Radio Light Dimming Wire

[N_WOF]

Hello,

I got a flash new radio off eBay the other day, connected it all up and it works great. While I was wiring it in, there was a feed to radio which somehow senses the headlights being on and dims the head-unit lights accordingly. I thought I wouldn't bother with any of that, but having driven at night now, the new radio lights up the inside of the truck quite spectacularly!

Does anybody know what head-units expect to find on this wire? Is it just a 12V feed from the headlight circuit? I'd experiment with it, but I don't want to blow the head-unit up

Any thoughts will be much appreciated,

Thanks,

Paul

[Badrs]

look for a 12v feed on radio multi-plug when switching side lights on .with out side lights on it will show up as an earth.think its a black wire ?

[N_WOF]

Thanks for that - unfortunately, somebody has long since cut the plugs off my 4Runner, but I've got a few loose wires behind the head unit, so I'll have a go at them with my multimeter.

Cheers,

Paul

[darkdezigns]

disconnect stereo,move permanat live and switch live out the way,put ignition on,sidelights on,put yr multimeter neg on sumthin earth and then go thru one by one looking for 12v then double check u got the right one by flicking lights off,make sure feed goes.
I can't remember which wire does it for the life of me tho,but there is def one there,i could be wrong but i feeling it's orange

[N_WOF]

Thanks for that - I've actually got an orange wire hanging about the place, so perhaps that's it.

I just wanted to check that it was definitely a 12V signal I'm looking for...

Cheers,

Paul

[Badrs]

yer a 12v signal,when you find one just switch lights on and off check its right one

[wishbone]

If you can't find a wire in the stereo loom just scotch-lok the illum cable on the head unit to the feed for the cig lighter light.

[darkdezigns]

If you can't find a wire in the stereo loom just scotchlock the illum cable on the head unit to the feed for the cig lighter light.

sorry but if u use those u r asking for trouble,solder pref if not use inline connectors,pref with some heat shrink over them

[wishbone]

Never had a problem with them - what's gone wrong for you ?

Rob.

[darkdezigns]

Never had a problem with them - what's gone wrong for you ?

Rob.

the conact corrodes,the plastic goes brittle,they fall apart,the cables fall out,seriously try not to use them,they are only ok for a temp repair,seriously u wont find a mechanic/technition/auto electrician that would ever recomend them,they will work fine for a while,but not that long

[wishbone]

Blimey ! That's quite a list.

I've had a lot of old cars that had really badly crimped bullet / spade connectors (a slight tug on the wire and it pops straight out) but thats down to the bodgers trying to use pliers or those really cheap crimpers. Never seen a scotch fall apart but I suppose if you tried to reuse them a few times they'd wear out / break.

I'd be happy to use one in a low current, behind the dash application, but each to their own.

Rob.

[rainmaker02]

scotchloks can also cut through the wire (if its too large in the first place) and cause hot spots.
As the man said, temporary repair only. Only takes 2 minutes to solder a connection properly, and it takes up less room and looks neat.

[darkdezigns]

Blimey ! That's quite a list.

I've had a lot of old cars that had really badly crimped bullet / spade connectors (a slight tug on the wire and it pops straight out) but thats down to the bodgers trying to use pliers or those really cheap crimpers. Never seen a scotch fall apart but I suppose if you tried to reuse them a few times they'd wear out / break.

I'd be happy to use one in a low current, behind the dash application, but each to their own.

Rob.

yep love those pound shop crimpers lol,ive always used ratchet crimpers,like u say each to their own tho,i just wouldn't ever use a scotch

[Ava_Banana]

Did you find out what wire it was?

[N_WOF]

Hiya,

I've not had a chance yet - my truck was in the paint shop all weekend, having a hole in the side of it (bit of a gate event) fixed... Hopefully, I'll get a chance to have a look at it on the weekend.

cheers,

Paul