Interior Lighting Query

[Abbo]

Hi All

Have had a look through the forums and picked up a bit of information but I could do with a little clarification from those who are good with the interior electrics.

I've got some led lights I want to put into the roof in place of the VW on/off/door open on light fitting. What is throwing me is the wiring for the lights.

If I use a 3 way switch I am presuming that this will work the same way in which the current VW light switch will. The led lights have two wires coming from them. Using the info I've gleaned I need to tap one wire into the red/black and then the other wire into the red/brown after its been through the 3 way switch. Is this correct?

 

[Deaky]

Connect the +ve with on your lights to the red black wire on the van. The brown on the van is permanent-ve, the brown/red wire is switched -ve, connect these through your switch to the -ve wire on your lights.

 

[Tony Morris]

Hi Abbo
I have just done the same. Can't remember the wire colours but on the van connector the centre connection is live and the two outer connections are earths which turn off at different times. I connected led lives to the centre van connection, the two outer earths to the three way switch and the load from the switch to the led earth wires

Hope that makes sence

 

[Dellmassive]

Agreed as above,

which is how we done it on the MY11 T5.1.

but oddly enough when we come to add the new LED lights to the new T6 rear roof lining . . . . . there was only 2wires and no rocker switch on the light like before?

One thing to mention is that we speccd the new T6 with "interior LED light package" from factory. i was assuming that the factory just swapped the filament bulbs for LED ones but that wasn't the case.


All three interior lamps were purpose built LED units with only 2 wires......... so no switch on the light.

seems like the lights are just BCM controlled and stay on for ages. (untill the battery voltage drops down? not sure yet)

where as the old van seemed to a have a timer on them. . . . . and rocker switches to allow setting the on/off/auto

 

[Abbo]

Great thanks Guys, you've really helped. Just got to sort out a suitable 3 way switch now. Any ideas on something to go on the B pillar that you can get from RS?

 

[Tony Morris]

I used one of the small round rocker switches available at the usual online sites for a pound or two. They fit neatly in the top corner of the B post trim in front of the sliding door.

 

[mmi]

All three interior lamps were purpose built LED units with only 2 wires......... so no switch on the light.

seems like the lights are just BCM controlled and stay on for ages. (untill the battery voltage drops down? not sure yet)

60 minutes.

 

[Dellmassive]

60 minutes.

sweet . . . adjustable? via VCDS or other?

 

[mmi]

sweet . . . adjustable? via VCDS or other?

I'm afraid can't change it...

 

[Pauly]

Its a fixed timed relay hiding in dash under steering wheel so no adjustment

 

[mmi]

Slightly diverting from the original post but thought might be useful add here for future queries/upgrades.

As @Dellmassive mentioned new LED lights in rear roof lining are connected with 2 wires.

And indeed the LEDs do not come with a switch so they stay always on (up to 60 minutes) when a door is open. Current draw is about 0.2 Amps (@12.2V). I think that light output is definitely satisfactory. The color of the light is approx. medium white (personal opinion, compared with so called warm white and cold white LEDs).

The frame is 137 x 67 mm. The opening in the roof is 129 x 54mm. The light requires 17 mm of depth (from the roof surface). It has three bars of light (yellowish bars in the picture).


The light has a product code 7E0 947 123 A. The connector on van side has a code 1T0972703. Can’t confirm if the LED would be a plug and play with the wiring of an “old”…

 

[Adams]

Slightly diverting from the original post but thought might be useful add here for future queries/upgrades.

As @Dellmassive mentioned new LED lights in rear roof lining are connected with 2 wires.
View attachment 27302
And indeed the LEDs do not come with a switch so they stay always on (up to 60 minutes) when a door is open. Current draw is about 0.2 Amps (@12.2V). I think that light output is definitely satisfactory. The color of the light is approx. medium white (personal opinion, compared with so called warm white and cold white LEDs).

The frame is 137 x 67 mm. The opening in the roof is 129 x 54mm. The light requires 17 mm of depth (from the roof surface). It has three bars of light (yellowish bars in the picture).
View attachment 27303

The light has a product code 7E0 947 123 A. The connector on van side has a code 1T0972703. Can’t confirm if the LED would be a plug and play with the wiring of an “old”…
View attachment 27304

Yes they are plug and play to swap for the older incandescent Units, you just lose the switch function so they only come on with the doors or the interior switch if you have that setup installed.
@Pauly isn’t the timer adjustable in BCM eeprom? Pretty sure I remember something in VCP

 

[Pauly]

I thought it was a plug in timed relay sat on the front of the BCM carrier but I have never looked into it in detail, it could be a normal relay controlled from the BCM ??

 

[Dellmassive]

it looks like the light are direct from the BCM and not via a relay.?

quote from: Led Rear Interior Lights - How I Done It.



here a snapshot from a later van with LEDS, but my German isn't that good. Its seems that the +ve supply and -ve ground are from B533 & B250 (translates to connection in roof loom)

again we have a similar setup,

br/rt - (brown/red) - B533 connection 1 main harness (BCM switched neg) connects to B129 to B264 to A144 to T73a/4 (J519)
rt/sw - (red/black) - B250 positive connection 1 main harness (BCM timed +12v)( 7.5A fuse 19 holder C) to B323 to T73a/65 to (J519)

So it looks like the BCM (J519) is ultimately controlling the (BCM switched -ve) side and also the (Timer switched +ve)

from what i can see on Elsawin.

 

[Adams]

I’ll have to get my VCP hooked up and check. It’s on battery voltage aswel so they don’t drain it, I’ve swappped my battery for a new larger Ah and they now stay on longer


There’s also a switchable LED unit from a caddy, not 100% if it’s an exact fit but looks it
2K5947105A

 

[Jamie2.0]

Hoping to do some more to the van over the weekend, one of the jobs is the interior lights.

The kombi is non LED, 3 wire set up. I've read through @Dellmassive how I done thread and the above, pen and paper at the ready...so just before I end up looking like Doc from back to the future would anyone be able to confirm/ condemn my interpretation of it in the form of my wiring diagram?

Second question is how do adapt the above for a second switch, I'd like one either side of the van as it's a double slider, additional wiring added in red ?

 

[Dellmassive]

Something don't look right.

Are those going to be 2way rocker switches with 3x terminals on the rear?

And did you want both switches to do the same thing? Ie over ride the dimout . . .

You will still be subject to the BMC lights time out.

 

[Jamie2.0]

It was a bit of a shot in the dark on the second rocker tbh.

I was going for 3 way rocker with 3 terminals to replace action of the factory dome light rocker, so on with door opening, off, permanently on (subject to BMC time out).

Both switches to operate in the same way but just on different sides of the van. It has just occurred to me that that may not work with 2 switches, can settle for one.

Happy for BMC time out to remain as is, its only for getting the little buggers in and out after all

 

[Dellmassive]

Have You Got a pic of your switches? Front and Back?

 

[Ann3x]

Travelvolts do a prebuilt loom extender that plugs into the spare oem light sockets and adds door switching on a 3 way switch via the existing wiring.

PDF on his site with instructions.

I think it's a combo of the right wires, plug and a relay so might save you some time (and worry).