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Old 07-26-2008, 10:55 AM   #1
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Front Trunk Interior Lighting

Just sharing my latest father/son project. My 16 year old son is really into Need For Speed Underground, Midnight Club, and other games like that where you can really customize your car, including neon and wild graphics.

We did something a little more mild in the front trunk of the Boxster:

First a switch was installed to turn the trunk light on and off. This is nice since I often leave the front trunk open for extended periods when working on the car. I've just left the bulb out for months now. With this switch I can determine whether the trunk light will come on or not.



Next we replaced the trunk light bulb with a red one and installed some red LED lights under the front covers. The LED lights are also tied into the switch.



A closer look, along with my son's battery cover mod:



Total cost was $3 for the switch since I already had the LED bulbs (thanks Gary in BR) and I modified some old motorcycle auxiliary light internals to hold them. Well it may not be underbody neon, but my son still thinks it's kewl and he got to learn how to solder and apply shrink tubing as a part of this project.

Kirk

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2000 Boxster S - Gemballa body kit, GT3 front bumper, JRZ coilovers, lower stress bars
2003 911 Carrera 4S - TechArt body kit, TechArt coilovers, HRE wheels
1986 911 Carrera Targa - 3.2L, Euro pistons, 964 cams, steel slant nose widebody
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Old 07-26-2008, 12:25 PM   #2
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Very Kewl! I used to think a trunk was just a trunk..... no more. +10 on training the young gearhead....... I like his battery cover, nice job!
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Old 07-26-2008, 03:26 PM   #3
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The trunk lights shut themselves off after 2 hours of no activity.
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Old 07-26-2008, 05:19 PM   #4
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nice

cool...I replaced my bulbs with a super white led for both trunks whis a bit more subtle but still adds a touch.


how did you light up the front trunk area near the battery?
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Old 07-27-2008, 09:14 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tool Pants
The trunk lights shut themselves off after 2 hours of no activity.
Really? That's very interesting, I never knew that. That's good to know in case I accidentally leave it on sometime.
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2000 Boxster S - Gemballa body kit, GT3 front bumper, JRZ coilovers, lower stress bars
2003 911 Carrera 4S - TechArt body kit, TechArt coilovers, HRE wheels
1986 911 Carrera Targa - 3.2L, Euro pistons, 964 cams, steel slant nose widebody
1975 911S Targa - undergoing a full restoration and engine rebuild
Also In The Garage - '66 912, '69 912, '72 914 Chalon wide body, '73 914
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Old 07-27-2008, 09:33 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stunin_Stud
how did you light up the front trunk area near the battery?
It was pretty simple. You could do it a number of ways with the neon or LED fixtures that they sell at auto parts stores. I had some extra red LED brake light bulbs and some extra light housings, so I just gutted the fixtures out of the lights and mounted the bulbs under the cover, just out of sight.

What kind of LED lighting are you doing on the exterior of your car?
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2000 Boxster S - Gemballa body kit, GT3 front bumper, JRZ coilovers, lower stress bars
2003 911 Carrera 4S - TechArt body kit, TechArt coilovers, HRE wheels
1986 911 Carrera Targa - 3.2L, Euro pistons, 964 cams, steel slant nose widebody
1975 911S Targa - undergoing a full restoration and engine rebuild
Also In The Garage - '66 912, '69 912, '72 914 Chalon wide body, '73 914
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Old 03-30-2009, 11:34 PM   #7
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i was looking at old threads on lights...

saw this little "mod".

how did you do it? did you splice off the wire that powers the trunk light? was it hard to get behind all those covers? how long did this take?

i have always thought the car would look cool wiht some lights under the driver and passenger foot wells - like the door lights - only dim LEDs under the dash that would light up where your feet go. my newer Acura has this and they look cool - very subtle and light up the interior when the door is open. you could probablyh wire up something similar by tieing into the dome or door lights.

cool. the red is a nice touch.
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Old 03-31-2009, 02:30 AM   #8
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Nice job! But more impressive is a father taking time out to teach his son.

Eric
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Old 03-31-2009, 04:39 AM   #9
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I like the battery cover.

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