Trunk light!

[new2the02]

My camera is dead I will be buying a new one later today hopefully. Anyway yesterday I looked through a box of junk at a garage sale and found a trunk light from a random car. Most of them have a ground wire and a constant source. So I installed into my 02. At any car alarm shop you should be able to get a trunk or hood trigger switch if your in good with them they will give it to you for free otherwise it will cost maybe $5. I got mine from a parts box I have from installing alarms in my youth. Just mount the hood pin/trunk trigger switch so the switch is closed when the trunk opens. Its a plunger type switch when the trunk is closed the switch is open. When the trunk is open the switch is closed. My switch is identical to this switch

http://lff.manufacturer.globalsources.com/si/6008810210685/pdtl/Car-alarm/1001149248/Pin-Switch.htm.

This will be the ground side of your new light. The constant side I ran to a constant power wire in the ignition switch with a fuse ofcourse. If you run another wire with your constant wire twist them together with a drill. This second wire can be used to trigger an alarm if infact someone opens your trunk. So now when I open my trunk a light comes on and I can find whatever it is I need in the trunk late at night.

This write up may be useless if these cars originally had trunk lights. My car doesn't have one maybe the PO took it out or they just didn't have them altogether. I'll try to post pics later today if I do infact get a new camera.

[c.d.iesel]

...MIGHT BE USELESS BECAUSE

your trunk illumination is already provided by the back side of your tail

lights. A small clear lens provides light while the lights are ON.

Yours is a good idea though for alarm kinda people.

[new2the02]

Maybe I just did a bunch of work for no reason sence I never noticed that light from the tail lights. But when I get out of my car I always turn my lights off this I suppose gives me the option to still have a trunk light with my lights off and the rest of the car locked up.

[Todd21]

Those pin switches were also on the trunk lid of the E36. Should be able to fid them at any junk yard for partucally nothing. I like the idea, and CD is correct but if there was a way to get a light mounted to the underside of the lid that would be very useful. The illumination fron the rear brake lights is very low in the compartment and therfore doesn't cast very deep into the trunk if you have anything it it.

Todd

[esty]

pull a mercury switch/light at a junkyard...used under the hood on a lot of cars

[robsanab]

cool... you can also get those hockey puck LED lights and stick them where ever you want... some of them are better and brighter than others... some swivel too so you can direct the light

[John_in_VA]

accessory for the '02 through BMW, similar to those on the E12, E21 & E23.

[Mike Self]

shown in the factory parts book. Don't know if they're still available though. It would be easy enough to install a trunk light from an E30, though.

I just found one of those 3 LED battery operated "hockey puck" lights, glued it to a magnet and stuck it on the underside of my trunk lid. That way I can move it to whatever area I need to illuminate.

mike