RTGTA

Hey all.. just wondering if this is stock or if this was the previous owners handywork. On my heater controls only the dial for blower speed and the slider for temp illuminate by themselves and then for the other slider for setting is lit up by a small LED looking unit mounted under the lip where my controls for fog lights, defroster, and hatch release are (1990 GTA) This didn't seem stock to me but any input is greatly appreciated. This light is cutting in and out and makes it really ignorant to try and see some of the controls at night. Also I noticed the lights for the switches for the fog lights and defrost and hatch release seem to short out. So i'm thinking maybe the previous owner hacked wires to get power for the LED or maybe some wires are broken or cut in the dash. Haven't had time to rip out the dash yet. Anyways. Help please
Thank you

JamesC

iTrader: (5)

The light is OE--at least on Camaros of this vintage. A search will provide a ton of info.

JamesC

jccaclimber

I have a light there in my Camaro. I wouldn't describe it as like an LED in any way, although that may be the engineer in me being ****.

RTGTA

Ok i just wanted to make sure... I need to fix th wiring for it though since it's intermittantly working

80schild

iTrader: (5)

My GTA has the light there, but it's not LED. It has a red bulb in it to match the switches and gauges. I really don't understand the purpose of the light since the heater/ac and stereo controls are backlit. Maybe it's meant to provide a little light for the ashtray.

RTGTA

Yeah it's kind of a pointless little light but whatever... Lots of things in the 80's were haha

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Yea after reading these posts on this little light, I can't believe I never knew about it before. Especially since I have had my 1987 Camaro LT since 1993. And btw, it's burned out. Need to replace the bulb. May go with a red l.e.d. since it will match with my "whory" red interior.

RTGTA

By Whory you mean classy right

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

You know, my friends call it whory but honestly, I actually like the way the red interior matches with the gun metal gray exterior. I did replace the bulb since my last post with a stock one and enlarged the pinhole where the light shines out to a larger diameter. Luckily the clear plastic lens was not yellow from age so i glued it back on after the modification. More light onto my console.

RTGTA

Well done sir... I just need to fix the wires that are broken behind mine then I'll be laughing

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

You know, I see people on the site going mad over that little light which is funny. But, to me, GM was ahead of its time with it and you can call me nuts on this. I bought my mom a 2008 Jetta and it has two red L.E.D.'s that shine from the sunroof control console above and.....the lights shine down to the shifter console below. Ambient light really but GM (so far that I know of) did it first.

RTGTA

I second the motion. GM was very revolutionary with this little light it sure is an odd little feature but when it does work it sure is nice to have. I remember when I first started showing off my car to girls from school and around town the most common comment was an enthusiastic "It' so 80's I love it" but when you think these cars were very advanced for the time period.

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

exactly thats what it was made for, i made the hole in mine bigger to alow more light through and made a reflector behind the bulb with silver tape so it would light that area up better


My 05 Accord has this, someone told me its only in the V6's with the leather and other fancy stuff, and mines fully loaded, so well i know its there, when they gave me that 4cyl accord (when mine was in the shop for warrenty work) i didnt pay attention to see if it had one.....

i do like it, but lets not talk about GM being way ahead of the times, because there we SO MANY things they did in the past that were way ahead of their time (or better than some of the crap they got now), just alot of it got overlooked

i like the little curved glass that alowed you to see the stop light if you were to close to it, that way you didnt have to bend your dead down and look up, or the thingy you set at "XX" mph and if you went over it, it started buzzing nice if you didnt have CC or hate CC

then the old chrysler push button shifts, dang that was way to cool, and on some dang fast cars.....but im getting off the subject now

Shadygrady

iTrader: (3)

Does someone have a pic of this light?I`ve never seen one and had several third gens and riden in many more.Never noticed it.And what exactly do you call it to search for it

RTGTA

haha yeah GM is... was fairly ahead of their time in some aspects. And I believe to search it's called extremely kick *** amazing dash mini porno light (red) hahaha

1985WS6TA

I second the motion. GM was very revolutionary with this little light it sure is an odd little feature but when it does work it sure is nice to have. I remember when I first started showing off my car to girls from school and around town the most common comment was an enthusiastic "It' so 80's I love it" but when you think these cars were very advanced for the time period.


Yeah thats one thing I love about the third gens, all the cool little gadgets, options and lights they could have.
Especially the digital gauges option, almost futuristic! haha

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Senior Member



Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Jackson area & Vicksburg,ms
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Re: Light above HVAC controls
Does someone have a pic of this light?I`ve never seen one and had several third gens and riden in many more.Never noticed it.And what exactly do you call it to search for it


The light (on Camaro's) is at the far end of the upper center vents. It's about a 1"x2" square piece the thickness of a US quarter. It is held on by two 7mm screws. It's fairly visible in the day time but a flashlight does help in really seeing it if your car has it. There is a little square piece of plastic toward the front of the unit.

You have to really know what you are looking for since it does blend in more or less with the rest of the black plastic and how often does anyone really look in that exact spot. I didn't till I found out about the little light.

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

i will get a pic and post it lol

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

umm yea scratch that last message LOL, i just went to replace the bulb in mine and take a pic, and realized i have no bulbs in its size, but i will leave you with this, its a LED light i put in my center console, its wired to the dash lights, it really helps to find stuff at night, all it is, is a white led from rat shack, got a resistor and a led holder for it, looks good, works and its bright, pics you really cant tell....i used the hole thats inthe console from the factory, i think its the hole that the adjuster for the center console clock went, so if you got the center console tic toc than you need to drill another
hole

RTGTA

Wow that's a good looking LED man. Very clean. I should do something like that in my T/A.... except orangish/red. Man I still can;t believe how amazing these cars are. I've had mine since July and i am still in awe of it. Sometimes I just stare it pictures and go wow.... gorgeous. It's in winter storage now but it'll be amazing in the summer

Shadygrady

iTrader: (3)

Never seen anybody wrap a quote like that either.Guess my car doesnt have one.I`ll have to look harder when i`m in the j/y

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Sorry about that. It's been a while since I wrapped and my boss was coming in and out of my office. Had to think fast since my brain was on boss watch.

So anyway, let's see which one of us will post the light up sooner than the other. Btw, great idea for the center console in adding a light.

NINÅ

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89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

yea i always put a red light in my truck so you could read something w/o blinding you

RTGTA

I used red in my truck because it looks so cool haha. I can't believe how this thread keeps going haha. It's like watching my child gorw *tear*

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Well we're making more people aware of some funky little light that most of us have in our cars. And I can only imagine those going to their cars and looking for it.

jccaclimber

But we still don't have a good photo of the stock light.

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Ok, I took these two pics of the light on my car. And, the fake wood was already on my car when I got it years ago. I grew to like it, but my IROC buddies think it's tacky. My car, my thing I tell them. Mind you, I didn't turn on the light. OOPS!!!

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

well i was at rat shack today, and decided to convert my under dash light to LED....i got 2 leds and & 2 led holders for $3, i got the resistors allready...the are the brightest white ones they have just like in my center console, so i will post up a pic of the LED conversion as soon as its done

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

How did the conversion come out?

RTGTA

Yes I am also interested in the conversion

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

give me a few more days guys, i got the stuff over a week ago but i been working on getting my new rear end in the car and a few other things to get it back on the road, and also working on my 4-wheeler......i hope i can do it tonight or monday after work

its the same LED that i used in my center console, same LED holder (but im may paint it black to hide it better.....will take pic of the process also

will post up ASAP, and i hope before Wednesday

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

Here is the start

7000MCD LED, p/n 276-0017




Resistors 470 OHM




LED Holder (sorry no p/n had a few in the shop)




LED and Holder installed in stock holder (drilling required)



LED and Holder shown the part that faces the center console




Still need to soder in the resistor and then splice into factory wires (the garage monster ate my sodering iron sorry, it will be another day or 2)

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Looks good so far. And from the looks of it, there will be a lot of light output too.

FireDemonSiC

Hey guys, what do you all make of this.

After reading this thread I scrambled to the Camaro to see if I in fact had the little ashtray light. I looked under and saw the two 7mm screws but had to do a doule take when I saw there was no light. There not even the square piece of plactic. Just the 7mm screws right where it would be. And also a nice crack starting at the two screws, going up the side of the vent housing and across the dash to the gauge cluster I just now noticed

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

Can you post a pic of it? Well the crack can be from over tightening those screws.

FireDemonSiC

Here is a couple pics. They're a bit blurry since the camera could not properly focus.

As you can see, there is no light and no square plastic just the screws and the "handywork" of a PO by overtightening them. I find it extremely odd that the screws would be there but my car would not come with the light. I am inclined to think someone before me ripped it out the only thing throwing me off here is I don't see any sort of hole where the bulb or wires would route through.

BTW, anyone got any good advice on repairing that crack that DOESN'T include replacing the dash?

MY87LT

iTrader: (2)

From the looks of your pics, looks like someone tried to install the light previously. The cars that do come with the light, there is a square opening where the plastic piece with the lense goes into.

FireDemonSiC

Well someone needs to teach the idiot how to PROPERLY USE A ****ING DRILL!

I'd bet $10 he made that crack by either trying to gouge the hole out and using the screws to self tap it. I would think that overtightening something in that area would simply strip the plastic out.

Now that I have discovered it though, I think installing the actual light itself might cover up most of the mess. But I cannot find it anywhere.

What is the name this light goes by and does anyone have one for sale?

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

correct me if im wrong but i think this light was an option, as is part of a package, so there for you may have the screw hole from the factory but not the hole for the light.............i may be wrong IDK

FireDemonSiC

I thought of that as well and you could be right.

But by that logic, you could also have the hole for the light itself without the actual light. That's why these two screws are throwing me off :S

skiroulertx447

My car is also in storage for the winter so i will have to wait till spring, or take the cover off the car and move things around to get into it to see if it has this light. I don't really remember seeing it there though. What options would this have come with?

Shadygrady

iTrader: (3)

OK.That explains alot to me.I have a little plate there with the two screws in it.It doesnt look like your pics.I heve the plate but no hole in it for the light.I do have a crack starting from the driver side of that plate coming up to the driverside vent.Mine however stops right next to the driverside vent.I`ve seen that plate and wondered what it was for.I wonder if there is an rpo code for the package the light may have come with.I have most of the interior options available and I`m not sure what it may have been called or what package it came with.
I have,
-overheadconsole
-power rearview mirror
-power mirrors
-power driverseat
-ERS
-power windows
-power doors
just to name what I can think of without going to the garage and uncovering the car.
IIFC my T/A had a light in the ash tray with all the above mentioned options plus rear defrost.My car(the Camaro) originaly came with the rear leovers(or however you spell it)Wonder if they were supposed to keep frost off of the rear window.Anyway that explains the plate with the two screws.Do any of yall have the bose system?What other options do yall have.I know I`ve read threads about some cars having the under dash covers and others not(of the same year and model).If the underdash lights were mounted on the top of the kick panels the car didnt come equiped with the under dash panal.My car came with no under dash panals.From what I`ve read alot of Irocs did not.I bought underdash driver side panel and it would not fit right until I moved the light to the supplied hole in the under dasah panel.The light was in the way.Anyhow,I`m begining to wonder if they just put some of this stuff in as it was available.

Shadygrady

iTrader: (3)

With A little more reseach it seems only autos got the underdash panel.However mine is auto.Iknow this is off topic,kinda,but it seems not everything was standard on our cars.

FireDemonSiC

lol. Kind of odd that such a miniscule part was optional...

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

ok here is the rest of the story

soddered up the wires put the resistor on the positlve side (its the slightly longer lead on the LED) and heat shrunk them




ran a piece of heat shrink over both wires and the base of the light

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

Here it is installed (next segment is fix that crack in the dash )



here it is on, sorry my cell dont pic up low light well, but i will say it lights up the ashtray and shifter good

FireDemonSiC

89RS, don't feel bad. I have that same crack. Scroll up for pics.

Let me know if you have any idea for a fix that doesn't involve pulling the dash.


BTW, good job

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

im looking into a way of fixin it.....my idea

use hot glue to temp hold it together.......then take a black 2 part plastic weld epoxy and fill in the crack be really carfull and clean up excess before it dries...it may or may not work...its an idea, one to test out on something less important to see how the product works and dries




as for the light, i took it out for a spin tonight, it glows real well on the ashtrey and shifter, and it does not glare also, a nice improvement to the factory set up

RTGTA

Man that looks pretty good. Any chances of getting a better quality pic?