i30 Owners Club

MODIFYING OR DETAILING YOUR I30 => ELECTRICAL | ELECTRONIC | AUDIO => Topic started by: galixia on May 21, 2019, 22:49:47

Title: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: galixia on May 21, 2019, 22:49:47
I do a couple of interstate trips a year and usually drive through the night and sleep during the day or when i get there so i avoid all the traffic etc on the highway. So I was thinking about fitting some extra lights but like the nice clean front and don't want a lightbar/spot lights etc out the front. I've seen there is kits for other cars like this  :link: 20" Ultra Slim LED Light Bar w/Behind Grill Mount, Wiring For 15-up Ford Mustang | eBay (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/20-Ultra-Slim-LED-Light-Bar-w-Behind-Grill-Mount-Wiring-For-15-up-Ford-Mustang-/382367254497) that would probably work.

I have upgraded the headlights both low and high to Phillips Diamond Vision bulbs already as well.

Has anyone mounted a light behind the grill in their I30?

The only thing I'm really worried about is it melting the grill because its plastic. Also cleaning. I have an Active so i dont have any of the fancy driving assist stuff behind the grill.

I know the road rules used to say that lights have to be in pairs and that from the center of light one light to the center of the other light needs to be more than 600mm apart etc. But with lightbars, now the rules in QLD and i believe everywhere else have been updated to now allow a single light. Also that the light needs to be wired so that it only can come on when the high beams are on and switch off automatically when the high beams are switched off. I'll have it also wired to an extra switch so that when I only need high beams and not the added light I can do that too.

https://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/-/media/Safety/Vehicle-standards-and-modifications/Vehicle-standards/Vehicle-standards-instructions/L153.pdf?la=en (https://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/-/media/Safety/Vehicle-standards-and-modifications/Vehicle-standards/Vehicle-standards-instructions/L153.pdf?la=en)

So has anyone done it? What kits/lights did you use?

Also in the I30 PD where did you put the extra switch for your lights to work? Because I know lots of people have the external light bars and would have something for them. Was trying to decide to the right of the steering wheel where the other switches are or around where the gear lever is.
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: cruiserfied on May 22, 2019, 02:06:50
Done it. 4wd super centre deal.
I left the switch in engine bay. Always on with high beam.
Mounted lightbar to bottom side of intrusion beam.
Make sure you have spare drill bits and drilling lube. Beam is high tensile steel.
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: pug20g on May 22, 2019, 14:13:31
Has anyone mounted a light behind the grill in their I30?

I've been researching the same thing and interested in an outcome.

Done it. 4wd super centre deal.
Would you be able to share photos or drawings? Was this DIY or was it done at the 4WD shop (or a combination)?
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: galixia on June 07, 2019, 08:35:50
Done it. 4wd super centre deal.
I left the switch in engine bay. Always on with high beam.
Mounted lightbar to bottom side of intrusion beam.
Make sure you have spare drill bits and drilling lube. Beam is high tensile steel.

Where did you tap into high beam? Just trying to figure out how to get it to turn on when high beam is on and off automatically when high beam goes off
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: The Gonz on June 07, 2019, 09:37:44
You could do what I did to trigger my LED DRLS by tapping the relay into the active pin on the back of the light cluster directly.
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: galixia on June 07, 2019, 10:24:40
You could do what I did to trigger my LED DRLS by tapping the relay into the active pin on the back of the light cluster directly.

Any chance you remember what color the wire was please? Did you tap in under the cap where the bulb is? That wire
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: The Gonz on June 07, 2019, 11:11:51
I did it on my FD model and for detecting when my parkers were on to turn off my DRLs via relay, so it won't be the same pin or relay arrangement for yours but probing for 12V when you hit high beam should ID the pin you want out of the lamp connector.
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: galixia on June 07, 2019, 23:26:16
So went ahead and installed the bar and I'm happy with how it went. I just need to work out what I'm doing with the switch. I fed it through to the cabin but don't like the supplied switch. So it's just hidden under the dash for now.

The front bumper came off easy. Just two screws and a dozen or so pop clips. Then unplug the lights in the bottom of the bar.  Once the bar was off i saw on the beam there was a factory mount with screws poking up from factory for something. I'm assuming for sensors in a more expensive model or something. So that was great it ment i didn't need to drill or anything just mounted the bracket directly onto them and it was centered on the middle of the front too.


(https://i.ibb.co/z43b87N/20190607-130750.jpg) (https://ibb.co/YL58Dyb)

(https://i.ibb.co/MZzppFV/20190607-204528.jpg) (https://ibb.co/34xWWgN)

Then i spent a while trying to find the high beam power. I ended up tapping in to the cable where it plugs into the headlight cluster but about 10cm back from the cluster on the drivers side. I did this on the drivers side because its on the same circuit as the switch that goes in the cabin and I fed that through the bonnet release hole. The main power that powers the light is directly on the battery and the relay and fuse i tucked in up the top of the fuse box between it and and battery.

So all installed and no chopped cables or anything drilled or modified except where i spliced in to the high beam so the light can only turn on when high beam is on and will automatically turn off when the high beam goes off. Which is great cause i can take it out and it will be like it was never there. I just need to get something to go over the high beam activation cable because it's red and stands out other than that there's nothing really that the untrained eye would notice under the bonnet all hidden away.  Unless you look for it you wouldn't notice the light behind the grill too which is exactly what i was hoping for.


(https://i.ibb.co/tpq24Cr/20190608-075844.jpg) (https://ibb.co/PGcWNCH)

(https://i.ibb.co/RBmPyrV/20190608-075759.jpg) (https://ibb.co/BrxjNWS)
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: Dazzler on June 07, 2019, 23:51:19
Awesome job! Well done.

I would have been tempted to do something similar except I've traded mine and also mine has the radar for cruise control in there somewhere.  :Pout:
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: The Gonz on June 08, 2019, 12:07:39
I strongly suspect the mounting hardware you found is for the radar module. Nice job. I wouldn't have done it any differently.
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: Dantrasy on June 10, 2019, 03:04:31
Pro job. Looks great.  :honk:

I've noticed similar, bit never a light bar, just x2 spots.
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: galixia on August 28, 2019, 22:29:09
So just an update. The smaller lightbar I installed previously was a dual light one so it did white light and also yellow and flashed ect. I wasn't happy that it flicked through the colors every time you switched it on. Also it flooded a fair bit of light out to the sides instead of just straight forward. Being behind the front bumper out to the sides was pretty useless. So i got a new one now that's a 20" so a few inches bigger and just white light out the front. Much more happy with it. Took me a while to find one that I liked and could be mounted from the center and not just the sides of the unit
(https://i.ibb.co/9YGHNpb/20190829-071518.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ysVFXN6)

(https://i.ibb.co/vV5hJ8C/20190825-120231.jpg) (https://ibb.co/LYwrCfD)
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: quankino on August 29, 2019, 07:55:52
 :link: Number Plate Light Mounting Bracket for Driving Lights (https://www.stedi.com.au/number-plate-light-mounting-bracket.html)
Another option for who doesn't want to take off the front bumper :D
Title: Re: Lightbar / spot lights behind front grill
Post by: galixia on August 29, 2019, 08:12:39
:link: Number Plate Light Mounting Bracket for Driving Lights (https://www.stedi.com.au/number-plate-light-mounting-bracket.html)
Another option for who doesn't want to take off the front bumper :D
The front bumper takes 5 mins to take off. Just 2 screws and several pop clips. So i don't mind at all. Was surprised at how easy it actually is. Plus you have to run wires for power to the lights anyways which you would probably have to take the bumper off anyways. :)

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