Was looking at my truck and thought the "side vents" would be a great place for some LED's to give it a little glow.

Did a Google search and found these - https://www.f150leds.com/collections...t-led-lighting

Anyone done this and if so what was your experience ?

- Doc

PS - I think its pretty cool

 

$80 for a couple sections of LED strip and scotchloks for the wiring? No way in hell.

Scotchloks hidden in the harness at random points on a vehicle are a sure fire way to introduce corrosion and electrical issues down the road that are very difficult to find. The best solution is to splice into the factory wiring with OEM plugs. Since it can be difficult/impossible sometimes to find which connector they used, the second best is going to be using a sealed buss connector and crimp/heat shrink onto the factory wiring.

Search for waterproof 12V LED strip of your favorite color and be prepared to be shocked at how cheap they are in pretty much any length you want.

edit: There are some companies that do supply "plug and play" harnesses with OEM connectors, those are worth the money due to the research, sourcing, and assembly needed to produce such a product. Any kit that comes with scotchloks or quick wire splices like that needs to go straight into the garbage where they belong.

 

I've got maybe $20 in mine, but had most of the wiring stuff on hand.

 

Have you had any issues with the police? I thought red lights could only be displayed on the rear of a vehicle. Side markers are supposed to be preferably yellow, but red was a big no-no, I thought. It may vary by state, or I could be all wet.

 

I used the orange color of these lights, https://www.superbrightleds.com/led-...ensft-wflb-x96 They look amber. Been on almost two years.

 

It's says in Indiana that it must face the rear. Think of all the heavy trucks running a round with a light on the front fender, (not so much now with streamlining) amber on front and red on rear! That is/was DOT approved so should be same all states.

 

I bought a 2' orange LED strip on ebay for $6 and used wire I had on hand for the same result. I also did some step lighting for under $20. Heck, even if you dont know how to solder wire to LED strips, there are lots of options on ebay for LED strips with wire already attached for a fraction of the price.