DIY Trunk lighting...doesnt seem to work well

jlucero · Sep 11, 2015

i bought two of these after reading up on DIY trunk lighting...

http://www.walmart.com/ip/22226850

these only seem to activate when there is movement directly in front of it. i installed two of them on the sides of the trunk with double sided tape on each side of the trunk, sticking to pieces of plastic on each side of the trunk. they are aimed downwards into the trunk. well when the trunk opens, there isnt enough movement to activate these things. are these particular lights just crappy? do other lights have more sensitivity towards activating? i end up having to wave in front of each to turn them on. kind of annoying.

thanks!

StaceyS · Sep 11, 2015

Not meaning to be rude or anything, but I think your expectations need a bit of adjustment. You bought some crappy lights for $15 at Walmart. As an interior add-on to a very expensive, high quality car. Of course you're going to be disappointed with them! Take 'em back and see if you can get your money back!

I'm not suggesting that you need to spend gobs of money just because its a Tesla, I am suggesting that your expectations of anything bought at Walmart for $15 should be adjusted to $15 or less.

One other important point though: Lighting the trunk/frunk areas is going to be tough no matter what. Both are lined with black carpet and black trim. Almost all the light shining in is just going to get absorbed. The lighting will help light up whatever you put IN there, but its always going to have a hard time lighting up the trunk or frunk itself. Try it out: Lay out a flat piece of cardboard in the trunk and you can see how much light the standard lights put out (not a huge amount).

Trust me, I'm an architect... :biggrin:

artsci · Sep 11, 2015

StaceyS said:
Not meaning to be rude or anything, but I think your expectations need a bit of adjustment. You bought some crappy lights for $15 at Walmart. As an interior add-on to a very expensive, high quality car. Of course you're going to be disappointed with them! Take 'em back and see if you can get your money back!

I'm not suggesting that you need to spend gobs of money just because its a Tesla, I am suggesting that your expectations of anything bought at Walmart for $15 should be adjusted to $15 or less.

One other important point though: Lighting the trunk/frunk areas is going to be tough no matter what. Both are lined with black carpet and black trim. Almost all the light shining in is just going to get absorbed. The lighting will help light up whatever you put IN there, but its always going to have a hard time lighting up the trunk or frunk itself. Try it out: Lay out a flat piece of cardboard in the trunk and you can see how much light the standard lights put out (not a huge amount).

Trust me, I'm an architect... :biggrin:

This is a topic that's been posted nearly to death. A search will reveal some very effective solutions that provide enough light to very well illuminate the entire space. And you don't have to spend much more than you spent at Walmart -- you just chose the wrong product to light the space.

pete8314 · Sep 11, 2015

Working on it... Improved Trunk lighting - Is there demand?

jlucero · Sep 11, 2015

StaceyS said:
Not meaning to be rude or anything, but I think your expectations need a bit of adjustment. You bought some crappy lights for $15 at Walmart. As an interior add-on to a very expensive, high quality car. Of course you're going to be disappointed with them! Take 'em back and see if you can get your money back!

I'm not suggesting that you need to spend gobs of money just because its a Tesla, I am suggesting that your expectations of anything bought at Walmart for $15 should be adjusted to $15 or less.

One other important point though: Lighting the trunk/frunk areas is going to be tough no matter what. Both are lined with black carpet and black trim. Almost all the light shining in is just going to get absorbed. The lighting will help light up whatever you put IN there, but its always going to have a hard time lighting up the trunk or frunk itself. Try it out: Lay out a flat piece of cardboard in the trunk and you can see how much light the standard lights put out (not a huge amount).

Trust me, I'm an architect... :biggrin:

Stacey--no offense taken. however, i bought this mainly because it was easily accessible and many others are buying similar $15 lights that claim more success. but yes, i know its a cheap light!

jlucero · Sep 11, 2015

pete8314 said:
Working on it... Improved Trunk lighting - Is there demand?

yea, definitely let me know when its ready!

shadowinstallz · Sep 12, 2015

check mine out....signature

Notacarguy · Sep 16, 2015

There is an easy fix for both trunk and frunk lighting for under ten dollars that will give you blaxingly bright lights that turn on when you open them that I posted a while back

edit

here

Newer models have an LED plug on passenger side rear (Vin 40k+) - Page 4

Cyclone · Sep 16, 2015

artsci said:
This is a topic that's been posted nearly to death. A search will reveal some very effective solutions that provide enough light to very well illuminate the entire space. And you don't have to spend much more than you spent at Walmart -- you just chose the wrong product to light the space.

I used a thread by artsi (search is failing me now) that discussed putting in LED strips from SuperBrightLEDs.com under the parcel shelf mount. It turned out great and it only cost me like $25 or so. As was stated, search on the forum for options and you will find a better solution.

CHG-ON · Sep 18, 2015

I bought six strips from Amazon for $15, installed them myself and they work like a damn charm in the trunk, frunk, and both front footwells, with one to spare. Check your connections. That's most likely the issue,unless they are bad lights.

mspohr · Sep 18, 2015

jlucero said:
i bought two of these after reading up on DIY trunk lighting...

http://www.walmart.com/ip/22226850

these only seem to activate when there is movement directly in front of it. i installed two of them on the sides of the trunk with double sided tape on each side of the trunk, sticking to pieces of plastic on each side of the trunk. they are aimed downwards into the trunk. well when the trunk opens, there isnt enough movement to activate these things. are these particular lights just crappy? do other lights have more sensitivity towards activating? i end up having to wave in front of each to turn them on. kind of annoying.

thanks!

The lights you bought are motion sensors so they are working as designed.
You probably don't want them.
I installed these
Amazon.com: Cutequeen Trading 2PCS White 5050 24SMD 24-SMD LED Panel Dome Light Lamp + T10 BA9S Festoon Adapter (pack of 2): Automotive
They work great.

jlucero · Sep 24, 2015

are there LED strip lights with those two pin connectors that connect to the existing housing in the trunk?

4SUPER9 · Sep 24, 2015

Like artsci said, there are several threads on this. Adding lights to our trunks is an incredibly easy DIY project. I too tried the motion light. I found it to be a weak solution. Unreliable, needs battery changes, and worst of all, activates if anything slides around in the trunk.

Here is a link to my post on how I did it. You actually may want to go back and read the first post too, though I think my method in my post, which is exactly the same almost, is much simpler and does not require fancy parts and barrel connectors:
http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/show...nd-Trunk/page2?p=720959&viewfull=1#post720959

jlucero · Sep 24, 2015

thanks 4SUPER9.

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