DIY: How to wire up the DRLs to Halos - ZL1 - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

evonschu · 10-28-2012, 02:41 PM

Hey so does anyone know of a way (that is not a group buy) to make it so the DRLs on my ZL1 will stay on at night OR come on as usual (during the day only) but also will always stay on if the fog lights are on day or night (basically have the fog light switch control the DRLs as well)? I'm proficient with splicing wires/soldering so if theres a DIY on this, would be nice.

Skylane765 · 10-28-2012, 03:16 PM

What is normally on for day DLs? When are the halos on in day and night or only day?

christianchevell · 10-28-2012, 05:12 PM

check with oracle

evonschu · 10-28-2012, 11:21 PM

Well I had some free time tonight so I decided to dive into this myself. Here's how to wire up the DRLs to stay on at night. Basically, wiring them up to the Halos, which also makes the halos come on with the DRLs during the day as well (BONUS!). All you need is 4 of those inline wire connectors (50 cents worth of parts) and about 24" of 12-16 gauge wire. This is for ZL1 Camaros only. Not sure if the coloring scheme is the same on other ZL1 years. I have a 2013. Of course if you have a multimeter and want to verify what I have listed below, feel free. This mod did not throw any CELs for me.

First undo the 3 torx screws that hold the front inner fender liners in on both sides. This will give you enough room to pull aside the liner about 6 inches and reach inside where the lights are.

DRIVERS SIDE: Find the light blue wire going into the DRL harness. This is the 12V lead for the drivers side DRL. Crimp one of the inline connectors along with a 12" long wire in here.

Next up by where the headlights are theres a harness there that powers the Halos amongst other lighting. Unplug this harness and find the purple wire going to the harness. Attach the other inline connector here and the other end of the 12" wire going from the DRL you just attached above. So basically you're connecting the light blue wire on the DRL to the purple wire on the harness by the headlights. This is for the drivers side. The passenger side will be the same setup but with different colored wires to splice into.

PASSENGER SIDE: Find the blue wire going into the DRL harness. This is the 12V lead for the passenger side DRL. Crimp one of the inline connectors along with a 12" long wire in here.

Next find the harness on the passenger side by the headlight that powers the halos. This wire will be brown with a white stripe. Crimp on the last inline wire connector here and the 12" cable going from the blue wire for the DRL harness on the passenger side.

Done. Your DRLs will now come on with your halos at night. 50 cents worth of parts and about 30 mins of your time. A lot easier than buying some of the $150-180 cables with group buys I've seen floating around here...

Here's how it looks. Bad pic, but you get the idea. I have 7.5W LEDs for the DRLs, 6k HIDs for the headlights, And 6K HIDs for the projector foglights.

Enjoy! Hopefully this will keep all the retards in Portland that like to camp out in the left lane going 10 under outta my way :-P

christianchevell · 10-29-2012, 06:18 PM

nice informative post with pics...good job fellow oregonian!

ZL1Reaper · 10-29-2012, 06:19 PM

Cool. Thanks for the info.

rzrbck_zl1 · 10-29-2012, 10:14 PM

Been thinking about doing this myself - thanks for the info!

evonschu · 11-02-2012, 07:51 PM

Here's some better pics of the layout with the 6K HID fogs, 6K HID Headlights, and 7.5W 6K LED DRLs.

OldJedi · 11-03-2012, 11:59 AM

Thanks Evonschu, That makes it very simple. I was trying to figure out a way to have just the halos and the DRL's on during the day.

mmarx82 · 11-03-2012, 10:08 PM

I used this as a guide on my 2012 but I did some of this a little different. Tomorrow or Monday I'll post up what I did so that you can do everything on just the passenger side and maintain the stock harness as the only harness/wiring disconnect point on the front fascia (which is important if you ever need to take the fascia off in the future). I should have mine finished tomorrow but I already have all the ground work done and it working, just doing some other stuff on mine right now so it's not all back together yet. BTW, I can verify that wires used in this 2013 guide are the same wires on the 2012 for anyone wondering.

I still would like to say thanks to evonschu for the DIY.

Skylane765 · 11-04-2012, 11:07 PM

I am going to use 4 diodes, that way the side markers do not go on or the DRL will not be on at night.

All I wanted was to have Halos on with DRLs and all the other lighting same as factory.

mmarx82 · 11-05-2012, 08:50 AM

Step 1:
Ok, to do this all on the passenger side, find the harness on the passenger side by the headlight that powers the halos. Locate the wire that has the brown with a white stripe and crimp on an inline wire connector to it and a the 12" wire.

Credit evonschu for this first pic:

Step 2:
Now locate where the OEM harness's connect together, you want to put in two inline wire connectors on the engine side of the harness. The first one will connect the light blue and dark blue wires together (make sure you don't cut these wires and you drill out inside the connector to allow both wires to go through). The next wire connector you will connect into either of the blue wires (light blue or dark blue) and the one 12' inch you ran in the step before. At this point, your DRL's will be on anytime your halos are on and vice versa. You can stop here if you want to be able to control when your fogs work from inside the cabin as usual. Otherwise continue to step 3 for automatically turning them on.

Step 3:
To have your fogs come on automatically with the halos or DRL's follow the steps above and then locate the purple wires on the harness on the fascia side. There are three but the ones you want are the two that are right next to each other in the pic below (two left most), put in an inline wire connector to connect the two purple ones together then further up put in another inline wire connecter connecting either of the two purple wires and either the light blue or dark blue wire (I suggest to use whichever color you used for your added wire to in step 2). For both of these connectors you will want to drill out inside the connector to allow both wires to go through them as well.

That's it, hook everything back up and now all the lights will operate automatically together and will look just like evonschu's finished pictures.

Skylane765 · 11-05-2012, 03:51 PM

Where is the connector that connects together? Step2?

Normagene · 11-06-2012, 09:34 AM

Just noticed my DRLs are not working. Daytime, nothing, work nites and when I unlock the door, sometimes the halos and DRLs turn on and sometimes it's the halos and headlights, no DRLs. Not sure what's going on there. Waiting for my new drivers front tire to come in, it found a nail, so I'll have'em check out the lights at the same time. Also noticed that my tire with a leak, I added a couple pounds of air, and the other three tires were down a pound so I tried to add some air, but no air would enter into the tire. Turned up the pressure on the compressor to like 50 lbs and still no air would go into the tire. Some leaked out as I first made contact with the stem valve, but once seated no air entered the tire. Thought that was very odd.

I may do the halo and DRL connection. Love the look and it seems relatively easy and inexpensive. Again, great info, also got to say the look with all three lights on is crazy badass. Seriously mean looking. May go with the all three look.

10-28-2012, 02:41 PM	#1
evonschu Drives: 2013 Camaro ZL1 M6 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Hillsboro, OR. Posts: 179 View My Garage	DIY: How to wire up the DRLs to Halos - ZL1 Hey so does anyone know of a way (that is not a group buy) to make it so the DRLs on my ZL1 will stay on at night OR come on as usual (during the day only) but also will always stay on if the fog lights are on day or night (basically have the fog light switch control the DRLs as well)? I'm proficient with splicing wires/soldering so if theres a DIY on this, would be nice.

11-03-2012, 11:59 AM	#9
OldJedi Use the Force Drives: 2015 Corvette Z51, 2018 Porsche GTS Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Davie, Fl. Posts: 3,862	Thanks Evonschu, That makes it very simple. I was trying to figure out a way to have just the halos and the DRL's on during the day. __________________ Walk softly, carry a light saber and drive a ZL1!

11-03-2012, 10:08 PM	#10
mmarx82 Drives: '12 ZL1 #1609 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Georgia Posts: 1,762	I used this as a guide on my 2012 but I did some of this a little different. Tomorrow or Monday I'll post up what I did so that you can do everything on just the passenger side and maintain the stock harness as the only harness/wiring disconnect point on the front fascia (which is important if you ever need to take the fascia off in the future). I should have mine finished tomorrow but I already have all the ground work done and it working, just doing some other stuff on mine right now so it's not all back together yet. BTW, I can verify that wires used in this 2013 guide are the same wires on the 2012 for anyone wondering. I still would like to say thanks to evonschu for the DIY. __________________ Life is too short to drive cars that suck. My build Thread

11-05-2012, 08:50 AM	#12
mmarx82 Drives: '12 ZL1 #1609 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Georgia Posts: 1,762	Step 1: Ok, to do this all on the passenger side, find the harness on the passenger side by the headlight that powers the halos. Locate the wire that has the brown with a white stripe and crimp on an inline wire connector to it and a the 12" wire. Credit evonschu for this first pic: Step 2: Now locate where the OEM harness's connect together, you want to put in two inline wire connectors on the engine side of the harness. The first one will connect the light blue and dark blue wires together (make sure you don't cut these wires and you drill out inside the connector to allow both wires to go through). The next wire connector you will connect into either of the blue wires (light blue or dark blue) and the one 12' inch you ran in the step before. At this point, your DRL's will be on anytime your halos are on and vice versa. You can stop here if you want to be able to control when your fogs work from inside the cabin as usual. Otherwise continue to step 3 for automatically turning them on. Step 3: To have your fogs come on automatically with the halos or DRL's follow the steps above and then locate the purple wires on the harness on the fascia side. There are three but the ones you want are the two that are right next to each other in the pic below (two left most), put in an inline wire connector to connect the two purple ones together then further up put in another inline wire connecter connecting either of the two purple wires and either the light blue or dark blue wire (I suggest to use whichever color you used for your added wire to in step 2). For both of these connectors you will want to drill out inside the connector to allow both wires to go through them as well. That's it, hook everything back up and now all the lights will operate automatically together and will look just like evonschu's finished pictures. __________________ Life is too short to drive cars that suck. My build Thread

11-06-2012, 09:34 AM	#14
Normagene Drives: 2013 Ashen Gray M6 ZL1 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: South Eastern, Mass Posts: 2,615 View My Garage	DRL's Not Working Just noticed my DRLs are not working. Daytime, nothing, work nites and when I unlock the door, sometimes the halos and DRLs turn on and sometimes it's the halos and headlights, no DRLs. Not sure what's going on there. Waiting for my new drivers front tire to come in, it found a nail, so I'll have'em check out the lights at the same time. Also noticed that my tire with a leak, I added a couple pounds of air, and the other three tires were down a pound so I tried to add some air, but no air would enter into the tire. Turned up the pressure on the compressor to like 50 lbs and still no air would go into the tire. Some leaked out as I first made contact with the stem valve, but once seated no air entered the tire. Thought that was very odd. I may do the halo and DRL connection. Love the look and it seems relatively easy and inexpensive. Again, great info, also got to say the look with all three lights on is crazy badass. Seriously mean looking. May go with the all three look.

10-28-2012, 03:16 PM	#2
Skylane765 Drives: ZL1-1LE, Z/28 Join Date: May 2012 Location: San Diego Posts: 3,262 View My Garage	What is normally on for day DLs? When are the halos on in day and night or only day?

10-28-2012, 05:12 PM	#3
christianchevell old school chevy rodder Drives: 2021 zl1 a-10 WildCherry Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Oregon Posts: 5,620 View My Garage	check with oracle

10-28-2012, 11:21 PM	#4
evonschu Drives: 2013 Camaro ZL1 M6 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Hillsboro, OR. Posts: 179 View My Garage	Well I had some free time tonight so I decided to dive into this myself. Here's how to wire up the DRLs to stay on at night. Basically, wiring them up to the Halos, which also makes the halos come on with the DRLs during the day as well (BONUS!). All you need is 4 of those inline wire connectors (50 cents worth of parts) and about 24" of 12-16 gauge wire. This is for ZL1 Camaros only. Not sure if the coloring scheme is the same on other ZL1 years. I have a 2013. Of course if you have a multimeter and want to verify what I have listed below, feel free. This mod did not throw any CELs for me. First undo the 3 torx screws that hold the front inner fender liners in on both sides. This will give you enough room to pull aside the liner about 6 inches and reach inside where the lights are. DRIVERS SIDE: Find the light blue wire going into the DRL harness. This is the 12V lead for the drivers side DRL. Crimp one of the inline connectors along with a 12" long wire in here. Next up by where the headlights are theres a harness there that powers the Halos amongst other lighting. Unplug this harness and find the purple wire going to the harness. Attach the other inline connector here and the other end of the 12" wire going from the DRL you just attached above. So basically you're connecting the light blue wire on the DRL to the purple wire on the harness by the headlights. This is for the drivers side. The passenger side will be the same setup but with different colored wires to splice into. PASSENGER SIDE: Find the blue wire going into the DRL harness. This is the 12V lead for the passenger side DRL. Crimp one of the inline connectors along with a 12" long wire in here. Next find the harness on the passenger side by the headlight that powers the halos. This wire will be brown with a white stripe. Crimp on the last inline wire connector here and the 12" cable going from the blue wire for the DRL harness on the passenger side. Done. Your DRLs will now come on with your halos at night. 50 cents worth of parts and about 30 mins of your time. A lot easier than buying some of the $150-180 cables with group buys I've seen floating around here... Here's how it looks. Bad pic, but you get the idea. I have 7.5W LEDs for the DRLs, 6k HIDs for the headlights, And 6K HIDs for the projector foglights. Enjoy! Hopefully this will keep all the retards in Portland that like to camp out in the left lane going 10 under outta my way :-P

10-29-2012, 06:18 PM	#5
christianchevell old school chevy rodder Drives: 2021 zl1 a-10 WildCherry Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Oregon Posts: 5,620 View My Garage	nice informative post with pics...good job fellow oregonian!

10-29-2012, 06:19 PM	#6
ZL1Reaper Drives: '13 Silver Ice Metallic ZL1 Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Carlsbad, CA Posts: 325	Cool. Thanks for the info.

10-29-2012, 10:14 PM	#7
rzrbck_zl1 Drives: '13 ZL1 CRT #702; '05 Hemi Ram Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Arkansas Posts: 320 View My Garage	Been thinking about doing this myself - thanks for the info!

11-02-2012, 07:51 PM	#8
evonschu Drives: 2013 Camaro ZL1 M6 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Hillsboro, OR. Posts: 179 View My Garage	Here's some better pics of the layout with the 6K HID fogs, 6K HID Headlights, and 7.5W 6K LED DRLs.

11-04-2012, 11:07 PM	#11
Skylane765 Drives: ZL1-1LE, Z/28 Join Date: May 2012 Location: San Diego Posts: 3,262 View My Garage	I am going to use 4 diodes, that way the side markers do not go on or the DRL will not be on at night. All I wanted was to have Halos on with DRLs and all the other lighting same as factory.

11-05-2012, 03:51 PM	#13
Skylane765 Drives: ZL1-1LE, Z/28 Join Date: May 2012 Location: San Diego Posts: 3,262 View My Garage	Where is the connector that connects together? Step2?