Offroad Trailblazers and Envoys

off road lights

Something not working right?

by CrimsonxRebel » Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:55 pm

im wanting to put about 10 off road lights on my envoy and would i run into any problems with them all running at the same time like my lights dimming or anything?
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by Cody_S » Wed Sep 26, 2012 10:00 pm

You're going to want to run separate relays and switches for them. For example, I have four on my roof, and they run on two switches and two relays. Where exactly are you planning on putting 10 lights? What wattage on the bulbs?
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by CrimsonxRebel » Wed Sep 26, 2012 10:24 pm

Its actually 8 lights now that i figured it up and stuff but im wanting 6 on the roof rack(4 in the front and 2 in the back) and i got two on the brush gaurd now and im not sure on the wattage
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by Cody_S » Wed Sep 26, 2012 10:29 pm

CrimsonxRebel wrote:im wanting 6 on the roof rack(4 in the front and 2 in the back) and i got two on the brush gaurd now and im not sure on the wattage


Ah I feel ya. Yeah I have pretty much the same setup on the rack. I ran the two outer lights to one switch/relay, and the two inner to a separate switch/relay. The ones on the back are just running to a switch, though I should probably put a relay on it as well.
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by CrimsonxRebel » Wed Sep 26, 2012 10:38 pm

now what do you mean by relays? just like a switch or something? the lights im goin to get for the front four is like 25 dollars at walmart lol i dont make alot of money during the summer.
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by scottp8113 » Thu Sep 27, 2012 8:52 am

Unfortunately, this info is on the site that shall not be named, but here is what I and certainly a few others have based their builds on. http://forums.trailvoy.com/showthread.php?t=35633

I don't know much about electronics and wiring anything but a building, but the info found in the above thread let me confidently wire up the lights and switches. I got a relay that would be sufficient for all 4 roof lights and have not had any issues with them.
Last edited by Trail X on Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:04 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: add strikethrough :) hehe
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by Cody_S » Thu Sep 27, 2012 8:57 am

scottp8113 wrote:Unfortunately, this info is on the site that shall not be named, but here is what I and certainly a few others have based their builds on. http://forums.trailvoy.com/showthread.php?t=35633

I don't know much about electronics and wiring anything but a building, but the info found in the above thread let me confidently wire up the lights and switches. I got a relay that would be sufficient for all 4 roof lights and have not had any issues with them.


BTW, that guide is on this site as well: viewtopic.php?f=27&t=8&hilit=offroad+lights ;)
And yeah, this really is the guide to follow, it will tell you everything you need to know as far as how to wire the lights in. Same guide I followed when doing mine.
Last edited by Trail X on Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:04 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: add strikethrough :) hehe
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by Trail X » Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:14 am

CrimsonxRebel wrote:now what do you mean by relays? just like a switch or something? the lights im goin to get for the front four is like 25 dollars at walmart lol i dont make alot of money during the summer.


Relays are a special secondary type high-throughput switch.

Using a relay allows you to place low-amerage switches (smaller, easier to place, less bulk, smaller wires) in the dash, and allow the bulky, high amp wires and controllers elsewhere in the vehicle.

If you want to compare switches to traffic intersections and amperage to number of cars they can handle, consider a dash switch to be a stop sign on a back-road, and a relay to be a stop light on a 4 lane divided highway.

Another resource: http://www.offroadtb.com/articles/tech- ... -diagrams/
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by navigator » Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:29 am

I know you are planning on running cheap lights now but I would go ahead and think about what you would like to end up with.
Good Lights are expensive but the difference between upgraded wire/switches/relays isn't that much difference.
I would then get heavy wire and good switches/relays to handle your future light plans and as funds(Christmas/birthdays etc) come available you can upgrade your lights without having to rewire everything.

I'm the tightwad of cheapskates, as far as offroad lights go, 4 lights from WM for $25 isn't hitting on much other than "they look cool". If you just want some extra light around your TB for camping/fishing etc they might be fine for that but I doubt they put off much noticeable driving light. I have a set on my golf cart for headlights, they work since I am only going 14mph and have no other lights but they aren't real impressive.
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by Trail X » Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:34 am

:Iagree:

I forgot about that point - it's worth spending money on the lights if you actually want to USE them.
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by The Roadie » Thu Sep 27, 2012 11:19 am

scottp8113 wrote:Unfortunately, this info is on the site that shall not be named,
Oh, you can name the site. Lots of great information archived there at trailvoy, much of which was written by members here before the new owners made it an unpleasant place to be. We don't censor their name like they censor the non-offroading Trailblazer/Envoy site; GMTNation.com
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by HARDTRAILZ » Thu Sep 27, 2012 4:48 pm

I have been searching trailvoy a bunch lately. Dome great info still there that many could benefit from reading.
I hate to advocate weird chemicals, alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone...but
they've always worked for me.
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by Trail X » Thu Sep 27, 2012 4:51 pm

It's like a library full of dusty old books. Certainly a great resource to search, but don't expect any knowledgeable help there.
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by CrimsonxRebel » Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:40 pm

navigator wrote:I know you are planning on running cheap lights now but I would go ahead and think about what you would like to end up with.
Good Lights are expensive but the difference between upgraded wire/switches/relays isn't that much difference.
I would then get heavy wire and good switches/relays to handle your future light plans and as funds(Christmas/birthdays etc) come available you can upgrade your lights without having to rewire everything.

I'm the tightwad of cheapskates, as far as offroad lights go, 4 lights from WM for $25 isn't hitting on much other than "they look cool". If you just want some extra light around your TB for camping/fishing etc they might be fine for that but I doubt they put off much noticeable driving light. I have a set on my golf cart for headlights, they work since I am only going 14mph and have no other lights but they aren't real impressive.


you have a good point on the offroad lights i got a 50 dollar set on my brush gaurd and i cant tell a big difference i basically got more fog lights that looks good. is KC lights a good brand? if not what is a good brand of lights that aint no 800 dollars for two lights.
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by HARDTRAILZ » Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:59 am

Love my PIAAs.
I hate to advocate weird chemicals, alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone...but
they've always worked for me.
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by Nakashige » Fri Sep 28, 2012 2:06 am

Hella's are nice but love my Ridged LEDs Now
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by Karo » Fri Sep 28, 2012 5:21 am

I love the LED lights from VisionX, they are so much brighter and don´t need much current. Have a look in my built thread.
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by Trail X » Fri Sep 28, 2012 10:04 am

CrimsonxRebel wrote:is KC lights a good brand? if not what is a good brand of lights that aint no 800 dollars for two lights.


KCs are generally cheap chineese crap.

Hella is where I'd go again (I've had 4 different Hellas so far, all good, some better than good)... although if you're willing to spend a lot, look for one of the LED lights the other guys have been suggesting.

This link is a good read to get your head in the right direction. It also lists some generally good brands: http://jd.offroadtb.com/light_comparison.pdf
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by The Roadie » Fri Sep 28, 2012 11:55 am

I've seen hundreds of these Jeepneys in Manila, but can't locate my pics at the moment. So this image will have to do. None of the antennas and horns and perhaps 10% of the lights are ever wired up.

Image
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