MTL_4runner

Since I am in the crappy process of importing my vehicle to Canada then require me to have daytime running lights in order to be inspected. Well since my vehicle was from the states it didn't come with any so......lucky me....I get to put them in.

I have seen a few sites where people install them (even Gadget did say he installed them on his site) and I was going to get that kit from GM but does anyone know the part number for that kit?

My other option is to wire up a relay but it makes it a bit difficult since everything is "negative switched" and then I still don't know what value to use for the resistor so I can lower the voltage for day driving (DRL's don't use a full 12V.....more like 6-8V for most vehicles).

Has anyone else added them to their vehicle and if so how did you do it?

I need to get this done tonight or my wife said she would pay to have it done

lee

do you have auto shut off? like if you turn off your runner and open the door, the headlights turn off while in the on position?

if so, why dont you just leave them on all the time?

MTL_4runner

I could wire them on like that but they need to go off when I crank the car in the winter and then they are running a full 12V all the time so I may be going through quite a few headlight bulbs soon. I may end up just doing that for tonight so I can get it inspected but I would like to wire it correctly for later so I can be done with it and go on to more fun mod projects.

lee

true, but headlight bulbs last so long that i dont think it would be that big a problem.

i'm just trying to give you the "lazy man's" way out

MTL_4runner

My wallet says thank you!

MTL_4runner

What bugs me is that the 4runners in Canada did come with this feature so the wiring harness should all be there (assuming Toyota did not have 2 separate harnesses) to add the DRL's, but I have no idea what parts are supposed to be there since I have no reference vehicle to go by. If anyone did manage to add them using the facotry setup or any other means, do post and let me know how you did it.

User 051420

Bump cuz I wanna know too.

MTL_4runner

Ok well I did set it up for daytime lights so I could get it inspected but it is not the way i would like to have it wired permanently. What I did was to add a second relay and placed it inside the fuse box under the hood. The relay has 4 terminals but the bitch is that the headlight system on the 4runner is ground switched to instead of turning the power on and off, they connect or disconnect the ground instead. Here is a pic of a basic relay:



What I did was to connect the poles a little different than the pic...
I wired them as follows:

30 to (-) ground
85 to (-) ground
86 to (+) primary ignition (see my alarm install for diagrams, connect to the blk/red or blk/yel wires under the dash)
87 to negative side of the headlight relay in the underhood fusebox (small red wire with silver dots)

You will need to pull apart the fuse box to get access to the headlight relay wires from the underside. You can find the headlight relay trip wire by looking at the pins on the headlight relay (the solnoid is the smaller of the 2 sets of pins). Then use a voltmeter on those 2 pin sockets in the fusebox and you want to attach the wire to the one that does not register 12V. I also made sure to solder all the wires for a good connection and use electrical tape or heatshrink tubing for a good seal against the weather.

One major problem with this setup is that your lights are on when the key is in the start position and the second problem is that they are on at full intensity so in the future I will modify this so the lights run at reduced voltage and hopefully only when the engine is running. Another feature is usually that they should turn off when you pull the e-brake. Well that means there is more engineering I need to do to perfect it but it only cost me $5 for the relay so it was a cheap mod as is for sure.

Swede

Hopefully you will get it to work properly and not get frustrated and give up on it as it looks like a major PITA! The added visibility DRL gives you is invaluable to you as well as other drivers on the road and I can't believe that there are people that want to disable them. I haven't checked my 4Runner for this but on the '93 Civic I had, the DRL were hooked to the high beam at a lower voltage and they only came on when the parking brake was released. Incidentally, they stayed on after the parking brake was applied and untill the engine was shut off. I'll check the 4Runner for this and let you know later if you want?

lee

yea, my drl's only come on when i put down my parking brake.

eric-the-red

The DRLs on my 1993 4Runner work the same way, with the parking brake.

MTL_4Runner, Canadian Tire has aftermarket DRL modules for about $30 if you're still looking.

Swede

According to this link, http://www.riv.ca/english/html/how_t...rt.html#before , Crappy tire is also under contract to do the inspections and any mods as needed, weather you want those jokers working on your rig is another story.

arjan

If the vehicle is prewired for drls you should have a 2 prong plug between the battery and the fender. That's where the resistor pack for the drls is normally mounted. It looks like a block with cooling fins and is mounted to the inside of the fender.

If there is no plug for that then your vehicle is probaly not prewired for drls. If the plug is there it might be taped to the main harness by the fuse box.

Arjan

Swede

Okay, I just checked my '98 4Runner and it's the low beams that are used for the DRLs allthough at a lower intensity and again they only go on when the E-brake is released and stay on untill the engine is shut off.

MTL_4runner

Yeah it totally sucks cause the Canadian Tire meatballs are pretty much the only ones who can do the federal RIV inspection. Well, they did pass my truck the way I had it wired above so thank god for that, but I want to work on getting the wiring correct eventually so I don't go through so many bulbs and the lights come on at the correct time.

Basically right now my relay trips the main headlight relay which comes on in the default low beam mode. This means only the headlights come on (neither the dash nor the parking lights) so I don't need to worry to turn on my lights at night (or forget and drive around with no tails). I was a bit concerned about this at first before I tried it at night (the dash is dark as night so even though the headlights are on you would remember to turn on the lights).

"If the vehicle is prewired for drls you should have a 2 prong plug between the battery and the fender. That's where the resistor pack for the drls is normally mounted. It looks like a block with cooling fins and is mounted to the inside of the fender."
Anyone got a pic of this?

.......what a painful experience this who car importing thing has been!