why not. These 4 switches fit in there almost like it was made for it...with a bit of tweaking.
Not much room for running wires so it was the best location to bring the switches up where I could see them and not have to bolt on some panel to the dash.

Scrambler82 Oct 6, 2021 08:42 AM

Losing an AC Vent depend on the area you live in... SoCal, I like all the cool air I can get.

The Switches look good, interesting spot to put them but they are right there in front of you instead of looking for them.

What did you do to wire all the lights up ?

How do they look at night ?

The Rack looks good too !

MazRanger Oct 6, 2021 12:19 PM


Originally Posted by Scrambler82 (Post 2197127)
Losing an AC Vent depend on the area you live in... SoCal, I like all the cool air I can get.

The Switches look good, interesting spot to put them but they are right there in front of you instead of looking for them.

What did you do to wire all the lights up ?

How do they look at night ?

The Rack looks good too !

there is a second power hook up on the switch that must be connected to the dash lights or similar. Anything that comes on when the headlights come on. I found a power wire in my stereo harness. As for losing the air conditioning vent it’s not much of an issue where I live. Close to the Rocky Mountains and we don’t get the heat waves of Southern California

Scrambler82 Oct 8, 2021 06:31 PM

I’m in the process of wiring a new DRL circuit.
Everything is tight under the hood so finding a good location for Relays is a pain.

it was suggested for me to use the Radio wire but I wasn’t sure, through suggestions and thanks to RonD started me looking in the Battery Fuse Box, I found a circuit that "Hot on Run" only. I looked it up and found a sub circuit that is going to work out.

Ford made most of their circuits so they cover only what is on the circuit, adding to these circuits can be a problem.
The circuit I ended up with is a DRL circuit, F1-31/F2-2 but I don’t have OEM DRLs so I’m using it for my new Grille/Halos DRLs, now I have them.

Almost done !

MazRanger Oct 8, 2021 08:57 PM

Each of my lights has its own relay built in to the harness I purchased. I just zip tied them up under the rail along the top of the fender. It ain't pretty but they are secure. I also labelled each fuse so troubles shooting a black out is easier. Most come with a low amp fuse like a 2.5. I spoke with a guy who does vehicle electrics and said to bump it up to a 10 and it will be fine. If I use them on the highway the constant on/off will pop the 2.5 FYI
Be interested to see your set up when it's done. I will have to rework my system when I install the deep cycle in the bed set up.

Scrambler82 Oct 9, 2021 07:11 AM


Originally Posted by MazRanger (Post 2197220)
Each of my lights has its own relay built in to the harness I purchased. I just zip tied them up under the rail along the top of the fender. It ain't pretty but they are secure. I also labelled each fuse so troubles shooting a black out is easier. Most come with a low amp fuse like a 2.5. I spoke with a guy who does vehicle electrics and said to bump it up to a 10 and it will be fine. If I use them on the highway the constant on/off will pop the 2.5 FYI
Be interested to see your set up when it's done. I will have to rework my system when I install the deep cycle in the bed set up.

Just out of curiosity... what gauge wire is being used on the harness ?
Do you know the amperage draw on the harness ?

MazRanger Oct 9, 2021 08:34 AM

I don't know the exact gauge. Similar to stereo or CB wire size. This is one of the harnesses I ordered


Ranger480 Oct 9, 2021 08:46 AM

The listing is confusing. It states 20-, 30- and 40-amp.

So it could be (or should be) 12, 10 or 8 AWG respectively.


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