Fog Light DRL Mod Failure

Today I decided to tackle turning the OEM fog lights into DRLs following the instructions in the Miata.net garage article.

I found the relay under the dash (at least I thought I did) and pulled it free from the mount. I couldn’t figure out how to separate the relay from the connector though. I was going to pop out the red/yellow wire as instructed with its metal end still attached, so I could reverse the mod easy and not have to cut the wire. After struggling for a few minutes I though, what the heck, I’ll cut the wire. First I checked to see if I had some barrel splices to use, I didn’t. I figured I’d wait until I had everything else ready to go before I made a trip to the store.

Next task was to locate a +12v source that is only on when the ignition switch is in the run position. The article mentions he used the radio power wire, but totally fails to mention where it is. Hmmm. There are like 4 other relays in the same area, I don’t know what any of them are for, but one is bound to have a wire that I could use. Turned the key to run and checked for 12 volts. Got one, pink wire. Switched the ignition off, no power, bingo. I even started the car and the 12V goes away while the car is starting. Beautiful. I got a six inch piece of wire and a vampire tap and hooked into my new friend the pink wire.

Seeing as I don’t have any splices I don’t want to cut the red/yellow wire just yet, I’ll try testing it by just pushing my tapped wire into the red/yellow wire connector. I turn the key to run and sure enough there are lights shining on the wall. Yippee. I go around front to admire my handy work and, %@#$, the fogs aren’t on. But the low beams are!?! Now I check to see which page I printed out, as there are instructions in the garage on how to do just this, low beams as DRLs. Nope, I’ve got the right ones. Curious.

Well I wanted DRLS, I got ’em, let’s see if everything else works as advertised. Turn the stalk switch to parking lights and they come on and the lows stay on. Turn the switch to headlights and the lows stay on. With the lights on I hit the fog light switch, they turn on and the lows are still on. Hit the high beams and the fogs go out and the lows are still on.

Cycle thru the routine a couple times. A couple passes through is when I notice that when my new DRLs are on and I turn the headlights on with the switch the light on the wall seems marginally brighter. Can’t really tell how much because it is midday, but definitely brighter. This is something that the folks who have done the lows to DRL conversion complained about. In other cars the DRLs are the lows on reduced voltage so they are not as bright, but the Miata conversion ran the low beams at full power.

Here is where I start to wonder how much current is running through my little 22 gauge jumper. Do I have the right relay? Seeing as the red/yellow wire wasn’t cut, just where was I sending +12v? The instructions said it worked on a 2001 LS, did something change on the 03? So I unhooked the jumper from the red/yellow connector and taped it back. Going to call the dealer tomorrow and see if he will let me copy the fog light circuit diagram…

Jeez, Talk About Self-Centered

If you have been reading here this week you know we had an ice storm here Sunday/Monday. I bet almost 75% of the people in the area lost power. Some for only a little while others are still without. Our power was only off until Tuesday evening, but cable didn’t come back on until Thursday night, we were lucky.

I didn’t see this, but my wife read it to from this morning’s paper. We have what they call Rants & Raves where people call or email in their bouquets or brickbats. I’m sure a lot of places do this now a days, sells papers. One person wrote in to complain that the cable company was lax in their responsibility because they were still without cable and they were going to cancel. Don’t you think that maybe the cable company volunteered their bucket trucks to help out the power guys restore electricity to houses and that might be a little bit more important than somebody getting to watch QVC or Jerry Springer.

Made Up For The Neglect Today

It didn’t make it to the 60 degrees as promised today, but that didn’t stop Donna and I making the trip to Augusta with the top down this afternoon. We went over to Rader to run the Master’s Miata Club “newsletter”, The Driver, through their postage meter. The word newsletter is in quotes because it was actually a postcard. Last month it was just a one pager that included the wrap up of our one get together in December and little else, I called it a Mini-Driver. This month because the January meeting consisted of nothing but event planning, all that needed to be disseminated was the February events. They fit on a post card I called a Microminiature-Driver. Next month, the Subminiature-Driver, readable only using a microscope.

The Splash Green Miata was still unsold and sitting on the lot. Good thing Rader is running a sales business and not an automobile shelter, or they would have euthanized that car by now. Of course, they shouldn’t feel like the Lone Ranger because a search of the inventory of every dealer within 150 miles of me turns up 12 more of these albatrosses still collecting dust. At least Rader doesn’t have any of the horrible 2003 Strato Blue Special Editions clogging up heir inventory like so many other dealers, another search turns up twice as many (26) of them languishing unsold within that same 150 mile radius.

No Miata Days

Yesterday and today we took the Honda Civic to work and the Miata has sat in the garage. The reason for that is that Donna wanted to visit her mom in the hospital during lunchtimes and she didn’t want to have to drive the Miata. It has been over 2 months now and she still hasn’t driven it. She swears she won’t drive it until it gets it’s first boo-boo (door ding or scratch or something) so I guess secretly I hope she never gets to drive it. 🙂

How Did They Know I Needed Some?

I received a small bulky padded envelope in the mail today from Mazda North America. I wondered what they were sending me. A gift perhaps? Sort of. Inside was a bottle of touch up paint in my color code (5F.) It was there way of thanking me for filling out a survey they sent out wanting to get my thoughts and feelings on the car buying experience. I almost tossed out the survey when I got it, but figured, what the heck, so I filled it. Thanks Mazda, I’ve got a small spot on the hood from a rock or something that needs a bit of touch-up.

I Love The Lineman For The County

About 10 AM yesterday our power went off. The ice from the storm had accumulated all over everything and our southern pine trees just couldn’t take it any more. They started losing limbs like lepers and when the limbs crashed to the ground they brought down power lines with them. So last night we went to bed at 8 PM (believe me we struggled mightily to stay up that long with no electronic entertainment to occupy us) in a house with an inside temperature of 55 degrees. This morning the when we drove to work the devastation of trees was amazing, branches were just piled around the bases of trees. Good thing traffic was light because I had to drive on every which side of the road to avoid low hanging branches and the Miata is pretty low to begin with. And trust me on this, we were very nervous about more branches falling on us as we drove under the trees, especially with nothing but fabric for a roof.

On the one street right outside our subdivision there were no less than 3 sections of power lines down. I figured it was going to be a week before we had power again, judging by the destruction I could see. Driving around town tonight after dark it was weird to see that one block would be lit up and the next would be dark as pitch. As we came from the well lit up south side into the middle of the town, the change to near total darkness was eerie. After running an errand on the north side of town we came back to find our neighborhood lit up! Woohoo. Sometime about 2 hours ago our power was restored. So tonight, Mr. SCE&G Lineman, I love you. When I turned the heater on, the thermostat showed that it was 50 degrees inside and tonight it is getting down to 24, so it probably would have been middle 40s inside in the morning.

Ice, Ice Baby!

After making it all day yesterday just below the freezing rain line on the radar, somewhere during the night it dipped down to us. Everything had a nice little coating of ice on it this morning. Not the roads and such as it hasn’t been cold enough to cool them down below freezing yet (maybe tonight.) Unfortunately the ice has built up on power lines and the trees that hover above them, so now power is out all over the area. When Donna spoke to her mom a little before lunch there was no power at our house. Last report is it has been on and then off three more times, currently it is off (which is why I’m blogging from work.)

I bet I’ll have some fun getting the ice off the car when I go out to drive it home in about an hour. I need to find something near my desk here to use as a scraper….