A few years ago I became enamored with the Mustang's sequential turn signals, so I set out to do the same in my Fiero. I wanted to spend about $50, which I believe is feasible, but due to my poor planning and underestimation of the Fiero's light wiring I spent somewhere around $75-80. (Yeah, always read the wiring diagrams while planning, not halfway through installing...) At any rate I used an Arduino (programmable CPU board) and wrote a program to control it. In essence I can program my lights to do anything I want when the signals are on, brake is on, emergency flashers are on or any combination of those. To make this work, I had to use quite a bit of relays, because the Arduino runs on a range of 3-5V and the car lights are 12V. (Arduino would be fried if I gave a 12v input, and could not power the lights with its own 5v max. ) So three relays to intercept the inputs of brake, right signal and left signal. I bypassed all the clicker mechanisms, otherwise it wouldn't work properly. On the other side I used an 8 way relay board, made specifically for the Arduino. This was perfect because I needed 6 relays, 1 per light. Many of the Fiero brake lights/turning signal lights are originally connected, so I rewired them all as separate units so that I have full control over every light individually, side blinkers, front blinkers, taillights, etc. Since I didn't need then to actually all blink separately I connected several of those together at the Arduino relay board, but the possibility is there if I really wanted to. After much playing with the wiring I was finally able to get everything to work. I installed it in 2013 I think and the Arduino board failed fairly soon after that. I was very disappointed to say the least. I left it broken for a year, as I went abroad to study. Upon my return I fixed the system and its been working great for about a year since.
I will post a link to a video on youTube of it in action, taken last summer.
First is the left turn signal, then the right turn signal. After those is the brakes. I made a little pattern as the brakes go on and off. Following that is the left turn signal while brake is on. Each light stays lit until the sequence finishes as well as the opposite side brake light staying lit. (Note: my sister waving Hi many times haha) finally is the right turn signal with the brake on and then camera got glitchy and video becomes choppy. My apologies.
Not shown is the emergency flasher sequence which I made a special little pattern for as well.
Latest update:
[This message has been edited by liv4God (edited 10-20-2017).]
That's cool. I love tinkering with Arduinos, lot of fun and well supported with shields for just about everything you can think off so most often you don't even need to do any soldering, just plug, program and play. Iat some point I want to replace my simple backup camera setup with a combined backup camera/touch screen interface but I think I'll be using a Raspberry Pi for that as it has better graphics capabilities and hdmi output.
------------------ Anything I might say is probably worth what you paid for it, so treat it accordingly!
While nice.... Have taillight doing nonstandard behavior is a good way to have cops stopping you. Worse, If you pull hazards and use setting in the video... Could have big problem. Flashing color lights is a big no no in most places. Depending on state/local laws even firemen etc can't use any flashing light on personal vehicles.
Once stopped, or at inspection, they can/will look at DOT codes are on the OE cover. Having 3 stop/turn bulbs But DOT codes says 2 each isn't good. (DOT code strings explained... See my Cave, Lighbulbs at bottom.)
At minimum can get a warning, failed inspection or equipment ticket.
GM installed illegal light for 84 (3 bulbs but DOT code says 2 each side) but no-one bothered because all stop/turn bulbs are active at same time.
WebEelectric (an old PFF member and vendor) have "simple" Sequential turn signals that turns on in Sequence but turn off all at same time. Some products might be illegal or not depending DOT labels etc but that I know of... no-one have problems because how they work.
Main point is on the road keep lights acting normal or as WE and others for Sequential turn signals.
------------------ Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should. (Jurassic Park)
While nice.... Have taillight doing nonstandard behavior is a good way to have cops stopping you.
I definitely understand that. I don't know all of the rules for sure, but I have never been stopped before for the lights and plenty of highway patrol and other police have driven behind me while using them.
I wrote several different versions of the code, some as simple as the standard blinking and others with different variations of sequential with or without other types of patterns. To upload a different code I just have to plug in the Arduino to my laptop and load it in, so it is a fairly easy process (5 minutes max).
I guess what I'm saying is, in the instance that get pulled over I will accept my error and take the ticket or warning or whatever and then upload a less flashing type of code to comply with whatever the officer wanted so that I can pass the CHP brake and light check. But since it hasn't been a problem in a year+ of use I haven't bothered to change it.
Originally posted by liv4God: I definitely understand that. I don't know all of the rules for sure, but I have never been stopped before for the lights and plenty of highway patrol and other police have driven behind me while using them.
I wrote several different versions of the code, some as simple as the standard blinking and others with different variations of sequential with or without other types of patterns. To upload a different code I just have to plug in the Arduino to my laptop and load it in, so it is a fairly easy process (5 minutes max).
I guess what I'm saying is, in the instance that get pulled over I will accept my error and take the ticket or warning or whatever and then upload a less flashing type of code to comply with whatever the officer wanted so that I can pass the CHP brake and light check. But since it hasn't been a problem in a year+ of use I haven't bothered to change it.
Perhaps I'm being too careless on the matter?
Cops could ignore or stop you every time and Millions of reasons why can go either way. What problem(s) you get away w/ locally... Can get you stopped in another county or state. Other areas can/will stop "foreign" driver for any valid reason then fish for big tickets or arrest you.
Foreign doesn't mean Out of State. Say you live in LA... You drive to N CA someplace... Northern Cops see oddball lights and cranked cover so runs the plate. Light issues can paint a big target on you and now knows you're far from home.
When it comes to inspections, around here, as long as the horn and lights work and the wipers and tires are good, your car could be on fire and it would pass inspection! Until recently, you did not even have you have two working brake lights, one was good enough (a botched traffic stop caused them to change that) but even so I am not sure if the TWO requirements means two regular lights or one regular light and the third brake light. Basically it's all very vague and if a cop want to stop you, he will for any number of 'reasons'.
------------------ Anything I might say is probably worth what you paid for it, so treat it accordingly!
I think with the mustangs on the road having similar setups, you wont have a cop give you issues. Like you said if they do say there is something worong you can comply. On a fiero, more visible is better.
[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 03-10-2016).]
I stumbled across this nearly year old post while searching for something else. Thought I would put in my .02 for what it's worth.
Technically it's illegal to make ANY modifications to the DOT approved OEM lights on ANY street driven car. This includes LED 'replacement' bulbs or even brighter incandescent bulbs. Changing the function would also definitely be a no-no.
I went down this rabbit hole when I was considering mods to my OEM '85 GT tails. Looked into DOT regulations regarding tail and brake lights and unless you are a lighting engineer there is no way to know if any mods are 'legal'.
That being said, I would take to court and argue any ticket/fine if my modifications actually enhanced safety without creating any unintended hazzards.
As a side note, I have heard Ford had to 'work around' DOT regs to be able to keep the sequential tails on Mustangs.
Unless cops/inspections have equipment for FMVSS 108 testing... Very unlikely...
Switching 2057, 1157, and 2357 won't cause problems on many cars. 2357 is not too brighter vs 2057 for anyone to care. (Note 3xxx numbers are same bulb w/ 2 or 3 pin "wedge" base.) If used 2057 but OE is 2357 then some cars are noticeable dimmer and cause other drivers to have problems seeing your brake/turn light during the day. If used 1157 or 2357 but OE is 2057 like Fiero very likely no one will notice or bother because 2357 specs are only +1 and +8 MCS brighter and 1157 +1 MCS only for taillight side. You will see 2357 turn on for brake/turn faster vs 1157 and 2057 and may cause flasher can problems because draws more amps. (Thermo flashers are sensitive to amp used by bulbs.)
Caution: 2357 w/ Amber turn signal like Fiero GT can blind other drivers at night, worse then 2057/1157. Red lenses doesn't blind most people. (Color light affecting night vision is a known issue covered many times here and elsewhere. Use Google.)
Aftermarket LED as PnP replacements for all External light w/ normal bulbs are often way too bright or dim and/or cause weird colors and all could get you stopped. Even Halogen bulbs are too bright for most external use even ignoring can melt the fixtures. (Aftermarket Halogen Backup lights are only on to back up and often doesn't have time to heat up to melt the fixture.)
Mustang's and other OEM turn signals turn on Sequential only, off at same time. I believe many to all Brake lights are all on or off. Add "simple" Sequential turn signals like WE site and others won't cause problem most times because turn on Sequential only, off at same time. When you do odd often anoiding lights like above video you will standout but often not in a good way. You might even have people calling 911 for act as fake cop etc.
To date law enforcement has never said anything about the lights. I'm not saying they won't or couldn't, but haven't yet. I've been stopped for other things, like headlight out or driving too fast (oops) and even then with the lights in action right in front of them as I was pulled over never even been mentioned. At any rate, since so many people were concerned about it, I recently built in a switch that if I toggle it, will immediately switch the lights to the standard blinking pattern.
Originally posted by liv4God: To date law enforcement has never said anything about the lights. I'm not saying they won't or couldn't, but haven't yet. I've been stopped for other things, like headlight out or driving too fast (oops) and even then with the lights in action right in front of them as I was pulled over never even been mentioned. At any rate, since so many people were concerned about it, I recently built in a switch that if I toggle it, will immediately switch the lights to the standard blinking pattern.
May not Say anything but never think they didn't notice you. Example: White LED over 4500°K color temp can look pink to purple under Red Lenses and many cops notice them even when they don't say so.
When cops have 2 or more speeders and lights do odd things, weird colors, and so on for one of them then that one is more likely going to get stopped.
Why? Speeding Tickets have bigger to huge fines with Points while problems w/ lights are often a "equipment violation" w/ low fines and no points in most places. While you may have money to burn paying fines, Points stay on you license of years and that can be huge problems to many like Insurance can be cancel or huge price increases. If you fix the equipment problem then go to count, many judges will simple void the ticket and most cops know that. Even when police agencies say no quota here, state/city records every ticket and can effect promotions etc when a cop's history get reviewed.
How go you know that? I work with and for cops doing several jobs and this is what many tell me. I'm not just making this up.
[This message has been edited by theogre (edited 02-28-2017).]
I drove for years with a full LED array in my notchie tail lights and never once got flagged for it. The coloring and pattern were within DOT legal requirements for stop/turn/park lights though the actual light source was not.
The point has been made... "Beware, you can get in trouble for this."... Otherwise, it looks great, drive on until such time as you get nailed for it.
Wow, very nice job, I see its an old tread, but I just saw it after it resurfaced. I have been wanting to do something like this with my Fast Back tail lights sometime down the road.
The "DOT Police" will jump into just about every thread that remotely has to do with changing headlights, mirrors, tail lights Brake upgrades ect ect.... They will make the point, and then beat it into the ground over and over, and over and over again, mostly repeating the same thing over and over in the same thread, such as this one.
When I make a post / thread like this one, I now actually put a disclaimer in the post saying there is no need for the DOT police here, as I am fully aware of the changes and the ramifications that potentially apply.
[This message has been edited by JohnWPB (edited 03-01-2017).]
I've had a few members asking some questions and showing interest about possibly doing this themselves, so I will post some instructions here as best as I can, so that anyone who may be interested now or in the future can have some more info. And also I can save myself time by writing it once instead of many times by PM lol
First off though, use at your own risk! Bad things can happen when tampering with brake and turn signal lights. I am not responsible for any issues, injury, fines or whatever else could happen as a result of using this. Otherwise, have fun and make your lights cool!
The basics for the job are this: 1. Find the turn indicator wires under the dash. 2. Cut those and tap into the side going to the switch, cap the other side. 3. Remove the flasher unit, as well as the one for the emergency flasher and put a jumper wire in. 4. Disconnect the wire that powers the brake lights 5. Splice into the wire that goes to the third brake light. 6. Now you have your input wires for R/L turn and brake. These wires will go to the 3 12V relays 7. Connect the Arduino to the Arduino relay and to the 3 12V relays. It can be nice to make a mounting plate or box to put these in. 8. Choose a location to mount, I found the back trunk ideal so that the wires from unit to taillights are shorter. Although that does mean that the wires from the inputs have to be longer from under dash to back of the car. 9. Disconnect all the wires from the high power on the back lights, side marker and front marker lights. If this is not done then lights are still connected to each other and will ruin the sequential patter. (Note: do not disconnect the low power wires. if you turn your lights on, everything should still come on as intended, we do not mess with the running lights in any way. But turn signal and brake will do nothing at this point except 3rd brake light.) 10. Put wires from the Arduino relay to the back lights and marker lights in the place of the power wires that were disconnected in the previous step. This will require some extensive wire routing especially to the front markers, and if added a mirror marker light. 11. Add a way to power the Arduino. It is 3.5V-5V, so I found using a car USB charger a good option, especially because I can then quickly pull the USB, plug into my computer and upload another program if I ever want to change things.
That's pretty much it. The diagram will hopefully help things make better sense. I will try to get some pictures and what not for better detail. And hopefully I didn't forget anything. It's been almost 4 years since I installed it, so there may be some things forgotten. I know its not the simplest way, but it is definitely a do-it-yourself method and really lets you do anything with your lights if you can program it.
[This message has been edited by liv4God (edited 03-13-2017).]
Are the arduino learning kits the way to go for a newbie?
The learning kits would definitely be a good option, especially if you want to tinker, make other projects etc, since they come with a number of different modules, sensors and what not. You can do all kinds of fun stuff with Arduinos. I made an automatic sprinkler once that watered the lawn based on the moisture in the dirt instead of just a timer. That way it only watered the grass when it really needed it.
So anyway, the kit could be a lot of fun and comes with pretty much everything you will need Arduino wise, except for the relay module. However it is a little more pricy, so if you don't plan to try anything else with it you could probably be fine just getting the parts you need and then use an online tutorial to learn how to use it.
Feel free to ask me any questions too, I'm sure it can help others as well.
I guess it is easy to ask you than search for the answer. I appreciate the help offer. The Aruduino has 6 inputs, can this be multiplied by say applying voltage to 2 inputs or various inputs to add a lighting mode?
The Aruduino has 6 inputs, can this be multiplied by say applying voltage to 2 inputs or various inputs to add a lighting mode?
Yes, you can use any combo of input pins to make more options. For example if there are only three input pins lets call them input1, input2 and input3. You could do something like this:
Which will give you 8 different combos from 3 inputs! Then you could use 3 toggle switches to control which inputs are high or low. You could make up to 64 different options using 6 pins, although not recommended lol
You can also use the && operator in the if statement like:
code:
if(input1 == 1 && input2 ==1) //do option1
[This message has been edited by liv4God (edited 03-22-2017).]
Good because I really want to do something similar to this. Plan to get a Camaro this year if this new job comes about. I know they are using a different controller but I also figure it is not just one relay box because all of the separate lighting configurations.
Thanks for the help. Which tutorial do you recommend using? Are the relays noisy?
Good because I really want to do something similar to this. Plan to get a Camaro this year if this new job comes about. I know they are using a different controller but I also figure it is not just one relay box because all of the separate lighting configurations.
Thanks for the help. Which tutorial do you recommend using? Are the relays noisy?
The relays are not too noisy, probably comparable to the ting-ting of the turning signal flasher. I have the Arduino and relays in the back trunk so I never hear them, but if they were inside I would assume you could hear them.
Years ago I had to use the Arduino as part of a class, so I learned there and thus never used a tutorial so I'm not sure which would be best.
The lighting in that video was pretty sweet, I'd love to see what you end up making!
Hello all! A new update to my sequential turn signals! I added functionality for 1 tap to pass. This is where tapping on the turn signal lever once will cycle through the pattern 4 times. It's useful when changing lanes. Lots of new cars have this. Check it out in action on my video here!
[This message has been edited by liv4God (edited 10-20-2017).]
Very cool. Where are you hiding all the relays? (sorry if i missed it)
I made a mounting cage that contains all the relays, Arduino, fuse, and wire connections. Its about 4"x5"x1" and I mounted that in the rear compartment on the back wall passenger side under the carpet.
Hello all! A new update to my sequential turn signals! I added functionality for 1 tap to pass. This is where tapping on the turn signal lever once will cycle through the pattern 4 times. It's useful when changing lanes. Lots of new cars have this. Check it out in action on my video here!
I noticed the lights one at a time. Im glad you updated that. I think when i do mine, i'll just use one LED in the mirror. (more resistance?)
I built my sequential tail lights from a plan that I bought back in 2002 off the internet. I still have the plans. Although I have been stopped by the police, it has never been for the tail lights. If the police were stopping people for having 3 tail lights flash, then they would be pulling over a lot of Mustang drivers as they have sequential tail lights on a lot of their cars.
I noticed the lights one at a time. Im glad you updated that. I think when i do mine, i'll just use one LED in the mirror. (more resistance?)
My original plan was that the lights would light one at a time under normal signaling and then stay lit when braking and signaling. Eventually I decided it looked better keeping them lit through the pattern, so I switched it to do that all the time.
You mean one led as opposed to the strand? I'd like to see how it comes out! I'm not sure how resistance would be affected, you can probably find single leds with a wide variety of resistances to meet your design.
[This message has been edited by liv4God (edited 11-01-2017).]
I built my sequential tail lights from a plan that I bought back in 2002 off the internet. I still have the plans. Although I have been stopped by the police, it has never been for the tail lights. If the police were stopping people for having 3 tail lights flash, then they would be pulling over a lot of Mustang drivers as they have sequential tail lights on a lot of their cars.
To date, it has never been mentioned by police. But I have been pulled over for speeding, while being passed by another car who did not get pulled over, so maybe it was the flshy lights that caught the officer's eye. No way to prove it one way or the other.
Very cool. I just got around to rewelding those drop corvette adaptors I got from you so as soon as I am done feel free to take my northstar and do the lights. Send me a bill.LOL
This has been an introduction to the Arduino for me. I'm a DIY hacker myself, this just makes my project way cooler and funner if that's a word!
Thanks good job!
Glad it was useful!
quote
Originally posted by pokeyfiero:
Very cool. I just got around to rewelding those drop corvette adaptors I got from you so as soon as I am done feel free to take my northstar and do the lights. Send me a bill.LOL
Hey, good to hear you got those drop spindles welded up. I'd totally be up for doing your lights! Unfortunately I'm out of the country for work now and probably won't be back home until next year.
