Roof Rack Lights

[squam1]

I have some lights mounted that I haven't gotten around to running wires for. Just curious how some of you folks out there in Pathfinder land have gone about this... I have a trailer wiring harness that I have soldered extensions onto and have shrink-tubed the lengths to keep everything neat...

 

we've have like 5 days of rain without a break, so I'm hopefully gonna have a chance to get out there and set these lights up with a tidy wiring job, relays, custom switch panel and heavy duty, waterproof/sealed/lighted rocker switches... (just got laid off on thursday, so I got nuthin but time at this point... )

 

pics to come, but I will anxiously await your stories, advice, descriptions etc...

 

Currently, my plan is to run the wiring towards the back of the truck and through the tailgate and CHMSL grommet to the inside of the truck.

 

Anyone have any pics of their install??

 

Thanks in advance!

-chris

[statikuz]

Here's how I did it: http://www.citlink.net/~mboge/blog/wiring/

 

Picture 1: Ran the wires from the lights along the roof rack.

Picture 2: One of the Q-Towers that holds the Yakima bars and rack. The wires go inside the doorjamb [yes I know it looks like they're pinching but they're not]. I drilled a hole inside the door which gave me access to the inside of the interior pillar. The wires go down that, along the floor under the carpet, up behind the glovebox, and through the firewall.

Picture 3: Here's the wires coming through the big grommet in the firewall... had lots of extra wire, so instead of cutting it off I just rolled it up in case I ever had a wire cut or damaged.

Picture 4: Here you can see the relay, mounted to the side of the engine compartment with a screw. The wires are all spliced up into the wiring harness for the relay.

Picture 5: Here's the wire that goes to the high-beam wire of the headlights... if they're driving lights they're supposed to [by law] only operable when your high-beams are on, but its not like anyone's gonna check. Doesn't bother me.

Picture 6: Here's the switch... the wire goes around behind the dash and through the firewall along with the rest of em. You can see it in Picture 4 as the red and white wire towards the left of the image.

 

Any questions let me know.

[88pathoffroad]

I drilled a 3/8" hole in the roof, ran the wiring through, then siliconed the hole up. Doesn't leak a drop and works just fine. The wiring runs down the inside of the front pillar plastic to the driver's side kick panel, where I have a relay. Switch is on the dash.

[Guest WhiteNismoPathfinder95]

if you have a factory rack, run the wiring under the parallel gutter mounts, under the rubber, along with the 3/8'' hole and silicone....Double Sealed!

 

checked the pics, and I must ask the stupid question

Why run wires all the way to the negitive terminal, when you could run 2'' of wire from the ground contact to the screw that you mounted the relay with.....less time harnessing, less wire, less hassle....just be sure to strip the paint

[statikuz]

Woudn't have been that much less of a hassle, the hard part was getting all the wires through the firewall, once I was there the rest was cake. As for your suggestion, I followed the directions. =) The relay was supposed to be grounded just somewhere, but the lamps were supposed to be wired directly to the negative battery terminal. Ask PIAA why... I'm sure there's a reason. =)