OK, have run into confusion. Trying to tap into the high beam wire leading into my Zenons. Just got a post saying the high beam wire is yellow-green. I don't ahve a yellow-green, but I do have a green-yellow. I've also seen posts saying they tapped into green-yellow.

I can understand these being confused, but is it possible that on some cars the wire colors were reversed? We tapped into the green-yellow today but ran out of time before connecting the lights to test out the circuits. I'm gonna be up all night stressing over this one

My head hurts...

 

Why are you trying to tap into the wire?

 

Tap into one of the parking lights. Much easier and you don't risk damaging a xenon by drawing voltage from the ballast.
Parking lights were "some color" and a brown, so pick anything but the brown.

 

The 12v signal that triggers the high beam also triggers the driving lights. That's what the installation instructions say to do...

Because I want to install the lights so they can only come on with the high beams. First, that's the law in almost every state, and second, I see no reason to do it any other way (I know others have, and I have no problem with that). I just see no point in turning on driving lights with only low beams on.


Now, all that said, it seems my car had a reversed wire color installed. The MINI drawings say yellow-green, but mine is green-yellow and the install (finally) was completed and works like a champ.

 

Glad it all worked out for you. Not sure why there was a color mis-match with the wiring diagram. Maybe the guys at the factory were running short on Y/G and figured the alternative was close enough for intuition's sake?

Bottom line: You were successful and are now enjoying your awesome new night vision.

P.S. - One thing I just recently discovered: if I pull back on the turning signal/lighting stalk with the car parked and off, ALL of my lights illuminate--even the light bar. It's great for taking twilight pics of the MINI with the full lights-on effect. The lights go off if you manually move the light control switch, or automatically after about a minute. See if this works for you too.

 

Really? Have to try that...

 

That feature is called follow me home lights. IIRC it is in the owners manual.

Sin MINI glad you got your lights wired & working.

 

I never paid attention to that feature because I almost always park in a lit garage or parking lot.

 

Don't feel bad. I found it by accident & thought my lights were buggered up. Only later did I come to find out what it really was.

 

I have tried to install my Piaa driving lights to go on only with the high beams for over three years (I try once a year when a thread like this opens) without success. Five of the six wires going to the high beam bulb in my '05 MCS cabrio are hot when the low beams are on. How this can be I don't know but I will be trying again today. Someone last year said that Piaa recommends attaching their lead wire to a wire that is inside the car on the passenger side. Has anyone done this?

 

SUCCESS - after three years. Read entry above. I don't know why this was such a battle but obviously the wiring harnesses for the MINI can be different. Everyone of of the seven wires(except the brown ground) coming out of the driver's lighting harness show 11+ volts when only the low beams were on (also, when the hi-beams were on). For three years I have had the Piaas attached to the y/grn wire so they would come on with either high or low beams - which I didn't want. Today I went to the harness that attaches to the high beam directly (a white and a brown wire) and measured the volts. With the harness off, the white wire was still being fed 11+ volts
with either the high and low on - which I can't explain. But with it connected to the bulb it only measured voltage when the highs were on and this is where I connected. Hope this helps someone in the future.