I'm not sure exactly , it was a site from asia somewhere. all I know for sure is the little package said "mugen power" on it. my guess is that its aluminum.

 

This is awesome...Im doing this

 

hey. this is exactly what i have been looking for.

the only problem (for me) is that I have a base model, so my dome light doesnt fade (stupid i know), and i also dont want to have any power draw when the car is off (even if it is as small as the led), just because i dont necesarily drive it every day, and dont want to worry about a dead battery if i didnt drive it for a few days or something.

i was wondering if there is any way to wire it so that it would be on while the car was unlocked, and off while the car was locked, so that when not in use (and theoretically locked) the ring would be off. I dont have keyless entry, and was wondering if anyone had any idea how to do this.

if not I may just wire it with the lights, as it is fairly easy to turn the lights on in the dark

thanks for the thread! great info.

 

ok, so i was able to reach a compromise with myself. i was only able to wire it up so that the key light turns on with the parking lights, but for some reason turns off with the headlights. i tried many combinations of wires, and this was the best i could do. if anyone knows how to keep it on with the headlights (and off with them off) let me know. in the meantime here is a pic. for anyone that wants it wired to their lights (as opposed to always on or wired with the dome)

this is the plug that goes to the lights/turn signals.

pos. wire goes to brown/ yellow
neg. wire goes to blue



sorry for crappy pic, cam. sucks

 

i wouldnt mind going for a red one

 

also, if anyone figures out how to have it work with the headlights too plz let me know, as i think it looks better always on (when im in the car that is)

 

It took me a whole year to finally find the perfect day to dedicate time to my Fit. So I installed my keyring LED. Oh! I am soooo happy with this little perfect gadjet. Grâce à la LED, this Fit turned into a luxurious car!

Many thanks to Koolkevin, Fit of Rage, Lubricus and all others who volunteer their comments and experience. You guys make this forum a spirited mine of information.

Thanks again

 

I am posting this since there is a renewed interest in this mod. I designed this circuit a while back. I hooked it up to the driver's side door switch. When I open the door, the ring light turns on. When the the key is turned, the power is automatically cut off. After closing the door, if the key is not turned, the RC delay keeps the light on for about 30 seconds. One nice feature of this circuit is that it draws no power when it is off.

The +12V/Batt is connected to the power in the steering column. The ground is connected to the big black/yellow wire. (I hope I got the color is right. I am doing this from memory and I don't want to open up the cover to check.) This wire is actually ground when the key is out and +12V when the key is turned. At least that's the case in the 2007 base.


Here's the PCB layout.



Before final assembly.



Ready for installation



I made 2 modification to the light ring to get more even illumination around the ring. First, there is a light bridge to avoid a dark section near the LEDs. Second, I added a reflector made from a mylar candy wrapper. Here's the light "bridge" by itself. It is just an extra piece of tubing.



I bought all of the electronic components from Radio Shack. They should be readily available. Both relays are 12V normally open reed relays. The diodes are 1N4001. The exact diode type is not important since they only carry a tiny current. The fuse should be inside an inline fuse holder as close to the power connection as possible. I zip tied mine to the wire bundle near the key switch connector.

If you decide to build this circuit, you can test it before installation by hooking it up to a 12VDC power supply. Just short the door switch wire to ground to trigger.

 

wOw u are talented....can you make me one ?

 

someone post where i can get those LED rings?

i suppose i can make one out of tubing, but be much easier.

 

I'm sorry but I'm out, maybe koolkevin can tell you where he got his...

 

dang... well, i made my homemade one last night. not sure how it will look yet.
i need to tape the outside of the LED's to make it more diffused.

 

do you have a better pic of what exactly you did with the light ring?

 

Sorry, no photo of the taped area. It's just 2 LEDs with lots of hot glue holding everything in shape. Not much different from what others have done. I put globs of hot glue and then shaved it down to the thickness of the tubing. The tape is there to hold the wires in place. The resistor is on the PCB.

 

so did you install it on your car already? Any night pics of how it looks with the bridge?

 

It has been installed for more than a year. Here's what is looks like.

 

For those of you who asked for more information, you don't need to make a PCB. You can just use a perfboard instead. Here is a part list for Radio Shack:

Radio Shack
Part # Description QTY
-----------------------------------------------------------
270-1803 Project box 1
276-1395 Pre-Punched IC-Spacing Perfboard 1
275-233 0.5-Amp SPST Reed Relay at 12VDC 2
276-1653 Rectifier Diodes (25-Pack) 1
276-2016 2N3904 NPN Small Signal Transistor 1
270-1238 5-Amp Inline Fuse Holder for 5x20mm Fuses 1
270-1052 2.0A 250V 5x20mm Fast-Acting Glass Fuse 1
272-1048 2200µF Axial-Lead Electrolytic Capacitor 1 271-1311 100 ohm resistor 1
271-1315 330 ohm resistor 1
271-1120 1.5K ohm resistor 1

Here is a very brief how to for those who are not familiar with building electronic circuits:

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: The following information is provided for educational purpose only. I am in no way responsible for your actions. Please test any modifications you make to your car before driving it.

* Cut a piece of the perfboard to fit inside the project box.

* Plug components through the perfboard holes based on the locations of the PCB artwork and pictures posted before. Spread the component leads slightly on the other side to keep them in place before soldering. The yellow outlines are components on top of the board. The green traces are metal on the bottom of the board. The traces look exactly like the artwork if the board is transparent, but would be a mirror image if you flip it over.

* Cut pieces of wire in place of the green trace. Strip both ends and solder to the component leads. Cut off excess lead when you have finished soldering.

* Pay attention to the diode and capacitor polarity. The leads are not interchangeable. You can use any diode from the mixed pack for any diode in the circuit.

* Test the circuit by supplying 12V to the power and ground. The light turns on whenever you touch the door switch wire to ground. The turn off delay starts when you remove the switch wire from ground.

* The 330 ohm resistor controls the current going through the LEDs. That value is for 20 mA going through 2 3.5V LEDs.

* The 2200 uF capacitor and 1.5K ohm resistor form the timing element. The delay is about 30 seconds. Different values will yield different delays.

* For GD3 (mine is 2007) Fits, you can tap into the driver door switch behind the instrument cluster. Remove the gauge bezel and the gauge awning (the round pieces that provide shading). You should see 3 connectors. Connector A pin 14 (green wire, 4th wire from the left, bottom row) is the door switch. Connector A is the 20-pin connector in the middle. You can also try to find the door switch wire near the switch itself.

 

fit7ad, u da man thanks a bunch for part list and other 411. I for one greatly appreciate your efforts. peace

I just remembered something I seen on a Japanese fit site. its to get More light from the ring without adding more led's. they took the plastic around the keyhole off and sanded it by wrapping sandpaper around a slightly tapered condiment bottle and twisting it around. the result was quite nice being uniformly round. hope this may help some. I know I'll be doing it like that when I get around to getting this project completed. I've had my Mugen metal keyhole surround for ages . need to get busy.

 

nice, thank you...

 

Good Sir,

I have recently purchased a new 2009 Honda FIT and would love to have one of your ignition switch light emitting led rings.
It is very generous of you to do this, and it is sincerely appreciated.

MY ADDRESS:
John Ascani
10020 Westside Circle
Littleton, Colorado
80125

Telephone, if need be: 303-932-7792

With Best Regards,

John Ascani