I've been on a lighting mod binge over the past month. I did the LED boot light (thanks ImagoX), upgraded the footwell and puddle lights, added lighting to the parcel shelf and center cubby, and upgraded the dome and map lights with brighter bulbs (thanks BlimeyCabrio).

But the one lighting mod that has been on my mind ever since I bought my MCC was to install lighting for rear passengers. It gets VERY dark back there when the top is up. A year ago I already planned to install rear reading lights and even purchased parts, but never got around to it until last weekend. What inspired me to do it now was that after becoming familiar with the Oznium LED strips, I saw how they would be perfect for lighting the rear footwells (as others have done). Until recently I hadn't even thought about the footwells, and they would finish off the project nicely.

It is finished at last. I installed all the wiring over the weekend. Last night I took a deep breath and cut holes in the side panels for the reading lights. Here is the final result (pictures taken in a completely dark garage with only the interior car lights providing light):





Here is the reading light (one on each side):





The light fixture is a reading light from a BMW X5, which has it positioned over the rear door. A year ago, I was searching long and hard on the Internet for a light to use. Mostly I looked on car manufacturers websites for images of what their reading lights looked like. I was looking for one with an integrated switch, and any colored plastic trim would have to be black or dark gray. One problem is that most cars have beige or light gray headliners, and their reading lights use the same color plastic. The X5 was the only one I could find that was right for me, but there were many cars for which I couldn't find an image of their reading lights. I purchased the X5 reading lights through Classic MINI with NAM discount, around $26 for light housing and lens cover (each set). An alternative that I didn't think of until later was that there is probably a good lamp somewhere that can sit on the little shelf over the rear speaker.



I replaced the festoon bulbs with LED versions. The lamp has a 3 pin connector. One pin is ground and the other two pins are power inputs. The switch toggles between the two power inputs (basic on-off if you use only one of the power inputs). The 3 pin configuration turned out to be ideal. I connected one of the power pins to a constant on power source, the other power pin to the footwell light. The reading light fades in and out with the dome/footwell lights, but the passenger can also turn it on at any time by pressing the button. I created a quick disconnect for the lamp by using computer power supply connectors:



For rear footwell lights, I mounted a 9.5" white LED flex strip from Oznium under each of the front seats. I wired it using a headphone plug/jack to allow disconnection. Here's an underseat view of the front passenger's seat showing the LED strip:




My pictures don't really convey how well my interior is lit up now. As people on NAM like to say, "it's how the car should have come from the factory".

 

Nice! What keeps the lights in so they don't rattle?

 

Do you still have the part number(s) for this?

 

Very nice I'll have to keep this thread in mind. Thanks for linking the other lighting mods too.

 

Basically the hole needs to be the proper size. It would be the same situation on an X5 (of course the trim panel would be already manufactured with the correct size hole). When you hinge open the lens door, a tab swings out of the way so you can insert the body of the lamp into the hole. When you close the lens, the tab swings back out, holding the lamp in and pressing lightly against the trim panel plastic. I started with a hole of 40mm x 80mm and the lamp wouldn't fit in. I shaved the edges of the hole until it fit (another 2mm or so).

The parts are #17 and #18 in this diagram: http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...5&btnr=63_0603
Rear reading light housing, part# 63316962036
Rear reading light lens, part# 63316974430

I purchased the parts a year ago from Classic MINI. At the time this is what they quoted me:
Housing: retail $27.50, NAM price $22.00
Lens: retail $4.50, NAM price $3.60


I will post some installation notes later.

 

Very clean and a great idea... Using the reading lights from another car is pretty inspired. Not sure I'd be willing to spend $25 or so per light, though, but it certainly gives me a different place to start looking. Nice work!!

 

You should be able to find other suitable reading/courtesy lights. I first looked for a simple plain light, sort of like the MINI boot light but including a sliding or rocker switch. I know that I've seen them before, but damned if could remember on what type of car, and I never did find it. By the way, even if the light only has a simple on/off switch, it is easy to rig up a diode circuit so that it automatically turns on with the footwell lights yet can be manually turned on.

Honestly, I was greatly relieved when I learned the modest price of the X5 lights. Having purchased parts for mundane Hondas and VWs in the past, I know that manufacturers sometimes charge outrageous prices for OEM replacement parts. As it is, this mod cost less than a euro parcel shelf yet (like the boot light mod) makes a big impact in the everyday use of the car.

 

Wow! Outstanding work. Those reading lights rock... If I ever get brave enough to cut the holes....

 

Great Mod!!! And good write up. This will definitely go on my "must do" list of mods. I like the fact that you used another BMW part....keeping it in the family...

 

Wow - I'm impressed! Was it tough to route all the wires?

 

It was a lot of work the way I did it, because I wanted to do a good permanent job. I routed all of my wiring behind interior panels along the paths of existing harnesses. If you are satisfied with tucking in wires underneath the edges of trim panels, it would save a lot of work.

Working mostly in the evening and inside my very cramped garage (I can only open the car doors less than half way), it took me about 10 hours work. I think someone who knows their way around the car and has a better working setup might be able to do the same work in as little as 3 hours. I can tell you it's great working with the roof down, being able to stand up and have room to maneuver.

I will post details about the wiring, but the basic idea is the following. I installed a 3-conductor cable to carry ground, constant-on power, and footwell light power. The major part of the installation is putting this single cable into position. Start with one end of the cable at the location of one of the rear reading lights. Run the cable along the doorsill to the front, then across (behind/under) the dash, and back down the other side of the car to end up at where the other reading light will be. Once this cable is in place, you are home free with the rest of the installation. Where the cable runs past the fuse box, you can splice in a tap for the constant on power. Where it runs past the front footwells, splice in taps for the footwell light power and ground. Where the cable runs past the front seats, you can splice into it to connect the rear footwell lights.

 

It looks very nice. I bet it's alot of work.

 

Here's the circuit diagram. As I said earlier, the major part of the work is to put a 3-conductor cable into the car (thick red/blue/black lines in the diagram). Once the cable is in place, you can easily splice in the other connections.