like the retained accessory power (rap) in your GM vehicle? dont like how some of the circuits out there seem to operate from their description? like that 2 relay one from the12volt.com. well you can use a GM product to achieve the GM results you are so familure with. the module comes from our friends the 4th gen F-bodies. much easier to install than having to play around with some loose relays. im sure you can score one of these modules dirt cheap or free! i know i can.
Installing Retained Accessory Power in a GEN 1 W-body This is to help you install Retained Accessory Power (also know as RAP) into your 1988-1996 GEN 1 w-body.
First of all, RAP makes it so that when you turn your key off, the RADIO stays on until either you OPEN A DOOR, or 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, it automatically shuts down until you turn the key back on and off.
It is a feature that a lot of newer cars come with, and I know that it is a feature that I have always wanted.
You will need the RAP module out of a 1994-1997 Chevy Camaro, or Pontiac Firebird. If you want to check the RPO codes to see if the car has it, the code is AU3. The module is located on the interior, behind the dash. You can get to it from the drivers’ side of the car. Just reach up behind the dash, towards the center of the car near the gas pedal. It is in a pocket built into the rubber matting on the firewall.
You will also need a 3 amp Isolation Diode.
First of all, there are some minor differences between the F-body wiring, and the W-body wiring. When it is fully wired into the W-body, when the door is opened, the radio will turn off IMMEDIATELY, however the power windows (or whichever option you choose to add) will remain active for 45 seconds AFTER the door is closed. Meaning, I can go out to my car RIGHT NOW, open the door, and IMMEDIATE have power to my windows WITHOUT turning the key on. That is how I chose to wire my car, and that is how I will describe the install. On the Camaro module, the RADIO fuse, and the WINDOW circuit breaker is COMBINED on the same circuit, but on the W-body, they are separate. Also, on the F-body, the POWER ACCESSORY fuse is only HOT IN RUN or with RAP active, whereas on the W-body, the POWER ACCESSORY fuse/circuit breaker is HOT AT ALL TIME.
This is what the module looks like out of the Camaro. It has 7 wires coming out of it. If you get the module out of an F-body and it has only 4 or 5 wires, that is not the correct one.
These are the wires on the unit.
A. PINK – PWR ACCY fuse B. DARK BLUE – RADIO, and WINDOWS circuit breaker C. RED – HOT AT ALL TIMES D. BROWN – IGNITION SWITCH E. BLACK – GROUND F. YELLOW/BLACK – coolant light G. GRAY/BLACK – door pin switch
This is what you will need to do to add it to your car.
Just so you know, all wiring diagram information is taken from the 1994 Chevy Camaro Service Manual, and all of the W-body wiring is taken from a 1993 Cutlass Supreme Service Manual, so there may be some difference due to year of the car.
Choose a good place to mount it. My car is a 1988 Cutlass Supreme, so I mounted it next to the fuse panel located on the passenger side under the dash and over the convenience center. Most of the wires are taken from the fuse block, and convenience center anyways.
A. PINK – PWR ACCY fuse.
On the Cutlass Supreme, the PWR ACCY circuit breaker is HOT AT ALL TIMES, and therefore does not need to be messed with, however unlike the F-body, our RADIO, and WINDOWS circuit breaker are not combined on the same power wire. I used the PINK WIRE to power the WINDOWS circuit breaker.
When you are looking at the Convenience Center, the THIRD Circuit Breaker is for the POWER WINDOWs. You will need to pull the center out (2 screws that are under it that you get to behind the block. I think they are 5.5mm), and remove the rear cover (just squeeze the two tabs, and slide it off).
CUT the ORANGE/BLACK wire for the circuit breaker, and attach it to the PINK wire from the module (attach it so that the PINK WIRE is going into the CIRCUIT BREAKER). The ORANGE/BLACK wire is HOT IN RUN from the ignition switch, and the PINK wire is the one that goes to the switches. The end of the wire that is left (on the car side, not the circuit breaker side), tape it up so that it is secured. The circuit breaker should now be attached to the RAP, and not the cars wiring. B. DARK BLUE – RADIO wire.
There are 2 wires on the RADIO fuse. A BROWN one, and a YELLOW one. On MINE, the BROWN wire goes to 2 fuses, so it might not be right there with the yellow wire. On the BACK of the FUSE BLOCK, just cut the BROWN wire is across from, or shared with other wires for the RADIO fuse (when you look at the back of the fuse block, you will understand. The brown wire is a SHARED wire). Just cut it, and connect the FUSE SIDE of the brown wire to the DARK BLUE wire on the RAP module. The Cut end will be connected to wire D on the RAP.
C. RED – POWER.
For this, I just tapped into one of the HOT AT ALL TIMES wires in the back of the FUSE BLOCK. Just splice into it, and tape it up. I soldered mine so that there is no possibility of failure in the future.
D. BROWN – Ignition wire for HOT IN RUN.
You remember that BROWN wire we CUT from the RADIO fuse? The BROWN wire is connected to wire D on the RAP (and the FUSE part of the wire is connected to wire B). So both of those wires are now taken care of.
E. BLACK – GROUND.
Find a good spot, and ground it. Use a known good ground, or tap into a good ground. It is a small wire, so you can tap into ANY ground as long as it is not a switched ground. I tapped into the Ground for the CHIME MODULE (doing a continuity test to make sure it is a ground).
F. YELLOW/BLACK – Coolant light.
This is for the COOLANT LIGHT LATCHING feature, and you do not have to hook it up at all. What the RAP module does, is if your COOLANT LIGHT (or any other warning light) is TURNED ON, the RAP module does not allow it to turn off until the KEY is turned off. Basically, when the COOLANT light comes on, it LATCHES the light into the ON position. You know how with a W-body, the light will come on, and as the car warms up, it will turn off? It will not turn off with it hooked up. It is a safety feature to alert you of a potential problem in the event of a light turning on (so that there is less risk of ignoring it). IF you want to add this wire, located whichever light you want it to work for, and just tap into it. It does not have to be a connection by itself. I just tapped into wire D14 – YELLOW/BLACK on the BASE digital, or ANALOG GAUGES cluster. It is not needed, and you only need to do it if you want it. I did.
G. GRAY/BLACK – door jamb switches.
This is the hardest one to do. First of all, a little about diodes. When you look at the diode, you will notice that one end has a silver band around it. Think of that silver band as a DOOR. It will allow electrical current to LEAVE the diode, but not ENTER.
When you install the diode, you have to do it in such a way that the RAP is connected to the DOORS, but not the interior lights. UNFORTUNANTLY, the diode can NOT go between the RAP, and the doors. It has to go between the RAP, and the LIGHTS. To do this, I had to run new wires for the door jambs.
I cut the WHITE WIRES coming out of the back of BOTH of the DOOR JAMB SWITCHES, and connected a wire to BOTH of them (connected the DRIVERS door switch to the PASSENGER door switch with the two wires connecting close to the RAP module.
I then did the same to the ends that I cut that go to the LIGHTS (so that they were also over by the RAP module). I now had the DOOR JAMBS, and the LIGHTS on SEPARATE wires, but all I would have to do is connect the two together to complete the circuit..
The DOOR JAMB wires, I then connected to the RAP, and soldered them together (the DOOR JAMBS, and the RAP are now connected together, but the INTERIOR LIGHTS are not connected).
I installed the DIODE to the RAP/DOOR JAMBS wires so that the SILVER BAND on the DIODE was TOWARDS the RAP, and DOOR JAMBS.
The OTHER END of the DIODE was then connected to the INTERIOR LIGHTS wire. This will complete the circuit so that the RAP, and door jambs are connected, and the interior lights will work fine, however, when the interior lights are turned on, it will not send power into the RAP module. If you put the diode between the RAP, and the DOOR JAMBS, then it would not allow the unit to turn off when the doors are opened.
After all of this is done, test everything out. Everything should work fine, and like normal when the car is ON. With the door CLOSED, when you turn the key off, the radio should stay ON, and the power windows should still work.
When you open a door, the radio should turn OFF, however the windows should still work. AFTER you shut the doors, the windows will turn off in about 45 seconds to a minute.
noteI did not write this, one of my best friends had done it. I will be doing this to both my van and Cutlass.
so go nuts, have fun. and enjoy this modern luxury!
Rodney used to sell full time power window kits. I use them on both of my Fiero's. Comes in handy, especially when you're in and out of your car a lot at car shows.
Not sure why you need to have the radio playing when you turn the key off though. All you have to do is turn the key to the acc position. My Reatta has this although when you open the door the radio goes off and the power antenna goes down.
Kit
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02:34 AM
Rodney Member
Posts: 4715 From: Caledonia, WI USA Registered: Feb 2000
Years ago I bought a new 98 Chevy S-10. It had this feature. I tracked it down and found the relay that controlled it and put a small piece of paper in the relay contact to eliminate it. I hated it. When I turn the key off in my car or truck I want everything to shut off.
------------------ Rodney Dickman
Fiero Parts And Acc's Web Page: www.rodneydickman.com Rodney Dickman's Fiero accessories 7604 Treeview Drive Caledonia, WI 53108 Phone/Fax (262) 835-9575
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06:59 AM
americasfuture2k Member
Posts: 7131 From: Edmond, Oklahoma Registered: Jan 2006
I don't find this feature so appealing. So if I shut my igniton off and want to listen to the radio, I just turn the key to the accessory position-done. Really how much work do you save- a twist of the finger??????
------------------ " THE BLACK PARALYZER" -87GT 3800SC Series III engine, 3.4" Pulley, N* TB, LS1 MAF, Flotech Exhaust Autolite 104's Custom CAI 4T65eHD w. custom axles, HP Tuners VCM Suite. "THE COLUSSUS" 87GT - ALL OUT 3.4L Turbocharged engine, Garrett Hybrid Turbo, MSD ign., modified TH125H " ON THE LOOSE WITHOUT THE JUICE "
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11:27 PM
Xanth Member
Posts: 6886 From: Massachusetts Registered: May 2006
I've heard often enough of people locking their keys in the car with the keys in the "ACC" position because they were listening to the radio or something then shut it off and hopped out without thinking.
This could help prevent that sort of deal, since you can take the keys and put them in your pocket but still listen to the radio before its time to go.
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11:29 PM
Jul 24th, 2009
el_roy1985 Member
Posts: 295 From: Bismarck, ND, USA Registered: Jun 2004
I like it because it allows me to take the key out while rolling down the windows. Also, sometimes I shut the car off and still want to hear what the person on the radio is saying, but only for a few more moments. Then I can just wait till after I hear what I want to hear before I open the door, keys in hand and ready to go.
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12:48 AM
americasfuture2k Member
Posts: 7131 From: Edmond, Oklahoma Registered: Jan 2006
what i like is it gives you the control to roll your windows up or down with the car already off. real handy if your doing some sort of work on it and you dont want the fuel pump priming. and besides, you gotta turn the ign to "run" to do such thing. if your tryn to movie quick about something, you could forget about it and that could drain your battery since its supplying power to the whole car.
On my 2002 Silverado I wired the electric windows so they are always on. My 2002 Silverado will also not let you lock your keys in your truck. If you leave the keys in the ignition and lock and close the doors the locks open up instantly. I bet most or all GM cars and trucks from this age and up have this feature. In my 98 S-10 I always thought that I forgot to turn the engine off since the radio was still playing. I hated it so much I took my dash half apart looking how to turn that off. There might have been an easier way but I found a way. Younger people may like it but others like myself who have driven cars/trucks many decades may not like it. When I bought my 2002 Silverado I was glad it did not have it!!
------------------ Rodney Dickman
Fiero Parts And Acc's Web Page: www.rodneydickman.com Rodney Dickman's Fiero accessories 7604 Treeview Drive Caledonia, WI 53108 Phone/Fax (262) 835-9575
Rodney used to sell full time power window kits. I use them on both of my Fiero's. Comes in handy, especially when you're in and out of your car a lot at car shows.
Not sure why you need to have the radio playing when you turn the key off though. All you have to do is turn the key to the acc position. My Reatta has this although when you open the door the radio goes off and the power antenna goes down.
Kit
I used to really slobber over a Reatta. I still could.
