2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Interior lighting fader and halo

[rowilson]

Hey guys,

I have an 01 3500 SLT and was wondering if it's just me or do

none of these trucks have the option of where the interior lights

fade after shutting the door? A friend of mine has a 99 I believe

and his lights stay on for a few seconds and then go off. I think

it would be nice to add this feature and also make my halo light

work and hook it in conjunction with them. Can I add this

easily or does it require major surgery of my wallet

Thanks,

Rob

 

[dresslered]

My lights don't fade but stay on after I close the last door for many seconds. They also turn on after I unlock the door to enter it. As far as the Halo light goes, DC stopped hooking them up but I easily connected that up too. The bulb is even in there!

 

[ntillm01]

Halo light

Dressler- Sweet! Thanks for that tip. I was going to look see what was going on with the halo light and get the parts to make it work. Glad to know it could be just a hook up. I was worried they did some "cost cutting" and took it out completely.



As far as "theater dimming", no I have not read or seen that our dome lights have that feature. I wonder about the 2003-ups though. Anybody know?

 

[RBlair]

dumb little question, but whats a halo light

 

[RustyJC]

Re: Halo light

Originally posted by ntillm01

I was worried they did some "cost cutting" and took it out completely.

They did on the 2002's. Mine just has a black plastic ring around the ignition lock.

Dumb little question, but whats a halo light?

An illuminated light ring (the clear plastic thingie) around your ignition lock on the steering column so you can find the key slot in the dark.



Rusty

 

[rowilson]

Well mine is black but I plan to change it to the clear one.

Must have been the mid year change with the 01's. I still don't

know how to make the interior lights fade or stay on for a few

seconds though

Thanks,

Rob

 

[ntillm01]

Rob,

Do you have power locks? Or the remote unlocker key fob-thingy? My interior lights stay on for a few seconds after I close the door. They don't dim, but they do stay on. They come on without opening the door if I use the key fob, or unlock it from the outside with the key too. It may have to do with having a base door lock system.

 

[RBlair]

thanks RustyJC, never would have guessed that.

 

[Thomas]

Originally posted by rowilson

Well mine is black but I plan to change it to the clear one.

Sounds spendy. I think the clear plastic thingy is a package deal with the rest of the ignition switch.



P/N 56021346 SWITCH, Ignition w/Buzzer & Halo

 

[rowilson]

I do have the electric door locks but no keyless remote. I have

heard that you have to change the CTM to get the keyless to

work. I think the fade option was something all newer vehicles

had. Heck the old 94 Olds Achieva we have even has it as well

as automatic door locks when you put the car in gear.

Thanks,

Rob

 

[ntillm01]

CTM

Yeah, it sounds like you've got the base CTM. It does a minimum of functions, so it may not have the dome light delay stuff in it.



As far a the fading "theater dimming", maybe they never figured anyone would be taking their truck to the theater...

 

[dresslered]

Halo Light connection

I found an old email that I sent out long time ago on how to hook up the Halo Light. I will re-post for those interested:





I have a 2001 Quad HO 3500 and I found after opening up the steering column, that the light bulb was still present, just no wiring! The easiest way to reconnect is by running a pair of wires from the Halo light and tapping it into the dome light. Walla! Why the factory doesn't do this is beyond me. I'm sure that DC probably manufactured a million defected IEM's and was to cheap to fix the problem as my wife's Durango has the same problem.



Remove the top cover of the steering column. This is held on by three black torx screws found on the bottom cover (the silver one holds on the bottom cover). Once you pop the cover off it will be very obvious where the halo light lives (right above the ignition switch). The wires run from the lamp itself (a standard #74 if it ever does burn out) down to a four pin connector. Only two wires come out of the connector (the key "sense" circuit). Now extend the unconnected halo wires (black) by either adding the two missing pins to the connector or just splicing into the existing wires (like I did) with about 5-ft of wire. The new wires can be neatly run down the steering column and tie-wrapped so that it looks just like the factory did it. Route the extended wires up to the A-pillar by way of the fuse panel or up the door molding. I actually stick a very heavy gauge wire down through the side of the dash and pull the new wire up with it. Remove the A-pillar cover by just pulling it out enough so that you can work on the wiring harness and feed in the new wires. Unravel the black tape of the wiring harness about half way up the A-pillar. Center splice your extended wires into the pink and yellow wires found in the harness and rewrap the portion of the wiring harness with new electrical tape. Snap the cover back on and the halo light is all ready to go.



I rewired mine 1-1/2 [change this to 3-years ago] years ago (I received my truck in March of 2000 even though it is a 2001 HO model) and the circuit is working perfectly today. Never even a burned out bulb. One word of caution, however: whenever working on the steering column, be very careful with what you tamper with. I've been told that you can cause the air bag to go off. I personally feel that it would be quite difficult, but I thought that I would warn you anyway.

 

[ntillm01]

Dressler: Thanks again for the info! More to it than I first thought, but wiring a bulb is pretty straightforward. I'm going to try to figure out how to wire it to the same ones that light the power window switches (on with key on). I'd like to make it work since it's already there.