RyoFC3S

iTrader: (1)

Hey guys,

I finally got it hosted! Here's the writeup for the FTP light mod some of you guys were asking for!

https://www.rx7club.com/showpost.php...7&postcount=10

Feel free to post any questions or comments you might have in this thread.

-Andrew
90 TII

Steel

Ryo: I'd suggest getting some Sylvania Silverstar headlamps for your car. You mentioned how your regular headlights arent very bright, but in my opinion, the silverstars really help out. And they aren't some gay/ricey blue color or anything, they're just a really clean bright white light.

uRizen

iTrader: (2)

Do you know of anywhere else to get the proper lights? I went to a couple of lpaces that carry the Cyberwhite stuff and no one has the Navigator 540s.

ponykiller

Great write-up, I have a set of PIAA lights that I have been trying to figure out how to mount behind the FTPs, and now I know!

One thing I thought I would point out is that your Before/After thumbnails for the FTPs are reversed. The thumbnail for the backsides takes you to the pic of the frontsides and the thumbnail for the frontsides takes you to the pic of the backsides. .

Great job!

Cobra_R

Maybe a dumb question, but could you wire those FTP lights to a toggle switch? Im assuming u can.

RyoFC3S

iTrader: (1)

Thats not really a mistake, persay, I just wanted to get across the point that they're before and after pictures.

I'm not sure what you mean by that, but it comes with a light switch that goes to the interior.

Also, I never said you HAVE to use those EXACT lights. Just whatever fits inside. Its just kind of an idea to work from.

I'm trying to figure out a way to get all the pictures loaded onto this site so that the writeup remains preserved incase the website i'm hosting it from ever goes down. Or copying the code+pictures to this site's server instead of hosting it on that site's? Mods, anyway to do that?

Thanks Aaron for archiving it.

-Andrew

uRizen

iTrader: (2)

How do you think it would work if you were to take a halogen assembly, and use fiberglass to enclose the rear of the ftp assembly and mount it to that? How much clearance is there from the back of FTP assembly to anythign that would rub?

RyoFC3S

iTrader: (1)

I'm not sure what you mean by the fiberglass thing...

But there is about... 4-6 inches of space between the headlight path and the back of the FTP lense.

-Andrew

uRizen

iTrader: (2)

You know how it's open on the back of the FTP assembly how it's open? I was thinking one could get a hold of a halogen replacement bulb, wire it up, then close off the back of that FTP assembly and drill a hole to mount the bulb. One would have to mirror coat the fiberglassed part for better reflection maybe.

RyoFC3S

iTrader: (1)

Well guys, since this new forum has the ability to attach images make an independant post so I can take the load off that server. I have to post this in sections because I can only upload 5 files.

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When I started out with this project, my goal was to simply put lights behind the flash to pass (FTP) lenses so that I could better illuminate the road when driving at night. In the late-winter and early spring it is also foggy often. My headlights weren’t extremely bright, and I didn’t want to mess with them, so I thought I’d put some lights in the nearly unused FTP holes. This method requires some cutting!


You will need the 18 point wire, wire ties and extension pieces. The other materials are simply for making the procedure quicker. The tape measure is unnecessary, unless you want to make exact measurements. YOU WILL ALSO NEED CLEAR SEALANT GLUE!





I: Removing Lenses

Flip up your headlights (without turning them on). There are two places located on either end (horizontally) of the FTP lenses. This is where you will unscrew two nuts. Mine we’re loose enough to unscrew by hand. Do so and put the nuts in a safe place (I recommend a cup). You don’t want to lose them.
Gently push the lenses (from the inside) outward. They should come out fairly easily, but may require a little bit of force. Once you’ve done this, inspect them to make sure they’re still intact and not cracked or broken in places. If they are, replace them. It is not necessary to try and take off the glass part to clean them yet. That is recommended after the cutting.



II: Purchase

Originally I planned on making custom lights to fit inside the holes, but I went to Pep Boys to see if I could find some pre-made lights first. Lo and behold, I stumbled across the Cyber White Halogen Lights (Navigator NV-540). I measured them, to make sure they fit, and they did (with a few inches to spare width wise). They were almost exactly what I was looking for. I checked the price tag, and to my astonishment, they were $20. It’s a blue box with plastic screen for a preview of the components.


Test to see if they fit in the holes where your FTP lenses go. Push them in from the front to the back. You will notice that when they are pushed all the way to the back they stick too far out, and will not clear the pop-up lights. This is why there is cutting involved. We will be cutting a section out of each lens so that the back of the halogen lights can clear the flip-up lights, and so that the lights are inside the lenses instead of totally behind them. It’s also a good idea to test the halogen lights to make sure they work correctly.




I: Securing the lenses

You’re going to want to hold down the lenses solidly so that they don’t move around when you’re cutting them. The back part (that faces the inside of the car) should be facing upwards. I used two C-Clamps to hold them to a cutting table. I also recommend you use a towel so that the lenses don’t get scratched against the table when you’re cutting.

II: Initial Incisions and Tips

Start by cutting lines one inch away from the horizontal edges. Try not to cut through the curved, raised vertical edges. See the picture for details. Use the hacksaw for this step.


Once you have the initial lines cut, you’re going to want to use the Jig Saw to cut along the raised lines. Do so, but be extremely careful not to scratch the inside of the plastic when doing this.

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Continued in next post....

-Andrew

RyoFC3S

iTrader: (1)

...Continued...

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III: Checking your cuts

Now you should check to see if the halogen lights fit inside the holes. If they don’t, cut off wherever necessary so that they do. The lights won’t be pointing totally parallel to the horizontal edges, so it should fit in pretty easily. You might also want to clean off your lenses with soap and water, and then some kind of glass cleaner.




I: Making space

If you try and set the lights inside the lenses in the FTP hole, you’ll notice that it won’t quite fit right, and the lights will hit against the foamy plastic inside the FTP hole. You’ll need to cut this away so that the lights fit, and so that the lights can point in the direction you want. Try and cut so that the line you create by the cut will point the lights in the direction you want them to go.


II: Positioning

Now that you have that cut away room for the light to fit, you’re going to want to use the piece of foam you cut away to make the light level. Mess with it so that it points between the headlights and the fog lights. I turned the head/fog lights on, and pointed them against a sheet so that I could see exactly where to point the FTP lights. This is an important step, because you don’t want these lights shining too high so that you’re blinding traffic.


Also, take time to notice how bright these lights are in comparison to the headlights. Some people were asking me to show them how bright the lights were, and here you can see.

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...Continued in next post...

-Andrew

RyoFC3S

iTrader: (1)

...Continued...

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I’m not going to go into great detail for this section, because wiring is a simple procedure, and I don’t have time to write out the whole wiring process (and I’m lazy). It will consist of pictures with some explanations. I recommend you read through the instructions proved in the box that comes with the light.



Once it’s fed through, you’re going to want to send more wire through to the left headlight. Use the Wire Feeder for this. This is to get the wire from the left FTP light all the way to the light switch.


Now that everything is connected, you’re going to need to wire everything through to the interior light switch that is provided in the kit. I just fed it along the right side of engine bay, and connected the power source directly to the battery.


Once you’ve got the wiring fed through the firewall hole, you’re going to need to choose a place to put the light switch. Once it’s connected, test the lights to make sure you wired everything correctly. I chose this spot:


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...Continued in next post...

-Andrew

RyoFC3S

iTrader: (1)

.....Continued...

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----------> I: Gluing down the Light

First of all, you’re going to need to glue down that little foam piece you cut off to fit the light in. Make sure it’s exactly where you want it! After that, you’re going to glue the lights down. Make absolutely sure that it is pointed exactly where you want it, because you’re going to have to wait a while to fix the mistake.


----------> II: Finishing Up

Once everything was done and connected, I covered up all the wiring with plastic wire surround. You don’t have to do this, but it makes it all look cleaner, and it will help protect the wiring.




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Temporary original link: http://www.smempire.org/staff/ryosuke/ftp/index.php

-Andrew