F150LEDs Bed Lighting For The Ranger

[r2ranger]

FYI - Use the white wire with the dark green strip in the wiring bundle under the door sill paneling on the driver's side (back seat door). That is the wire tied to the cargo lamp. So you can use the cargo lamp switch to activate the lights when you want. Bed lights will go out at 3mph or after 10 minutes if left on.

Anybody know which one of the wires in this bundle is the ground?

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[SVTPaul]

Anybody know which one of the wires in this bundle is the ground?

Apparently there is a convenient body ground location right in that area. I think either a stud or a hole you can put a bolt and nut through.

 

[r2ranger]

Apparently there is a convenient body ground location right in that area. I think either a stud or a hole you can put a bolt and nut through.

So i popped that panel off and the wire bundle is pretty tight. Didn’t see a good ground in there and it looks like it’s going to take a little fishing just to get the wire in there from the rubber grommet under the body. I might just opt for a switch in the bed using the 12v source from the wolfhaus adapter.

 

[SVTPaul]

So i popped that panel off and the wire bundle is pretty tight. Didn’t see a good ground in there and it looks like it’s going to take a little fishing just to get the wire in there from the rubber grommet under the body. I might just opt for a switch in the bed using the 12v source from the wolfhaus adapter.

You only need to get to the white wire with green stripe to get a posi-tap on it for power. I only used that specific type of tap for the first time a few weeks ago when installing the Amp powersteps and they are perfect for this application (tight space in a wire bundle, and inside the cab out of the elements). I bought some for the bedlight project as well. As for ground, if there's nothing convenient it looks like it would be easy to use an existing hole or drill a hole and mount a ring terminal with a bolt in the vertical sheet metal supporting the back seat, as referenced in this thread https://www.ranger5g.com/forum/threads/what-did-you-do-to-your-ranger-today.4696/post-307935
Alternatively I think there are some larger bolts in the floor toward the very back corner of the cab that you could ground a terminal under. Going from memory, I haven't sized things up yet.

 

[r2ranger]

I ended up just wiring the lights in the bed using the wolfhaus plug. Used a waterproof switch from Amazon that threaded perfectly into the existing hole in the bed. Works great and all wires hidden and routed within the bed.

 

[SVTPaul]

Here's my end result. Tapped into cargo lamp circuit with help from this thread and a few others. Also added a pair of Lux rock lights for courtesy lighting under the rear bumper area (also on the same circuit). I prefer the autonomy of things powering up when unlocking the truck or opening doors...or using the cargo light switch. For grounding, I used the outermost bolt at the back driver's side corner of the cab (as pictured) since it was easier than pulling back more carpet to find something or adding my own ground somewhere. It was also convenient to be able to tuck the wire under the trim so it's concealed out of sight.

 

[Kickstart]

I ended up just wiring the lights in the bed using the wolfhaus plug. Used a waterproof switch from Amazon that threaded perfectly into the existing hole in the bed. Works great and all wires hidden and routed within the bed.

Your lighting looks perfect! I'm doing the exact same thing and need to find a switch that fits that hole. Did you use a 16mm switch? Thanks!

 

[myothercarizahearse]

FYI - Use the white wire with the dark green strip in the wiring bundle under the door sill paneling on the driver's side (back seat door). That is the wire tied to the cargo lamp. So you can use the cargo lamp switch to activate the lights when you want. Bed lights will go out at 3mph or after 10 minutes if left on.

Thanks for the resurrect R2Ranger. I have been thinking about putting a light on the back of my Camper top that turns on when the cargo light comes on and the wiring has been holding me back. Thanks Steve. time to shop for a light

 

[r2ranger]

Your lighting looks perfect! I'm doing the exact same thing and need to find a switch that fits that hole. Did you use a 16mm switch? Thanks!

Yup! Ordered it off Amazon.

 

[doug910]

Here's my end result. Tapped into cargo lamp circuit with help from this thread and a few others. Also added a pair of Lux rock lights for courtesy lighting under the rear bumper area (also on the same circuit). I prefer the autonomy of things powering up when unlocking the truck or opening doors...or using the cargo light switch. For grounding, I used the outermost bolt at the back driver's side corner of the cab (as pictured) since it was easier than pulling back more carpet to find something or adding my own ground somewhere. It was also convenient to be able to tuck the wire under the trim so it's concealed out of sight.

I like the idea of tapping into the cargo lamp circuit, but I have two concerns.
1) I don't think the cargo lamp turns on when you open the tailgate, correct? It turns on when you either unlock with the key fob (which is convenient), or when you hit the cargo lamp button.
2) The cargo lamp is pretty dim, I'm not sure how many amps it pulls, but I am a little concerned that loading that circuit with an extra 5 amps might be a bit much. Any thoughts?

Thanks! Your setup looks great btw.

 

[SVTPaul]

I like the idea of tapping into the cargo lamp circuit, but I have two concerns.
1) I don't think the cargo lamp turns on when you open the tailgate, correct? It turns on when you either unlock with the key fob (which is convenient), or when you hit the cargo lamp button.
2) The cargo lamp is pretty dim, I'm not sure how many amps it pulls, but I am a little concerned that loading that circuit with an extra 5 amps might be a bit much. Any thoughts?

Thanks! Your setup looks great btw.

1) You are correct, the cargo lamp circuit is not activated by opening the tailgate. Some people on here have wired in a prox switch in the tailgate on a standalone circuit or in combination with the cargo lamp circuit. You could even do a 3 position switch for manual activation if you wanted. I was content with the cargo lamp alone.
2) The LED cargo light on my Lariat was actually fairly decent at lighting the bed...until I added a bed cover. I was also concerned about the extra current draw and had purchased everything I needed to wire in a relay, but once I saw plenty of others on here had tapped the circuit with no issues, I decided to do the same. I figured the circuit must be protected via stock fusing but did add an inline fuse right after the tap just in case a light shorts or a wire grounds. I was even less concerned once I saw how thin the wire gauge is that feeds the lights, much smaller than the cargo circuit wire in the harness. I left mine on for 10 min after installing to make sure it was okay, with no issues.
Thanks for the compliment

 

[doug910]

1) You are correct, the cargo lamp circuit is not activated by opening the tailgate. Some people on here have wired in a prox switch in the tailgate on a standalone circuit or in combination with the cargo lamp circuit. You could even do a 3 position switch for manual activation if you wanted. I was content with the cargo lamp alone.
2) The LED cargo light on my Lariat was actually fairly decent at lighting the bed...until I added a bed cover. I was also concerned about the extra current draw and had purchased everything I needed to wire in a relay, but once I saw plenty of others on here had tapped the circuit with no issues, I decided to do the same. I figured the circuit must be protected via stock fusing but did add an inline fuse right after the tap just in case a light shorts or a wire grounds. I was even less concerned once I saw how thin the wire gauge is that feeds the lights, much smaller than the cargo circuit wire in the harness. I left mine on for 10 min after installing to make sure it was okay, with no issues.
Thanks for the compliment

Exactly the info I was looking for, truly appreciate the insightful response Paul!. Wiring in an inline fuse after tapping into the cargo lamp circuit sounds like the correct solution for redundancy, I think I will do the same. Thank you!

 

[Mostly Harmless]

Decided to go with lights from F150LED also. Since the Retrax takes up some space in the back of the bed I decided to modify the spacing and configuration of the light pods. I cut two off and repositioned them to the back of the Retrax. Seemed to work and give even coverage. Tied the lights into the Aux panel on the tremor. Will probably add another switch that's always hot in the bed.

 

[GatorRanger]

Here's my end result. Tapped into cargo lamp circuit with help from this thread and a few others. Also added a pair of Lux rock lights for courtesy lighting under the rear bumper area (also on the same circuit). I prefer the autonomy of things powering up when unlocking the truck or opening doors...or using the cargo light switch. For grounding, I used the outermost bolt at the back driver's side corner of the cab (as pictured) since it was easier than pulling back more carpet to find something or adding my own ground somewhere. It was also convenient to be able to tuck the wire under the trim so it's concealed out of sight.

That looks awesome I think I may have to do that to mine that’s very clean and lights up everything nicely under the bumper is a nice touch

 

[f1loco]

1) You are correct, the cargo lamp circuit is not activated by opening the tailgate. Some people on here have wired in a prox switch in the tailgate on a standalone circuit or in combination with the cargo lamp circuit. You could even do a 3 position switch for manual activation if you wanted. I was content with the cargo lamp alone.
2) The LED cargo light on my Lariat was actually fairly decent at lighting the bed...until I added a bed cover. I was also concerned about the extra current draw and had purchased everything I needed to wire in a relay, but once I saw plenty of others on here had tapped the circuit with no issues, I decided to do the same. I figured the circuit must be protected via stock fusing but did add an inline fuse right after the tap just in case a light shorts or a wire grounds. I was even less concerned once I saw how thin the wire gauge is that feeds the lights, much smaller than the cargo circuit wire in the harness. I left mine on for 10 min after installing to make sure it was okay, with no issues.
Thanks for the compliment

What color wire did you tap into to hit the cab light switch? Where did you put the inline fuse at? Thanks.

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