My HID upgrade with close to factory look/operation for ~$80

[12Edge]

I have a 2012 Edge with factory Halogen 9012 bulbs and the factory projector lenses. After browsing this board and reading reviews from different HID sellers I gave OPT7 a shot. I know Morimoto seems to be the preferred unit on here but based on the nearly 1/3rd price and thousands of happy customers and a 2 year warranty I decided to give them a try.

On a side note when I payed for the light kit the paypal account web customer service address was: http://www.hidextra.com/ noted the same kit from hitextra was more and they wanted more to add the capacitors and relay?!

 

I purchased the 9006 conversion kit here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/121142656252?var=420155366457&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

 

When you checkout they instruct you to include a note with vehicle year/make/model details so they know what kind of harness to send you.

 

It came packaged in a thick envelope. Inside was a box just like the one pictured in the auction and the wire harness. Inside the box were two smaller boxes, one with two ballasts and the other with the two bulbs.

 

The Edge harness they send comes with a relay and two capacitors. While testing the parts on a loose car battery I realized that with the single relay/fuse configuration meant a single failure anywhere along that circuit meant both lights go out. Given the factory wiring is two complete sets of wiring per side for redundancy I decided to make a second harness with relay to have one for each side.

 

What you will need to replicate what I did:

 

Fuse box terminals from Del city (at least two) http://www.delcity.net/store/search/p_11128.h_26861.t_1.n_y.jsp?search=7388520+++++&x=-628&y=-58

 

Dremel with cutoff wheel, grinder can be used but will take longer.

Very small jewelers size flathead screwdriver.

Normal size flat head screwdriver for prying

Soldering Iron

60/40 solder which has a 370 deg F melting point (this is common solder)

Electrical tape (I have a lot so didn't have to buy any)

Heat Shrink tubing of varying sizes (I have a lot so didn't have to buy any)

~14 ft (2 packages from Lowes) of 3/8 split flex cable wire protector. ~$4

Since I made my own second relay harness I used 18 gauge red and black wire that I already had. If you buy a second harness you shouldn't need much of this. You might have to extend the red power wire for the right hand harness (Assuming you bought a second one of theirs) to reach the fuse box.

 

Second relay harness:

I bought the relay and relay harness plug with 6 inch pigtail wires from Napa for about $15. I would recommend talking to the OPT7 seller and asking to buy a second harness with relay, it would probably cost less and would already be wired requiring little effort to use.

 

I'm not going to go in to details of how I made the second relay harness. If you can't replicate the one provided buy a second one from them or don't do this because you won't be able to duplicate what I did anyway.

 

The harness comes with a heavy power wire to run to the battery power that has an inline fuse. From the relay there are two red power wires, one short and one long. The way it is designed and intended to be used you would put the relay near the driver side light and route the long ground/power wires across to the passenger side for that sides ballast. All that is really necessary is to run a power wire across the front of the car adjacent to the existing wire gang. I used the split flex cable to protect it.

 

Instructions:

 

Step 1:

You will need to rearrange the wires on what is sent to you from OPT7 to achieve the same fit I did. The bulbs come with a rubber grommet and a second wire to route the internal halogen power outside of the housing to the relay and then the high voltage power back in to the bulb. I completely re-routed that grommet and wiring. This is what it looks like when you get it:

 

 

First you will need to take the ends off of the wires to slide them out of the grommet. I marked the plugs where the red wire goes so I didn't mix them up when I re-installed them. I used the small flat head jewelers screwdriver and inserted it in to back of the plug where the wire goes in. I tried each side until when I pulled both the wire and screwdriver together they came out together. You may have to press the screwdriver in pretty hard to reach the release mechanism for the clip depending on how long/thin it is. If someone has a better way, I let me know. Once the wire is out there is a silicone "boot" that seals the plug that needs to be taken off too. It may roll inside out when you do this. Its small, try not to lose it. To re-install the wire you just push it back in to the hole until it locks it only fits in one way. Make sure the silicone boot is re-installed before doing this. If it doesn't lock pull it out and turn it 90 degrees and try again until it stays in locked. With the ends off it looks something like this:

 

 

 

With the bulb wires pulled out of the grommet and the ends re installed it should look like this:

 

 

You also need to take the plug ends off of the wires coming from the ballast as well to insert them through the grommet. What you will end up with is the ballast wires are through the grommet and the other wire that was in the grommet is flipped around 180 degrees so the plugs are reversed. When done it should look something like this. **NOTE** DO NOT put the split tubing like I did in the image on the wires on the short side of the grommet. I ended up removing them because the area inside the lamp housing was too tight. Secondly, I have no photo of the capacitor harness. It is just a simple, short double plug end harness with a capacitor wrapped in heat shrink between the ends which one is female and the other is male. It would be attached to the red/black double plug on the left side of the grommet shown in the photo below. I ended up cutting off the plug shown in the photo and its mate on the capacitor harness and soldering in the capacitor to shorten up the wires harness going inside the housing but you don't have to do that. I hate to ask you to "imagine" it but essentially what I did looks exactly like what you see in the picture just with a capacitor heat shrink wrapped in the middle of the black/red wires. Just be sure the female plug is the one left to be connected to and that you match up red wire to red and black to black if you cut and solder. They look like this:

 

 

 

Step 2

To get started working on the car you will need to remove the air cleaner for easier access to wiring and to route them across the front. I have attached photos of my 3.7L engine and how to do it:

 

Remove the two bolts closest to the front of the car shown in the photo. Loosen the hose clamp shown in the image. Unlock the plug attached to the front of the air cleaner and then unplug it. (Lock mechanism on the underside of plug shown above) Pull out the plastic push pin near the front corner of the air cleaner to detach the wire harness from it. Just pull it up slowly. You may break some of the plastic clips if they are old and brittle. Once all that is done you can lift the air clear straight up to pull the two plastic feet from the rubber grommets holding it to the frame. Next twist the the cleaner to break it loose from the large rubber air intake hose. Once loose you should be able to pull it out of the hose without difficulty. This will give you very easy access to the front of the car to route wires and the back of the headlight on the driver side.

 

Step 3:

Remove the headlamps to give you complete access to them for ballast/relay and wiring installation. Before I loose you on this, it is MUCH easier than I thought it would be especially if you do it one side at a time. There are only 6 bolts and 6 screws and 4 push pins on the top (and 3 on the bottom you don't have to take out) holding the entire bumper on. If you try to do both at once, which you can, you will have to unplug your DRL's and take out some push pins on the bottom.

 

Before starting this put the vehicle in the garage or pointing at a nearby wall with both lights pointing at the wall or garage door where the light pattern is easily visible. Don't plan to move it until the headlights are re-installed. Center the front wheels for reference later as turning them shifts the front of the car left or right maligning the bulb from the marks of the pattern you make. I didn't get overly complicated with my bulb pattern outline. I marked the top of the "cut off" line to the left and right of center with two horizontal lines and made one plus symbol mark indicating dead center of the beam (brightest spot usually round and in the center). I noticed a slight angle upward in the cutoff just above the center of the beam making the left and right horizontal lines marking the cutoff slightly uneven in height.

 

Now that the pattern is marked you can begin by taking out the 4 push pins at the top of the bumper and the two bolts as shown below. The push pins have a Phillips heads on them which can be used to back them out. You can't press down hard while doing this or it will simply keep the push pin pressed in and not let it back out. Once it is "unscrewed" you can pry the larger flat "washer" part up with a flat-head screwdriver to remove them. OR once all 4 are unscrewed and the two bolts are out you can also just lift up on the entire top of the bumper and they will all come out at once.

 

 

Start with one side either left or right. If you are doing the drivers side then turn the wheels all the way right (Turn them left for passenger side) to make room to take out the 3 wheel well screws shown here and the two bolts show on the underside of the wheel well:

 

To detach the bumper from the edge of the fender pull sharply outwards at this seam. You can use painters tape on either side of the seam to protect them if they touch later. When I say "pull outward" I mean if you are standing at the side where the seam is facing the wheel and the seam pull the bumper half of the seem towards yourself straight out and it will detach the clips.

 

 

Step 4:

Now that the bumper is loose you can take out the headlamp. First unplug the headlight plug at the rear of the headlamp and unscrew the turn signal bulb to take it out of the housing. Put tape over the hole the bulb came out of to prevent debris from getting inside! All that is left now is to remove the 3 bolts holding the headlight in place. I apologize for not having a photo of the bumper pulled away. Once you have the bumper pulled towards the front of the vehicle and you can reach down between it and the frame you can undo the bolts in the location shown below. There are guide pins near the bolt holes that go in to the body so be sure to pull it forward an inch or so to get those clear of the body before manipulating/twisting it. You will have to wiggle/twist the housing to get it out. If the entire bumper is off then obviously it just comes straight out. ***NOTE*** I did not mark the 4th bolt in the picture, it is on top of the housing in the photo. You can see two bolts on top there that are grey/silver. Sorry I missed that in initial write up.

 

 

Step 5:

Now to install the ballast etc... If you look on the side of the lamp housing you will see a somewhat square recessed spot with 4 posts at the corners that are drilled for screws. This is where the factory ballast goes. I had to use the dremel with the cutoff wheel to remove the top and bottom "walls" for this spot to be able to fit the OPT7 ballast in there. You can see the ballast installed in the picture below. I used screws to install it with a nut on the inside on the top and a sheet metal style screw on the bottom. In hind site a plastic body pin like those removed from the top of the bumper would have just as easily worked and been easier to install instead of fighting getting the nut in the correct spot. **NOTE** this picture is of the passenger side lamp. The washer fluid reservoir is directly below the headlight. I ended up having to move the ballast up a 1/4 inch and seal the old holes because the wires were pressing to tightly against the reservoir. **NOTE2** I wrapped both sets of wires from the ballast to the grommet with the plastic split tubing for added protection. It looks something like this

 

 

With the Ballast mounted I used a 7/8 hole saw on my drill to put a small hole on the bottom of the housing to push the grommet through. Once the grommet was in place I used a small amount of black RTV under the grommet and against the housing to help seal it up a bit. You should end up with something that looks like this:

 

 

Step 6:

No we are going to wire in the relay and connect the bulb.

 

This is where it may seem a bit complicated if you bought a second harness or even made your own second harness. Their harness has a short and a long red wire coming from the relay plug. The long one is paired with a ground wire that is meant to run to the passenger side. If you bought two of their harnesses you will have to designate and configure them each for the passenger or driver side. Looking at one of the relay harnesses we will designate one for the driver side now. To do this you will cut back the two long red/black wires that would have routed to the passenger side. There is some large heat shrink tubing around all of the wires at the relay connector. Slide it down to get access to the bottom of the relay socket. Isolate and cut the long red wire about an inch from the relay. This will leave a little unprotected wire tail. I put heat shrink tubing over it leaving about 1/2 inch longer than the wire end. Shrink it up and then fold the extra length of tubing backwards so that it is touching the side of the wire/tubing. Put a second piece of heat shrink over that and heat it again. This will hold the folded end back and protect the end of the wire from contacting anything. You will see that the ground wires go to a metal ring. Cut off the long one that is for the passenger side as close to the ring as possible. You can wrap it in tape or use large heat shrink like I did but it doesn't really matter since its already attached to ground. This will let you take out the long black/red wires that would have run to the passenger side and you now have an independent drivers side harness.

 

For the passenger harness you will again identify and cut out the long black wire that goes to the ground ring. You only need one ground and the short one is enough. That short ground wire will go to a male double plug connector that powers the ballast. Attached to the other side of that male connector should be the short red +12V wire that comes from the relay connector. Cut the short wire this time as before about an inch from the connector and use two pieces of heat shrink tubing to protect the end. You should now be able to remove the ground wire with the ring and the red wire you just cut from the harness. Look for the other red wire leading out from the relay connector that has the in-line fuse attached to it. Cut that wire off about an inch from the harness and now re-attach the red wire with the male connector on it to that one. I soldered it and used heat shrink tubing to protect it. What you will have is a passenger side harness with a LONG red wire coming from it to run across to the drivers side to connect up to the battery and short connections for the passenger side ballast/ground/head-light connector.

 

Now to attach the relay and its wires:

The relay should have a male and a female double plug coming from it similar to the one for the halogen bulb connection. Disconnect the factory wire harness from and remove the halogen bulb. Put some tape over the hole to prevent debris from going in it while you work. The male plug that was for the halogen bulb goes to the female plug on the relay. The male plug coming out of the relay goes to the female one you pushed up from the bottom of the housing to the ballast. Its the one the capacitor is attached to. The two individual high voltage wires coming from the ballast go to the HID lamp wires and you will plug them in later. This will leave the ground wire for the ballast and the 12V battery supply wire for the ballast that goes to the relay to be connected. I had originally drilled two holes and put the smallest grommets I could find in the hardware section at Lowes in them. They were just the right size for the ground and positive wires to pass through snugly. However, in looking at the factory wiring diagram I discovered that the bottom two pins of the headlamp connector are both separate ground wires that attach to the frame just below the headlamp so I spliced the ground wire in to them inside the housing and plugged the hole for that wire with black RTV silicone. To get access on the back of the wires on the headlamp socket you can push it in to the housing by squeezing in the two tabs on either side of the plug while pushing it inside the housing. You will have to twist it left or right to get it to fit around the projector and get it out to a place you can work on it. Again, you are splicing in to the bottom (lowest) two wires on that socket. They should be black/green for the left light and black/grey for the right light. They are numberd 6 and 7 on the socket. Sorry for the poor photo, I thought it showed the whole socket:

 

If you don't want to do that you can just ground the black wire to the chassis passing it out of a hole you make in the back of the housing as I originally intended to do.

 

The +12V wire is all that is left to connect besides the lamp now. I passed it through a hole I made in the back of the housing and put a grommet in as described before.

 

 

CONTINUED IN POST 2

Edited December 10, 2013 by 12Edge

[12Edge]

Step 7:

Install the bulb, attach the relay and tuck in the wires.

 

I am going to mostly let the pictures do the talking. Inistall the lamp in to the socket. It will only go in one way. There are two wide tabs and one narrow one. Make sure you get them lined up to install it in to the socket.

 

The relay will fit in nicely at the top of the housing on the inside. I put a small hole out the top and bolted it up inside the housing as you see here:

 

 

More pictures showing the wiring tucked in around the projector lamp:

 

 

 

With the wires tucked in around the projector I made sure they were not touching the projector housing. It is tight but nothing touched the housing and was at least 1/2 inch away from it.

 

 

Step 8:

Install Headlamp.

 

What you should have to install now is a completed headlamp unit with a positive battery connection wire hanging out of it. (and possibly the negative ground wire if you didn't splice in to the factory wiring) You will have to feed the wire(s) back in to the hole for the headlamp housing in the bumper and then wriggle it around the bumper to get it in place. The alignment pegs I mentioned earlier should go neatly in to the holes in the front of the frame and it should be snug. Re-attach the bolts and snug them up lightly first. Once they are all snug tighten them up completely. You will need to re-attach the side of the bumper apron by pressing the seam back together and then installing the 3 screws in the fender well and the two bottom bolts. Now you can switch to the other side if you didn't take the entire bumper off all at once. If you are switching sides go back to step 3 and start with the 3 fender screws part of that step.

 

if you have completed both sides reverse the removal process for the bumper and install all 4 top push pins and top 2 screws along with the 3 left and 3 right fender screws along with the 2 left and 2 right bolts on the bottom. this should have the vehicle whole again and ready to route the positive wires and connect them to the fuse box.

 

Step 9:

Route wires.

The passenger positive wire needs to be routed to the driver side. I used the split edge tubing and tucked it under the existing wiring harness that runs from one side to the other as shown just above the radiator fan:

 

 

The route the passenger wire along the wire gang on the driver side. Pull the driver side positive wire over and splice it in to the split end tubing so that both wires are inside the tubing. This will be fed up to the underside of the fuse box for connection.

 

 

 

If you ran the ground wires for the HID ballast out of the back of the lamp housing instead of splicing in to the factory wiring then you can attach the ring to the frame just below the housing where there is a gang of ground wires attached. There is a bolt you will have to remove and add the ring to that bunch and tighten it back up. I didnt do that so I don't have photos.

 

Step 10:

Attach the positive wires to the fuse box

 

The fuse box needs to be removed to wire in the added HID wires. Look along the edge of the fuse box and you will see 4 tabs on the passenger side of the box and two tabs on the drive side of the box. Start with a corner tab and with a flat head pry the tab away from the body of the box while gently lifting up on the top half of the fuse box. Keep upwards pressure and move down each side tab from the corner you started with to the other end of the same side. You should wind up with all the tabs unlatched on that side and you will more easily see the two halves of it. Move to the opposite side and unlatch the tabs the same way so you can lift up the entire top half of the fuse box. Everything is secure inside wiring wise so have no fear. It looks like this:

 

 

 

Pried up the 4 on one side:

 

 

The fuse box is fully loose now and can be lifted up:

 

 

 

With the fuse box out you can not attach the fuse terminals. The Del City Crimp end terminals have to be modified as follows:

 

 

In the picture I broke off the crimp end figuring out the proper shape for the terminal to lock in place so don't duplicate that. Crimp the wire on to the fabricated end and you can push it in the hole. If you don't want to cut out the terminal like I did to lock in place i will still stay in the socket. I just wanted to guarantee it could never come out. Make sure you get the left one and right one in the correct socket. The left goes in 57 and the right goes in 78. You can use the tiny flat head screwdriver and push it through from the top to left side of the fuse socket to see where it comes out on the underside to know where to plug in each terminal. It should look like this:

 

 

Now you can flip the panel back over and install it and the fuses as seen here:

 

 

Finally you can re-install the fuse block Make sure all the wires are tucked in properly and the "doors" on the side of the skirt are closed completely before sliding it back down over the tabs and locking it in to place.

 

Step 11:

Install the Air Cleaner housing.

 

The air cleaner needs to be re-installed. Start by putting the plastic tube inside the rubber one it came out of. You can twist it while pushing to get it to go in all the way. When the air cleaner housing is properly seated there are two plastic "nipples" for lack of a better term sticking out of the bottom that seat in to two rubber grommets near the frame. When they are in all the way the two bolt holes for the two housing bolts should be lined up and just over the bolt hole. Before installing the bolts inspect the air cleaner rubber hose to confirm you haven't pinched it or rolled it up or anything to cause air to get sucked in past the filter. If all is well then install the bolts and tighten the hose clamp nut. Next insert the plug in to the socket on the air cleaner and push the lock tab back in. Finally push the white pushpin back in to the hole on the corner of the air filter housing.

 

POST 3 HAS FINAL PICTURES

Edited December 2, 2013 by 12Edge

[12Edge]

Step 12:

Check Bulb pattern and alignment.

 

With everything installed and working correctly you will need to once again center the wheels to check the bulb pattern and alignment.

Turn on the headlights and compare to your old bulb pattern. I don't have any real tips here because even with removing the headlamp housings the bulbs lined up perfectly with the halogen bulb pattern and alignment marks.

 

Here are some photos to compare the results:

 

Drivers side halogen, passenger side HID:

 

Both Bulbs HID:

 

Both bulbs HID high beams:

 

Drivers side Halogen, Passengers side HID low beam sample:

 

Drivers side Halogen, Passenger side HID HIGH Beam sample:

 

Both sides HID Low beam sample:

 

Both sides HID High beam Sample:

 

The above photos were all taken within 15 minutes of each other and the vehicle was never moved.

 

 

Here is a photo of an installed headlamp assembly with HID ballast attached and wired up:

 

I am currently seeking both sides of the factory plug harness for the headlamps, both the part inside the lamp housing and the plug connecting to it from the wiring harness so I can add the contacts for the HID power wire and it will be wired up like factory at the lamp too. I will of course have to take it all apart again but right now there is no way to disconnect it without cutting it.

 

Final comments on this install:

 

OPT 7 provided a good product. I did notice after a few days the passenger side HID bulb seemed different... not as bright in the center as before and I mentioned it to them. They sent me a new bulb without hesitation and all is well and proper again. I have had the HID lamps in for a few weeks and am VERY happy with the results.

 

I used an infrared thermometer and took some heat measurements with the vehicle stationary and the ambient air temp was 87 degrees Fahrenheit. I measured the temperature after the bulb ran for 30 minutes with the engine off. I used a battery charger with the halogen bulb but ended up hooking up one of those battery jumper boxes for the HID's to keep the battery from being discharged because the ballast(s?) started to hum with the charger hooked up. I guess they didn't like unclean converted 110V. I took the round port cover off the back from behind the bulb and pointed the thermometer in there.

 

The Halogen bulb temperatures from 177 to 215 degrees Fahrenheit. if I held the thermometer still it showed 177 deg. If I moved it around the temp would fluctuate and I saw on the "Max temp" reading 215 but never saw it as the primary temp reading.

 

The HID bulb temperatures were from 152 to 192 degrees Fahrenheit. Again, holding the thermometer steady it was 152 and moving it around is when I got the "Max Temp" reading of 192.

 

Over all it seemed to be about 25 degrees cooler for the HID. I noticed the exact same variance when pointing it at the front of the headlamp lens. I didnt record the temperatures but I noticed the same ~20 - ~25 degree variance in temperatures off the front plastic between the two bulbs.

Edited December 3, 2013 by 12Edge

[WWWPerfA_ZN0W]

Thanks for the very detailed writeup, 12Edge. I am sure it will be of great help to those contemplating a similar upgrade!

[Edged Up]

Nice write up man. I'm using this to do mine. I like how u put everything in the housing. Dope. Real OEM looking. Looks good!

[normcloutier]

12Edge, when you took the top off the fuse box, how much slack was there in the wiring? Would you be able to access that wiring in order to do a wire tap?

 

The trailer turn signal lights operate through a pair of relays in the fuse box and I was hoping to tie into those wires for my EDGE2 turn signals.

 

Is this the image from the bottom side of the fuse box?

 

[FordMan1977]

Wow.... outstanding write up! Your install looks factory. Thanks for your contribution. I like the idea of not having to fully remove the front bumper to get the headlamps out.

[12Edge]

12Edge, when you took the top off the fuse box, how much slack was there in the wiring? Would you be able to access that wiring in order to do a wire tap?

 

The trailer turn signal lights operate through a pair of relays in the fuse box and I was hoping to tie into those wires for my EDGE2 turn signals.

 

Is this the image from the bottom side of the fuse box?

 

 

Yes, if you look at the pic two above the one you quoted from my post where I am just lifting the fuse box you see the 2 red wires I ran for the HID power and another red/black one that was run coming up for my aftermarket DRL's. I installed that last one before I got the fuse terminals and I intend on re-doing it in to the fuse block where the fog lights go but right now it has an inline fuse.

 

At any rate that wire is tapped in to one of the relay wires that is only powered when the key is in the on position. I was able to pull the wires up and then twist the fuse box by grabbing the two narrow ends (front and rear ends) and rotating it almost completely over so it was upside down. I'm sure if you open the "Doors" on the passenger side of the lower "skirt" that the box mounts to you could pull the wire gangs out and have more room to manipulate it. I wasn't gentle about it either. Have no fear the fuse terminals are secure!

 

Then I used my exacto blade and shaved off about 3/8 inch of the insulation without cutting the wire and then wrapped the DRL wire I wanted to connect around it and soldered the joint. I used electrical tape to re-wrap it but I really hate to. I prefer heat shrink tubing much more and plan on redoing it later.

 

I assume you are talking about the relays referenced in this image:

 

I don't have those and there are no connectors in the fuse box for me so I can't tell you how easy it is to access.

[12Edge]

Wow.... outstanding write up! Your install looks factory. Thanks for your contribution. I like the idea of not having to fully remove the front bumper to get the headlamps out.

 

Thanks, The real key to keeping the bumper on was leaving one side attached at the wheel well. It prevented the top from sliding forward enough to drop off the frame. In hind site I should have probably put something under the bottom to support it and maybe use a couple of zip ties in a large loop at the top to prevent it from moving too far forward.

[normcloutier]

Yes those are the relays. Wiring diagram shows pin 5 going to turn signal connector on trailer harness. Figure that would be a nice place to tie in the turn signal triggers for the EDGE2. I can't use the front turns as they are currently on as DRL.

 

I was going to conjure up some sort of adaptor to connect to the pin of the relay but if there is that much room under the fuse box, I would rather tie it in there and conceal all the wiring.

[12Edge]

Yes those are the relays. Wiring diagram shows pin 5 going to turn signal connector on trailer harness. Figure that would be a nice place to tie in the turn signal triggers for the EDGE2. I can't use the front turns as they are currently on as DRL.

 

I was going to conjure up some sort of adaptor to connect to the pin of the relay but if there is that much room under the fuse box, I would rather tie it in there and conceal all the wiring.

There is a lot of room directly under the fuse box inside the housing the top half with all the fuses attaches to. (again see the pic where I am just lifting it up) Especially closer to the front of the box because the wire gangs go out at the rear. The top part of the fuse box just sits on the lower half, it doesn't really drop down in to the bottom more than an 1/8 to 3/16 of an inch or so.

 

I have to ask, what is an Edge2 ? Google comes up with a dual monitor arm system and a motor cycle tail light!?

[normcloutier]

They are Dan's LED DRL/turn signal replacement for the lousy light pipes on the front of the 11 and up models.

 

http://drivebright.com/home/shop/ford-edge-led/

[12Edge]

Oh. I just tied my set in directly to the turn signal wires for the front of the car. The draw was so low it didnt cause an issue and if I pull out the actual signal bulb I get rapid blink indication that I am supposed to get.

[normcloutier]

My front turn signals are on during the day for DRL. If I connect the turn signal trigger to the front, the amber portion of the EGDE2 would be on all day.

[12Edge]

That is curious. The shop manual DVD I have says "ALL Models" for 2011-2013 but the wiring for the turn signals doesnt say anything special for Canada. I have 3 wires to the turn signal. Two hot wires, one for the parking light and one for the turn signal and a ground as shown below. There are 7 pages of diagrams for the turn signal and the only difference is if you have an edge or MKX?!

 

Edited December 9, 2013 by 12Edge

[normcloutier]

I have a non-HID equipped SEL which normally would have headlights as DRL in Canada. I am adding HID so I had my dealer switch my DRL function from headlights to front turn signal.

 

Since the front turn signals are ON during the day as DRL, I can't use it as a trigger. This is why I am investigating tying into the rear turn circuits in the fuse box.

[12Edge]

I have a non-HID equipped SEL which normally would have headlights as DRL in Canada. I am adding HID so I had my dealer switch my DRL function from headlights to front turn signal.

 

Since the front turn signals are ON during the day as DRL, I can't use it as a trigger. This is why I am investigating tying into the rear turn circuits in the fuse box.

I see. In case you don't have it I have added the wire diagram for the trailer lights from factory.

 

If you don't have the factory relays in the fuse box for trailer wiring I wouldn't add them just for the front lights. I would just tie in to the turn signal wires directly for the rear by routing two wires through the firewall. The fact is the LED's are so low power they use less than the relay would.

 

In the diagram where you see BCM it is behind the drivers side plastic panel under the dash. Its right there with the inside fusebox but you have to take the whole kickpanel out to get to it. The number for the wires, 12 and 15 are the wire number in the harness.

 

Oh and one more thing... if its the BCM connector I am thinking of it has a latch at the top attached to a pivot point so the latch has to be swung out before the connector can actually be pulled,

 

Good luck!

 

Edited December 9, 2013 by 12Edge

[normcloutier]

Where did you get coloured wiring diagrams? Do you have them on a disc?

[12Edge]

$24 http://www.ebay.com/itm/FORD-SHOP-MANUALS-ON-DVD-2012-2013-Oct-2013-RELEASE-INCLUDES-MUSTANG-302-/221333665298?pt=Motors_Manuals_Literature&hash=item338883b612

 

he has a set of 3 in a different auction that covers more years. It is the shop manual and electronics diagram for ALL models (or so it says) I have only looked at the edge info.

 

You also will have to dial back the date on your computer when it expires and you want to use it later on. A small price for to pay for $25.

 

It also has more details than I included. I tried to make it as generic as possible but it has circuit names and what is really awesome is when you are tracing a circuit the next part of it is a hyperlink to click on and it jumps around instead of the paper book (that I also have) that you have to flip pages for when you trace it to a new page number.

Edited December 10, 2013 by 12Edge