M1009 License plate light, Atlanta, Ga.

[CycleJay]

Hi all,

I got stopped by the police, this past Friday morning about 2:14am for NOT having a license plate light.

This weekend I bought one at Advance Auto that should work well,
so that way I do not get stopped again for not having one.

But is there anyone in the Atlanta area that can assist me with
installing this thing?

All I need someone to do is tell me which one of those wires underneath,
the back end, I could splice the license plate light into, so it will come on
when I turn on the headlights and taillights.

Everything else I can do, I bought the light, splices, butt connectors,
& a spool of wire that matches in gauge to the power wire coming out
of the light.

Also, I need to borrow a drill if I could, to drill the light mounting holes into the tailgate, which I already have marked off,and center punched, ready to drill.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated, and I will owe ya one.

By the way, I need to get this done by this coming Thursday........
Because Thursday & Friday nights I work late sometimes.

Thank you, God bless you,

CJ

 

[DokWatson]

Get yourself a multimeter if you don't have one, they are cheap. Start poking wires. Any wire back there that gets power with the truck on, and doesn't when the truck is off, will work.

 

[Sardot1]

Probably only want the light on when the running lights are on, so the tail light (not brake light) power would probably be a good choice. Could also connect it to the running light power on the trailer hitch wiring. I'm still waiting for my LED bolts to arrive to do this wiring and get my plate lit up.

 

[combatmech]

I have LED bolts from LMC waiting for me.....let me know how it works out for you SARDOT.....Thanks!!

 

[Timber]

A test light is a must for basic electrical work. You can remove the lense from one taillight and then remove the screws that hold the light housing to the inner fender. Once you have access to the back of it, all you need is the test light and a friend to sit in the drivers seat while you test. You're looking for the wire that is only hot while the parking lights and headlights are on. Tap your tag light into that wire and ground the other. I'm a little too far away to help or loan a drill to mount the light, but that's how it should be wired up.

Good luck with it.

 

[Brad M]

Cheap multi-meter is your friend and a must and also the TM's are also your friend. Especially Appendix E of them that covers wiring. Look up E13 & E14 and see that the .8 BRN (Brown) wire is your running lights. Use a tap as in the attached image so you do not cut any wiring and tap the wire to pick up your running light signal (+), use an eyelet and screw to ground the other side (-). After reading your other post, I also am going with the LED bolts and waiting on them to arrive despite having many officers follow me at all hours of the day and night it is just not worth the hassle. Now to find connectors small enough to fit through the boltholes in the bumper...

 

[stampy]

+1 on the multimeter...its just more useable than a test light IMO

 

[CycleJay]

Hi all,

This is the license plate I am trying to put on:
Advance Auto Parts: Heavy-Duty License Plate Light by Night Blaster - Part LP-21CS____

It has one wire coming out the bottom to connect it to the power line for the tail lights.
It gets ground when the mounting screws get screwed into the body of the vehicle.

Simple as that.

Here are the splices I bought to tap into the tail light power line...
Advance Auto Parts: Quick Splices 18-14 Gauge Blue by Dorman - OE Solutions - Part 85464____

So I got what I need, I just need to find the right power line,
tap into it, then screw it onto the body, just above the plate.

Thanks for the advice so far..

CJ

 

[Brad M]

This is the license plate I am trying to put on:
Advance Auto Parts: Heavy-Duty License Plate Light by Night Blaster - Part LP-21CS

A bit bulky for my taste and you gotta paint that $h!# flat black, green, or tan to hide it. Nevertheless, if it works for you then its good.

Here are the splices I bought to tap into the tail light power line...
Advance Auto Parts: Quick Splices 18-14 Gauge Blue by Dorman - OE Solutions - Part 85464

I personally hate those but they are not much different from the taps I told you about. The difference is the tap can be pulled apart and re connected if needed in the future. They will work.

So I got what I need, I just need to find the right power line,
tap into it, then screw it onto the body, just above the plate.

Thanks for the advice so far..

As above the .8 BRN to your taillights and trailer connector is the wire, you need. Tap it and you are done with your supplies you have.

 

[DXTAC]

Buy a cheap test light and some LITE'N BOLTZ off eBay (I got mine for $12.00) and you'll be good to go. I did mine last week and it took about 30 minutes to do. I'll post some pics tomorrow.

 

[CycleJay]

Brad M,

Thanks for the comments.

I do plan on painting the thing flat black at some point, I just need to get it on
and working asap, I will worry about the color later.

Also, I do like the look of the car quest splices better, because like you said,
you can pull them apart if you need to..

I will take the tail light lens & housing off to see if I can find the brown wire.

Thank you, have a good night, God bless you,

CJ

 

[Nick Danger]

Quick splices will lead to nothing but trouble!

 

[CycleJay]

Nick Danger,

Thank you for the tip, duly noted.

What is the best way to connect this license plate wire to a power line for the lights then?

Any ideas would be appreciated.

Thank you, God bless you...

CJ

 

[Nick Danger]

Splice and solder and seal with liquid electrical tape
or butt connector with heat shrink tubing or the butt connectors built in heat shrink!
Don't use RTV to seal wires as this is corrosive ... Butt connectors with the built in heat shrink
is the way we fixed wire harnesses in repair @ the G.M.

 

[CycleJay]

Nick Danger,

Thank you for the advice...
How do I splice without using a quick splice??
My apologies, but I am not too informed on some aspects of auto electrical.

I do know how to solder though, as I have done it before years ago,
when I was much younger.. (I am kind of old now... )

Thank you, God bless you...

CJ

P.s. Mental note to self:
Get a soldering iron, solder, liquid electrical tape, & butt connectors with built in heat shrink..

 

[Warthog]

There are mulitiple places you can tap into the tail light circuit.

Looking at diagram E-14 from the TM 9-2320-289-34 tech manual you can trace the brown wire. It is labeled .8 BRN-9(A,B and C)

That stands for 18gauge Brown WIre, Circuit #9, branch A, B or C

The first couple of pages of the Troubleshooting Section tells you how to read the wiring diagrams and explains the wire sizes, colors and labeling.

The reason I don't like to use the QUICK CONNECT on exterior wiring is that they cut the insulation and allow water to enter. After a few years the water/salt/road grime will eat away at the copper wire and it will corrade and fail at the most inopertune time. When the connectors are protected from the elements they work great.

 

[Timber]

So running lights = the brown wire. Trust, but verify - whether you use a test light or multimeter is up to you. If you can T it in and solder, use liquid electrical tape to seal the connection up. It works well.

 

[gunboy1656]

Hi all,

This is the license plate I am trying to put on:
Advance Auto Parts: Heavy-Duty License Plate Light by Night Blaster - Part LP-21CS____

It has one wire coming out the bottom to connect it to the power line for the tail lights.
It gets ground when the mounting screws get screwed into the body of the vehicle.

Simple as that.

Here are the splices I bought to tap into the tail light power line...
Advance Auto Parts: Quick Splices 18-14 Gauge Blue by Dorman - OE Solutions - Part 85464____

So I got what I need, I just need to find the right power line,
tap into it, then screw it onto the body, just above the plate.

Thanks for the advice so far..

CJ

I bought the one your looking at and it gave me no issues, Painted it green hardly notice it is there.

As for the connectors, I used these.

Rubber Shell Connectors, (qty 20) MS27144-1 and MS27142-2

Just have to get a 3 way connector.
http://www.eriksmilitarysurplus.com/rushycoms.html

 

[DXTAC]

Here are the pics of mine. It is the brown wire you need to connect to for hot and white for ground. You can see in my pics I drilled a hole in the bottom of the tailgate and used a grommet. The cord I used was a small power cord purchased for $1.38 at the local hardware store. I used butt connectors and waterproof heatshrink to ensure no water will penetrate. The bad tape job is due to the fact that that area is impossible for me to get to with my meat hooks!

As for the inside of the tailgate, it's pretty straight forward; drill the holes, mount the Boltz through plates and wire accordingly. I used a dab of PL adhesive to ensure the wire would not move into the path of the rear window when being rolled up and down. I also used heatshrink on the connections on the inside.

It really is a simple job. I also used a stainless steel washer with rubber on one side on the inside of the tailgate to ensure no water would get into the tailgate. It took me about 30 minutes to do not including a trip to the hardware store to buy new tailgate panel screws and the power cord.

~ Drive it like you stole it ~

 

[Brad M]

Very true, that the T-Tap is not waterproof and can cause problems down the line. Especially in the north where there is more snow and ice but even near the coastline. The solder and liquid electrical tape is the best if you want to connect to the factory harness directly. If you want to leave it alone, go to a trailer shop and buy one of the connectors made to splice in the factory system like below and make your connections to that so your factory harness is untouched.

If you have already made the connection with the splice type connectors and dont want to open them back up then get the liquid electrical tape and after cleaning the area apply a coating to seal everything up. In addition, secure the connection so there is not much movement out of it.