Link to all my Gen II mods
Nobody has ever accused me of taking the easy way out and this is a great example.
This little light swings out when you push one side and automatically turns on, then turns off again when you swing it closed. If you don't swing it out more than 90 degrees it will actually close itself when you close the lid. It’s not super bright but it’s adequate to find stuff at night. It mounts in a void in the top lid. It is outside the top case seal but rain hasn’t seemed to hurt it in any way (it’s still pretty protected with the lid down). What looks like orange in the photos is actually red reflective decal material.
This mod is pretty easy to do with the right parts. You old Mustang owners might recognize one of the parts. It is the center console ash tray from a 1987-93 model year. I picked up a used one on ebay for $3.00 plus a little shipping. I just stumbled upon it in a search one day and thought it might be about the right size. Note that the red decal not only indicates where to push but also hides the white writing (which ends up upside-down when installed). The little metal part that you would normally rest a lit cigarette on becomes the part that holds the light in. The housing has snap barbs molded in to hold it in the panel, so you must make the cutout the correct size.
Years ago, I bought a bunch of the lights from a TV ad (“AS SEEN ON TV” type product). It’s a rather interesting little light that is meant to turn on when you open a drawer. I planned to install these in the drawers of my toolbox but that didn’t quite work out. It has a magnet (sticking to the top in the picture) that turns off the light when in close proximity to the white base of the light. Pull it away about 1/2” and the light turns on - cool! I mounted the magnet on the outer rounded part of the ash tray housing so that the light turns on when the tray swings out about half way.
Nobody has ever accused me of taking the easy way out and this is a great example.
This little light swings out when you push one side and automatically turns on, then turns off again when you swing it closed. If you don't swing it out more than 90 degrees it will actually close itself when you close the lid. It’s not super bright but it’s adequate to find stuff at night. It mounts in a void in the top lid. It is outside the top case seal but rain hasn’t seemed to hurt it in any way (it’s still pretty protected with the lid down). What looks like orange in the photos is actually red reflective decal material.
This mod is pretty easy to do with the right parts. You old Mustang owners might recognize one of the parts. It is the center console ash tray from a 1987-93 model year. I picked up a used one on ebay for $3.00 plus a little shipping. I just stumbled upon it in a search one day and thought it might be about the right size. Note that the red decal not only indicates where to push but also hides the white writing (which ends up upside-down when installed). The little metal part that you would normally rest a lit cigarette on becomes the part that holds the light in. The housing has snap barbs molded in to hold it in the panel, so you must make the cutout the correct size.
Years ago, I bought a bunch of the lights from a TV ad (“AS SEEN ON TV” type product). It’s a rather interesting little light that is meant to turn on when you open a drawer. I planned to install these in the drawers of my toolbox but that didn’t quite work out. It has a magnet (sticking to the top in the picture) that turns off the light when in close proximity to the white base of the light. Pull it away about 1/2” and the light turns on - cool! I mounted the magnet on the outer rounded part of the ash tray housing so that the light turns on when the tray swings out about half way.
You must have one those minds that never stop.
