From: Bob Wallis wallis@shore.net Subject: Re: Problem with factory switch for driving lights Date: Sun, 11 Aug 1996 08:14:45 -0400 Miata Mailing List: August 96, Message #1070
Todd Palino wrote: > > OK, I'm hoping mebbe someone from PBC or Bill from Dealer Alt, if not > someone else, can help me out here. > > A couple days ago, I got a set of PIAA's and a factory switch from PBC. > Today I was taking apart Sprite's dash looking for the pre-wired plug. I > found it, but there's just one little problem. It doesn't fit the factory > plug I have. > > The factory switch has 4 blade connectors on it. The plug in my Miata has > much smaller connectors, and more of them. It looks like it might fit in > the *space* on the back of the switch I have, but the connectors won't > mesh. > > Do I have the wrong factory switch? The part number on the box is "BWOG > 66 4BO" (The O's may be 0's, I can't tell). Sprite is a 96 M-Edition. > > Thanks, > Todd & Sprite, the Shadowmiata > '96 M Todd, Below is ths account of my installation on my '94 which was posted in Compuserve's Miataville forum. It tells you how I got around the switch problem. I hope my connector 'graphics' come out OK ****** My last two cars had OEM (Original Equipment from Manufacturer) fogs, which I found very useful living here along the New England Atlantic coast. Since my '94 Miata already has Hella headlamps for the long reach, I wanted to first try some inexpensive fogs that I could remove and not be out a lot if I don't like them, or upgrade at whim. I also wanted the install to be as close to OEM as possible with no permanent alterations made to the car. I bought Blazer brand projector style fog lamps available at many discount stores. I got mine at K-Mart for about $50. The Blazers aren't PIAAs, but they'll do 'til I decide I need to upgrade. The Blazers fit very well in a nearly OEM position, hung from the two outboard spots where two of three black plastic panel fasteners hold the bumper skin at the top of the grill opening. The fasteners can be removed by backing out their phillips headed centers. Since the fog light bracket will not be grounded, I fastened the lamp ground wire to a bolt in a vicinity of the tie down loops (which I removed). I didn't use my drill at all. I hooked the lamp power wires to the lights and tie wrapped the wire, out of sight, to some air conditioning plumbing above the grill opening. I put the headlamps up and pulled the wire up and through, right in front of the drivers side headlight, and fed the wire into the existing clips, holding the car's wire harness, heading toward where Mazda left a wire to hook up the lamps to - a single green and yellow striped wire that hangs out of that wire bundle back by the brake and clutch master cylinders just inside the engine compartment. Whatever way you decide to fasten the wire to the connector ( I used what's commonly known as a bayonet connector crimped to the wire), make sure it is taped or otherwise insulated since that wire will carry 12 volts DC. As I said before, I wanted this to look as OEM as possible so I didn't want to use the generic switch provided by Blazer. The fog light switch from Mazda is part number BWOG-66-4BO and cost around $42. It's simple plug and play installation years up to and including '93, but THERE IS NO PART NUMBER FOR ONE TO FIT 94+!! So, you with pre-'94 can simply pull out the appropriate switch blank (don't know which one it is), plug in the OEM switch to the connector behind the switch opening, and away you go. Now, those of you with post '93 Miatas, here comes the fun part. The blank plug opening you want to pull out (switch blank and the trim ring around it) is the one just to the left of the steering wheel. Pull it out and look at the connector inside. You'll notice immediately that it is too small to fit on your switch, and looks something like the diagram below: '94 + Fog Lamp /Rear Defogger wiring Harness connector (viewed from switch side) __ __ |_1|_____|_2| |_3|_4|_5|_6| 1 Red/Black Switch illumination power 2 Red Switch Illumination ground 3 Defogger 4 Defogger 5 Green/Yellow Wire to Fog lamp 6 Red/Black Fog lamp battery (switched through low beam) What you're going to have to do now is make some changes to allow you to connect your switch. I called one aftermarket Miata accessories dealer who sells fog lamps to get their suggestion on how to accomplish this. Their suggestion was to cut off the factory switch connector and put new connectors on the necessary wires. 'Scuse me? I ain't loppin' off a perfectly good connector on my red baby with three good years of factory warranty on it! Nooo sirreeee! My suggestion? Go to Radio Shack and get the following: 4 ea. Solderless insulated female quick disconnects (1/4" tabs) 16 AWG. 4 ea. In line wire taps for 16 AWG wire. 4 ft. 16 AWG wire As with most everything you buy from Radio Shack, you may have to get more than what's listed above, because of their way of packaging product. About $5 worth of stuff at most. Cut the wire you bought into four one-foot pieces. On one end of each wire, strip 1/4 inch of insulation off and crimp on the insulated female quick disconnects (they will fit onto the male connectors on the switch, but not yet). Make sure they're on good and tight with no exposed bare wire. The timid of you out there now need to disconnect your battery. Now pull the wiring connector out of the open switch hole as far as you can. CAREFULLY strip the black tape, that is around the wires, back about five inches. Use scissors or a knife, but don't cut any wires! Next, using the in line wire taps,fasten the four pigtails you made to wires 1,2,5 and 6, as shown in the connector diagram above, so the connectors face out from the dash. Last, push the connectors on to the appropriate pins on the back of the switch. Using the diagrams above and below, push the pigtails from the illumination wires(position 1 & 2) onto the switch pins for illumination on the switch (positions 3 & 4) and the pigtails for the fog lamp wires (position 5 & 6) onto the switch pins for turning the fog lamps on and off (positions 1 & 2). Fog Lamp Switch (BWOG-66-4BO) ___ ___|___|___ |_0_|_1_|_3_| |_0_|_2_|_4_| 0 no pins 1 & 2 Fog Lamp Switch 3 & 4 Switch Illumination Before tucking the connector, pig tails and switch into the hole, now is a good time to test your work. Faint of heart, you may now reconnect your battery. Now, switch your parking lamps on, the fog lamp symbol on the switch should be illuminated. Next switch your headlights on to low beams, with the fog lamp switch off, the headlights are on but no fog lamps, with the fog lamp switch on, the fog lamps are lit. Switch the high beams on, no fog lamps are lit. switch the headlights and parking lights off, no fog lamps are lit and the switch is not illuminated. If everything works right, push the fog lamp switch into the hole ( you removed the trim ring from the dummy switch and put it onto the fog light switch, right?) take a deep breath and exhale slowly, smiling about a job well done. The beauty of this installation is that nothing has been irrevocably altered on your car. Everything you've done can be returned to it's original state. The pigtails can be removed by undoing the taps, the dummy switch can be returned to its original spot, all the wire you added can be removed and the fog lamps can be removed and the panel clips reinstalled. ****** I'm still very satisfied with my installation after ten months. Good Luck, Bob Wallis