OSRAM LEDriving PX-4 for DRL in 95 Tacoma

Finally the weather cooperated so I could start working on DRL. My choice for DRL was OSRAM brand LEDriving PX-4. I had good experience with OSRAM Lights in my 4Runner. LEDriving PX-4 has 2 slim and relatively shallow lamps 6.5W each providing 5500k light color.

After I got the kit I am was a little bit disappointed as I found some design issues. The lights I had for 4Runner (LED FOG/DRL) were flawless. First, the wires are not long enough to be installed as is. Second, connector used for connecting lamps with control box are "indoor type", not waterproof. And finally, some holes in the bracket were not aligned with holes in the lamp (a little bit more about it later). All that can be fixed and overall design and quality is much better than some competitors. What is the most important thing, lamps will fit under the headlights behind the metal inserts.

So lets' starting. The project is in phases, as I work very slow and methodical taking my time to make things 100% right and addressing every issue I find.

Phase 1. Remove the front grill from the truck. No need any pictures. Anybody who had to replace a burned bulb in original headlight will have to know how to do it (in order to replace burned bulb/lamp in 95 Tacoma you have to remove the grill).

Phase 2. Preparing the room for lights behind the inserts.
After the insert is pulled out, you will see, that it was held by four plastic clips. Two the most outer clips have to be removed and trimmed. In order to remove clip it has to be slid sideways and then pulled out.



Next the vertical part of the clip has to be trimmed out. It does not provide any structural support, it is probably just so it is easier to install it or remove.



I used dremel cut off wheel to roughly cut the vertical part



Then I used sanding wheel to make it flat (I was to lazy to use a file)



Repeat it for the other clip. No need to modify remaining two clips.

to be continued...

 

Phase 3. Cutting grill to make room for the lamp behind the inserts.

In the center behind the insert there is a vertical fin that is supporting the center of the insert. That fin has to go.



Same as before, I cut it roughly using dremel cut-off wheel



And then finished it with dremel sanding drum.



I have also leveled the "stop" for the second clip, so it is flush with the top of the clip and does not stick out. This is how the space behind the insert looks now.



Yes, I know my third clip is broken. It probably happened many years ago, and I never noticed till now. I will need to but it next time I'm in States.

to be continued...

 

Phase 4. Installing lamp brackets.

First I thought about mounting the bracket from behind, but then I noticed that holes in the bracket are not aligned with indents in the lamp. Also indents are to shallow to provide a space for any bolt head. So I abandoned that idea.



I decided to mount it to the top wall of the grill. But first I had to find right bolts. Of course I did not have exactly what I needed, so I ground this stainless steel M4 allen head bolt. I ground the head to 0.1 inch thick (about 2.5mm) and the bolt length to 0.75 inch (about 20 mm).



4 bolts are needed (two on each side). To provide required space between the grill top wall and the bracket I used 2 washers 1mm thick each and one M4 nut (about 2.5mm thick) and again one more washer between the but and the wall. This provides about 5.5 mm space between the bracket and the wall at the outer bolt. For inner bolt I used only 1 washer between the bracket and the nut, to keep the lamp centered in the space behind the insert. Picture shows the bracket for left lamp.



I drilled two matching holes in the upper wall and mounted the bracket to it using one more washer and nylon locking nuts. All hardware is stainless steel, so I don't need to think about corrosion.



This is how the lamp would look mounted. The picture shows all stacked washers and nuts.




Before the lamp can be fully mounted in the holder there is a little bit more material shaving to be done. I traced where the grill is blocking the lamp from being fully inserted into bracket. The lamp is only 30mm deep so just a little bit material needs to be removed.



After working with dremel for few minutes here it is ready done.



Now the lamp "clicks" into the bracket.
Do all that to the other side. When both lamps are in place it is time to rout wires.

to be continued...

 

Phase 5. Routing wires.

Wires from the lamp are going through the hole designed for mounting the second clip.



My electrical power is on the driver side, so the right lamp wire needs to go along the grill all the way to the left (zip-tied to the grill).



Here is where right wire meets the wire from the left lamp and both are routed to the side where the position marker light is.




Yep, the wire form the right lamp is very short - shame on you Osram. I cut off the original connector (not water proof) and installed 10A waterproof connector I got of ebay. Same for the left lamp wire.




It is important to use correct crimping tool - makes connections bulletproof, and work very easy.

Now the grill work is done, it can be put back on the truck. I left the inserts off - it will be separate task to cut holes in them. I just need to put the grill back on the truck and make it drivable again. And it's getting dark already.

to be continued...

 

Phase 6. Installing the grill.

OK, if you remove the grill, you will know how to put it back. Just make sure you replace all broken clips - you don't want to see your grill flying off on the highway. These clips became very brittle from the age and heat. They can last maybe 10 years or so, I have replaced all of them twice already.

Now the grill is in place, and wires are on the hole where the driver side corner marker is.



Thankfully wires were long enough to go through the hole in the fender together with marker light wires. But with no really much to spare. Shame on you Osram.




Next time when I will need to remove the grill I will just disconnect these two plugs. Easy.

Now after installing corner marker light this is how it looks (still without the inserts).



I am very happy with the result. The DRL lamp is exactly under the headlight and the width is almost the same as headlight width. That looks almost "OEM".



After I cut the inserts it will look really very OEM. Next I will cut inserts. But it will be later, now that's all for today.

to be continued...

 

Phase 6. Cutting inserts.

I hesitated a bit as I knew that if I screw it up, I will not have easy access to replacement parts. So I prepared for that. First from thin acrylic sheet I cut the replica of the insert, then placing it over installed lamps I traced the shape and the position of the lamp to the acrylic insert replica. Then I marked corners by drilling holes in this template.




That holes were transfer to the original insert. Next was drilling these holes (corners) in original inserts. Using holes as a corner points I traced the shape of the lamp. After mounting the insert in a vise I started to cut straight lines using cut off wheel on dremel. Here is the picture after the first few cuts.



After the whole center was cut off, the opening looked very rough



Using small grinding stone on dremel I cut the remaining parts and smoothed all corners.



Then using file I made all edges smooth, straight and pretty.



Despite the fact that not much material left around the opening the insert was still quite stiff and keeping its original shape. View from the inside.



Next I removed some rusted paint chips and primed all exposed metal with automotive primer.




Then I did the other side using the same procedure. After primer cures I will sand it with fine grid paper (600 and 1000) then I will use rattle can paint to make it all beautiful. I just need to find some automotive store here, that will have the matching color - it shouldn't be tough, as my truck is just white.

For now I placed primed inserts over the DRL lamps just to see how it looks.







I would say, it looks OEM, exactly how I wanted. The only give away that it is not OEM is the fact that DRL are LED lights - in 1995 LED lighting technology did not exist yet.

to be continued...

 

Looks really well done, can't wait to see it all finished with the LEDs on!

 

DRL's? ain' nobody got time for that... Naw, that's a must for my Y2K. Can't be too careful out there.

 

Sub'd

 

I've been looking for a light that would look good in that spot. I think Toyota missed a home run but not putting something there. Especially in the later 03s and 04s.

 

I put some 15 dolla cubes in the bumper and hacked up the running light housings. made it gooder

 

naw, that's clean man, gotta do it. I did work out a pretty good way of getting some fogs in the bumper of my 2k. followed the side housing mod/blinker relocation roughly, although most of the writeups were for 2001 +

 

Phase 7. Painting inserts.

My truck color is 045. There are places here which can make the color for any car (like Home Depot matches the paint to your house) and put it into rattle can, but thought that my pain is so old, that it is not even consistent along the body. So I found white rattle can paint (automotive) in hardware store. I was tempted for a while to but "chrome finish" paint, but then I closed my eyes and imagined how this would look like. Nah, it will be white.



To cover anything with white, you need many coats. So this is what I'm doing now: spraying a light coat for few seconds and wait for hour to let it dry. Long process.

This is after 5 coats. It doesn't mean 5 layers, as after each coat the paint is sanded. I think I still need at least 5 coats more to finish.




I see still some places where the old pain chipped.





Painting, waiting, sanding over and over again ...

to be continued...

 

Phase 8. Inserts installation.

Of course I forgot. I remember telling myself: "don't forget to cut this too", and I forgot (comes with the age). What I'm talking about is trimming the insert's tab that is engaging the clip. It does interfere with one mounting bolt. This is what I'm talking about:




This is top outer tab. I took my dremel again and trimmed this fresh painted part. Did the same to the left side insert and then touch painted it to protect it from rusting




Now both inserts are in place. All clips clicked (except the broken one). If you look carefully the insert has a visible different "Whiter Shade of Pale", but I don't think I will bother to repaint it (this reminds me that I need to wash my truck after winter).




But from the distance all "White is White":





My personal preference is that I wish these lamps are rectangular, not the slanted shape. They would match the headlights better. But it is what it is.

One more thing, before someone asks. Yes, DRL lamp is not flush with the insert. It sticks out between 1/4 and 1/8 inch. The lamp is only 30mm deep but that space between the insert and the back wall is about 25mm. I was not able to find any "real DRL" lamps (not wimpy China made with cheap LEDs) that is smaller than that. I'm talking about real 6W or more LED lamps, not 2-3W "marker lights".


This concludes the "mechanical part" of the installation. Next is electrical.

I have already figured out the place for LED Controller - it will be on the inner fender next to the battery. There is and empty threaded hole in the inner fender, ideal for mounting the controller box. The controller box is much nicer than I had for my 4Runner - it is all metal with mounting brackets on one side (not in the center like I had in 4Runner, where I had to design and print 3D custom bracket for it). Inside all electronics are filled with some goo something between epoxy and silicone - 100% waterproof. It will survive environment out there.

That's all for now, I will start doing it tomorrow then I will see how DRL looks when power is turned on.

to be continued..

 

Phase 9. Under the hood installation.

I forgot to show the picture of original Osram connectors. Not very impressive for under the hood automotive installation.




This is why I used my own (and because the original wire length was not good for my installation). Anyway I found a place for "control box", on the driver side inner fender next to the battery.



My truck is California, so I have all that emission stuff next to the clutch master cylinder - to crowded to put anything there. The spot I selected is quite "quiet", out of the way, and already have welded nut for ground.




This is M6 nut. I had M6 stainless steel short bolt so it fit right there. For mounting the box, I decided to use provided metal screws - they are black so I should be OK for rust. Drilled pilot holes for screws



I forgot to take a picture if the box mounted, while the battery was still out. Sorry. This is with battery installed in place:




I had a little side work as I found the battery shelf (under the plastic tray) started to rust really bad. I did some cleaning and use rust preventive paint for it. I will check in few months how it holds.

So now it is all wired under the hood.

to be continued...

 

Those connectors look like an after thought. the suck for outside conditions.

 

Phase 10. Electrical connections.

A little explanation about the wiring the box. There are four wires coming to the box:
1. red (with inline fuse) providing +12V to lamps,
2. orange to connect to ignition which is turning DRL on,
3. green to connect with position lights which will turn DRL off at night,
4. black is ground.

Because I found that the box takes about 70mA even when DRL are off, I decided to connect both orange and red wires together and power it from fused connector that is turned on only when the engine is running. I connected ground wire to the bolt next to the box, so I only need to route 2 wires to the cabin. As we discussed on the other thread (https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/95-96-tacoma-4x4-electrical-help-needed.481977/#post-14707626) I decided to use 4WD circuit to power DRL. I don't have any "fancy" 4WD stuff (ADD, e-locker, one push 4WD) so 15A fuse should be available for my stuff. Thanks to friendly guys on TW (high n mighty, pulldo, mechanicjon and others) I understand now how the 4WD circuit works and what it is doing.

So here is the JB1 box showing location of 4WD fuse and connection 1B pin 12 to it





The location of 1B connector and pin 12 on JB1 box:





Good, I'm in business. Easy. Following the first few steps in the instruction how to remove the steering column I removed all panels, and exposed the back side of JB1. And here is the surprise. Because I don't have any of that fancy 4WD my B1 connector doesn't even have a pin number 12. That's a bummer.




I suspected that some dumb PO or dealer put 15A fuse in factory empty socket, as that fuse is connected to nothing. I would have to order pigtail repair from Toyota, and that will take for-fricken-ever to ship it to Poland. Then I remember, when I was doing radio swap (for touch screen) I did not use illumination wire (the new radio doesn't have dimmer control illumination), so I saved that connector I did cut off. And after almost three years and one intercontinental move I found it !!! And even more, by some dumb luck it actually fits to pin 12 in connector B1. Here is the picture what I saved from radio swap.




I extended this very short pigtail by crimping it with with additional wire





Put a heat shrink over it and installed in 1B connector.




Because I'm powering only DRL, I will replace the fuse with something smaller, like 3A or so. If OSRAM box blows up, no need to burn wires with it. I did not have time to finish it up today, so here is how it looks now:



Yep, it's quite a mess. Actually on the floor you can see my two wires going from Osram box (green and red). For position lights power I'm tapping into my rear fog light circuit which I did last year (all these wires and crimp connectors unwrapped - they were under this blue tape.).

And before someone asks, the box hanging on some wires next to the gas pedal is some kind of engine immobilizer that was installed by dealer for PO. I never got around to mess with it, even the installation is "dealer style" means cheap and lousy.

to be continued...

 

Yes, I was surprised to see this. Osram LED FOG/DRL I installed in 4Runner has all waterproof connectors with wires way longer than I needed in 4Runner. For me it is some kind of f***-up in Osram China factory.

 

Phase 11 (the last one). Finishing electrical connections and testing.

Put the JB1 back in place and making sure all connectors are still in place. Yep, my new B1 pin 12 pigtail is in place.





I connected it with the red wire going from Osram control box. I used pass-through crimp connector leaving one end open. If one day I decide that I need "ON power" I will have it ready for new wire. And I know it had dedicated fuse for it. I put a paper label on it in case I forget wtf it is for.




I routed the green wire with the steering wheel harness to the point where it meets with rear fog light switch harness. All these wires hanging down are going to the plug for rear fog switch (not shown). There is an additional electronic circuit box (magic black box) which is controlling LEDs in the switch (flipping back-light of the switch from white to red when rear fog lights are turned on).




Yes it looks messy as there are many wires connected here, but when everything is connected and wrapped it is clean as a baby's bottom.




The thick bunch of wrapped wires going up, is the harness going to rear fog light switch. The sleeve going left towards JB1 is my green wire together with rear fog light wire. All is wrapped up, connected and done. I did not have 3Amp fuse, so I put 10Amp which I had on hand. Still better than 15Amp. Ready for testing.

I also took a picture of the DRL lamp from the top, showing how much it does stick out from the insert. I think it is acceptable. Not perfect, but acceptable.




Now the moment of truth. What did I do to my truck. DRL lights are on. They are actually not blinding from the close distance and they are much more visible from the distance. That's the geometry of the light pattern for DRL.



Here is the picture from about 10 yards away with lights off.




And the similar picture with lights on.




Yah, LED Bar it aint. But they are legal (I have OSRAM certificate to prove it) and they will allow me to drive all summer with my headlights off. Also, what is the most important to me, they don't look like "generic china add-on".

Now there is the scary part. I started the engine and ... nothing, it did not start. Fudge !!! Did I mess something up? Try again and listen what is happening. After turning the key to ON, all lamps are OK, "dinger" did so many "ding, ding, ding" and noting unusual. Turn the key to Start and nothing, no click, no start no ding. Like nothing happened.

I went throuh electrical diagram to see what could be wrong. The "Start relay" does not click. OK, cluch - pressed, clutch start override - works (light in the switch turns on). Still no click. All related fuses are OK, so... the only thing could be that I did not put some plug into JB1 - no, I checked, all connectors are in place. Then it must be that f*** immobilizer. It would do that. But the only thing I did to it, was disconnecting the ground which was put by dealer into one of the bolts holding the lower dash panel. The big "eye" hanging in the right side under the dash in this picture:




Ok before I start hacking that thing out, I checked this ground. My mistake, I put this "eye" on the top of the plastic, not under it, so the eye was not contacting the metal. I did reconnect the ground and my truck started like always did. What a f**** relief. The last thing I wanted here is 2 ton lawn ornament.

So this concludes the installation of OSRAM LED DRL 401 also known as PX-4. In USA is known under the brand Sylvania and name SYLVANIA ZEVO Pixilated Style LED Daytime Running Light (54 dollars on Amazon or 49 at Pep Boys). If you are going to install it, please don't do it like they show on some commercial videos - it's a"dealer type" whack job, what they show. Please respect 1st Gen Tacoma and Toyota brand.

Now there are two more things I noticed while doing the install.

1. Air duct. I have removed driver side air duct to have easy access to JB1. When I took it out, this is what I saw.




Yeck, that's ugly. This is 318 thousand miles and 22 years dust collection. I'm sure I have something like that in other ducts too. Unfortunately the 1st gen Tacoma does not have cabin air filter, and the result is showing on the picture. I wonder if anyone came up with the modification to add the cabin air filter to this truck? Anyway I did wash it (the water was coming out black, almost like sludge) before I put it back. Now when you know what you have, you will not be sleeping well anymore.

The second thing I notices is the bolt under the clutch pedal. It looks like it is a pedal stop. But why it is not touching the pedal?




After owning and driving this truck for 19 years this is the first time I ever looked at this. Am I correct that the bolt needs to be scewed in a bit more so this black rubber (or plastic) thing rests on the bolt (like stop). Otherwise the spring is pulling the piston of the master clutch cylinder all the way back, probably not good thing. Please advise.

 

Looks normal according to FSM. attached pdf