Front Dome Light Upgrade/Retrofit

[asmetana]

I've got a 2015 A3 2.0 Quattro with the [U.S.] Premium Plus. In previous Audis they've had the front map lights, which this car does not. Apparently that's part of the Prestige package. I've since ordered and just received the front light assembly from the Prestige package, along with the unique factory harness. What I'm having trouble finding though is where it plugs in to the car. Based on cable length after running through the headliner and down the A-pillar, it should land somewhere around the BCM (body control module) or kick panel but I'm not finding a female plug that would accommodate it.

Anyone else done this retrofit who can lend some insight?

 

[Rob2k68]

Just speculation on my part but it looks too small to connect directly to the BCM and I'd expect it to piggyback off another part off the lighting circuit I'll have a dig around. Any chance of a larger picture to show where that wire is coming from ?

 

[asmetana]

Hi Rob,

Sure thing, here are a few. In the process of putting the original light assembly back in.

Thanks,

Aron

 

[Rob2k68]

Looks like a fab man cave you have there ;o)

Not sure if these help at all seems to suggest there's a box or module behind the light switch :-

 

[asmetana]

The man-cave could stand some organization, too many simultaneous projects. ;-)

That's a tremendous diagram, I didn't get behind the light switch, will have to give that a whirl after I get the ambition back. Since I hit a stand-still on the light, I decided to do the backup camera which was a small adventure as well..

Thanks so much, Rob, I'll let you know once I decide to get in there again in the next few days!

 

[fatyin]

Looks like a fab man cave you have there ;o)

Not sure if these help at all seems to suggest there's a box or module behind the light switch :-

Hi @Rob2k68, I can't find the diagram you quoted in ElsaWin. Am I using the wrong software???

Hi @asmetana, do you have any luck in completing the retrofit??? I have just completed retrofitting footwell light and i looks awesome. However, the colour temperature giving off from the white footwell lights are just too distinct from the traditional tungsten dome lights. I am so eager to retrofit everything to LEDs. Of course, the most difficult would be the dome lights.

I have compared wiring diagrams of the conventional and the new LED dome lights, there is an extra 6-pin connector that needs to connect the front dome light to the rear. If i were to do a proper job in running the wire, I would have to remove the headliners. I am very very afraid of kinking it in the process. Do you mind sharing your insight in this?? Thanks in advance.

 

[asmetana]

For the dome lights, the easy path is to swap out the halogens for LEDs, which gets the color right; I tried that and it was better but not the same as a proper Interior Light Package set of dome lights. I bought those and the harness that goes between b/c the standard one doesn't fit. It was a minor hassle to fish the cable through the headliner but not insurmountable. I have the sunroof and I was able to fish the wire by pulling down a few of the compression plugs that hold the headliner to the roof (very carefully) and run it through. I then pushed them back into place and all was fine. I didn't secure them but the factory harness I bought was wrapped in the fabric tape so I wasn't too worried about noise. Then you have to swap some pins on the front dome light to match up, which you already saw. Some people reported that the retrofitted dome light flickers with the engine running if they share a single supply cable and split it to the two pins on the front, which I also found. I then pulled another power lead from an unused fuse (constant power) up to the dome and put that into the second power input pin on the LED dome and that solved it for me. I think most people are happy enough just swapping out the bulbs but I wanted the individual map lights for each seat position, which I now have. Kind of a hassle, kind of expensive for what it is, but worth it for me. It totally classes up the interior at night. I also added the cupholder light, door handle, puddle and exit lamps.

 

[QuiQue]

For the dome lights, the easy path is to swap out the halogens for LEDs, which gets the color right; I tried that and it was better but not the same as a proper Interior Light Package set of dome lights. I bought those and the harness that goes between b/c the standard one doesn't fit. It was a minor hassle to fish the cable through the headliner but not insurmountable. I have the sunroof and I was able to fish the wire by pulling down a few of the compression plugs that hold the headliner to the roof (very carefully) and run it through. I then pushed them back into place and all was fine. I didn't secure them but the factory harness I bought was wrapped in the fabric tape so I wasn't too worried about noise. Then you have to swap some pins on the front dome light to match up, which you already saw. Some people reported that the retrofitted dome light flickers with the engine running if they share a single supply cable and split it to the two pins on the front, which I also found. I then pulled another power lead from an unused fuse (constant power) up to the dome and put that into the second power input pin on the LED dome and that solved it for me. I think most people are happy enough just swapping out the bulbs but I wanted the individual map lights for each seat position, which I now have. Kind of a hassle, kind of expensive for what it is, but worth it for me. It totally classes up the interior at night. I also added the cupholder light, door handle, puddle and exit lamps.

Hello @asmetana!
I have just fitted the Audi LED vanity mirror lights and they work fine with the engine running. Just plug and play!
Now I want to replace my standard non LED domes with the LED units.
Before reading your message I thought it was as easy as the vanity mirror lights......plug and play.
What happened when you connected the new domes to the existing connector?
Could you publish the parts needed with their Audi reference?

Thank you very much in advance!

QuiQue

 

[asmetana]

Hello @asmetana!
I have just fitted the Audi LED vanity mirror lights and they work fine with the engine running. Just plug and play!
Now I want to replace my standard non LED domes with the LED units.
Before reading your message I thought it was as easy as the vanity mirror lights......plug and play.
What happened when you connected the new domes to the existing connector?
Could you publish the parts needed with their Audi reference?

Thank you very much in advance!

QuiQue

Hi QuiQue,

The new domes are quite a bit more involved than swapping out the vanity bulbs, but it's nice, particularly if you are willing to spend some time pulling panels apart because there is a fair amount required. I listed my pin assignments below but if you were to just swap assemblies (which I think I tried), nothing worked.

The parts I used were:

• Black Interior Light Package LED Front Dome light assembly: 8V0-947-135-D-6PS
• Black Rear Interior Light Package LED Rear light assembly: 8V0-947-111-A-6PS
• Wiring harness between the front and rear lights (the non-LED harness won't fit): 8V0-971-100-C
• You will also need to source a pin for the T6 connector to the front dome light, I think I used one from a dead computer
• soldering iron, solder, fabric insulating tape, etc.

The connector itself for the non-LED front dome light is the same as the LED assembly but the pins are different as in you will need to remove some of the pins and put them into different ports on the connector. Additionally, what a couple of us also did was to pull an additional power lead from the fusebox and run it up through the A-pillar, across the windshield header (tucked into the headliner) and source an additional pin to plug into the main connector for the LED/ILP dome light as it seems to need two power connections. Bridging the existing single power source to the two pins resulted in the strobing while the engine was running.

To connect the front and rear factory LED dome lights you will need the aforementioned wiring harness and that will have to be run through the headliner, which means removing some trim and snaking the cable back. I didn't *love* the way that I did it but I wasn't willing to pull out the entire headliner and the old halogen bulb rear light won't work with the new front.

Originally my pin assignments into the T6 dome light connector were this:
Original stock
Pin 1 - Ground - Brown
Pin 2 - Door Trigger to ground - Green
Pin 3 - empty
Pin 4 - +12v constant power - purple w/ white stripe
Pin 5 - illumination - Gray w/ white stripe
Pin 6 - empty

I believe my final pin assignments on the front dome light connector ended up being this (it's the end of my notes, so without pulling stuff apart, I can't say I'm positive but it seems to line up with the wiring diagram):
Pin 1 - to +12v [run dedicated lead to fuse box constant power]
Pin 2 - door trigger (to ground) [green]
Pin 3 - ground [brown]
Pin 4 - [empty]
Pin 5 - +12v [purple w/white]
Pin 6 - illumination [gray w/ white stripe]

This is what worked for me, can't say it will work for everyone. I took my lights out onto my work bench and used a 12 volt DC power supply to test it before I started moving pins around in the terminal connector and wiring it up. My car is a MY 2015 US-spec A3 2.0 (petrol) Quattro, Premium-Plus trim level with B&O, top-level MMI, sport package.

Hope that helps,

Aron

 

[asmetana]

Picture of the ILP front dome light:

 

[QuiQue]

Hello @asmetana Aron!!

Wow! This is not a job for a person with my low skills....

Unfortunately I will have to forget it.

I will look for easier modyfications.

Aron I appreciate a lot your message!!

Thank you very much indeed

QuiQue

 

[Jonty01]

Hi @asmetana.

I'm looking to do this exact same upgrade and I managed to buy a very good condition led lighting module off a UK eBay seller for £25 (which I thought was pretty good).

Every plug in my car fits the new module except for one and I imagine it's going to be pretty important. I have a red plastic 3 pin plug where it looks like the new led lighting module requires a 12 pin plug. Do you know if this 12pin plug can be omitted and the 6pin plug on the opposite side (the one it looks like is in your hand in one of your photos) just needs rewired as described in this and some other posts?

Thanks,

Jon.

 

[asmetana]

Hi Jon,
It has been a long time since I did this project but I believe the 12-pin connector was part of the cable that goes to the rear dome light with the factory ILP (LEDs). Did you source that as well? There are connectors for the microphone and, I believe, temperature sensor, but those are only two or three conductor connectors.

Aron

 

[Jonty01]

Hi Aron,

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated (especially on Christmas eve!).

Re the 12pin plug/socket, I have trial fitted the LED lighting module and found that the sunroof worked correctly, I think it only requires the same dedicated 4 or 5 pin plug that my loom already has and it plugs directly into an identical black sunroof switch assembly like my current regular front roof light module has.

I really must post some pictures because it's sounding like I might have a slightly different LED module to what other people who have done this conversion used. The 12pin socket I have is located in the same location as the 3 pin socket that spurs power off to the rear roof lights. I have partially disassembled the new LED unit to reveal quite a large circuit board that has 2 connectors attached to it (a 6 pin connector and a 12pin connector). Both connectors appear to be concerned with the led lighting only, no other functions, all other functions are catered for by the existing plugs in my current wiring loom.

The unit definitely has an 8v part number, in fact I'm going to go and look at it now and write them here.

8V0 947 135 D

I've just noticed that the 12pin socket I'm referring to is in the same location that you have shown a loom and plug plugged into in your 2nd photo (the photo directly below the one where you're showing the gray label on your wiring loom).

 

[Jonty01]

Aron @asmetana

I haven't yet sourced the rear lights from the factory ILP and to be honest I wasn't going to until you've said that this 12pin connector maybe a part of that. I think you're right as it is in the same location on the front module as the current spur off to the rear roof light module. If that's all it's for I might continue with the conversion as per the connector rewiring instructions you posted near the start of this thread.

Thank you very much for the information and your time.

Jon

 

[asmetana]

Just checked my front dome light part number and it's the same as yours. In post #9 I detailed out my part numbers. Now my car is a black interior sedan/limousine body style so I'm not sure if they use the same rear light assembly in other body styles, but I'd be surprised if they didn't. I'd recommend getting the cable, if I recall it was $30 or $40 from a dealer. I think I got the rear light assembly from europarts.com as they had the best price at the time. Without yanking things apart again, and I think you can only do it a couple of times before you start bending or breaking things, I'm at least 90% confident the 12 pin is for the rear lights.

 

[Jonty01]

@asmetana

Thanks again for all the info Aron. I have to admit that reading your past posts more carefully would've answered most of my questions so apologies for that.

I also have the sedan model of the A3 (Saloon as it's called in the UK) and I have the all black interior with the MMI+ and B&O systems. I can't believe the person who spec'd it up from new didn't add the ILP to compliment the rest of the options.

I'll have a look for this lead that is needed to link the front and rear lights and also a rear light module.

I have some quality Osram w5w type LED's installed at the moment and they're actually quite good. Unfortunately I'm suffering the dimly lit LED issue after I switch the ignition off and lock the car. Apparently this can be corrected by soldering a 1k 1/2watt resistor across the lamp terminals but I'm not bothered enough by it to want to do that.

If I get around to doing the ILP module conversion I'll post some pics and a description.

Thanks again.

Jon.

 

[Jonty01]

@asmetana

Forgot to ask you in my last message; what sort of a job/cost was fitting the illuminated cup holders? This is definitely something I'd like to do as I'm always searching around for those 2 damn holes when driving at night!

Thanks,

Jon.

 

[Frank753]

I also built the led lighting. First I had the regular units. But my problem is that with the engine running when I turn on the lights for 2 seconds and then burn itself out. Do you know this problem??
I have also built cupholderverlichting and switch lights.

 

[Frank753]

Am working on a new project. lighting in my door map.

 

[Urazilia]

I also built the led lighting. First I had the regular units. But my problem is that with the engine running when I turn on the lights for 2 seconds and then burn itself out. Do you know this problem??
I have also built cupholderverlichting and switch lights.

Try this coding
Select Control unit 09 (Central Electrics)
Security access
Access Code 31347
Adaptation
Channel (10) -Leuchte2SL VLB10-dimming CD 2 Select
Set value to 100
Select channel (10) -Leuchte3SL VRB21-dimming CD 3
Value set to 100 (default: 30)

 

[Frank753]

Oke Thanks i will try this. and i willl let you know.

 

[Frank753]

Hi i have today try your coding. But the coding doesn't help. who knows what the problem is?

 

[MadsE]

Am working on a new project. lighting in my door map.

Please tell me how you acquired the correct parts for that.

 

[Frank753]

you need 2x leds from a A6 number 4G0 919 390 A and two plugs 8K0 973 754 and 4v wires. i dont know the nubers of that. You can buy it from the dealer.

 

[Frank753]

For the dome lights, the easy path is to swap out the halogens for LEDs, which gets the color right; I tried that and it was better but not the same as a proper Interior Light Package set of dome lights. I bought those and the harness that goes between b/c the standard one doesn't fit. It was a minor hassle to fish the cable through the headliner but not insurmountable. I have the sunroof and I was able to fish the wire by pulling down a few of the compression plugs that hold the headliner to the roof (very carefully) and run it through. I then pushed them back into place and all was fine. I didn't secure them but the factory harness I bought was wrapped in the fabric tape so I wasn't too worried about noise. Then you have to swap some pins on the front dome light to match up, which you already saw. Some people reported that the retrofitted dome light flickers with the engine running if they share a single supply cable and split it to the two pins on the front, which I also found. I then pulled another power lead from an unused fuse (constant power) up to the dome and put that into the second power input pin on the LED dome and that solved it for me. I think most people are happy enough just swapping out the bulbs but I wanted the individual map lights for each seat position, which I now have. Kind of a hassle, kind of expensive for what it is, but worth it for me. It totally classes up the interior at night. I also added the cupholder light, door handle, puddle and exit lamps.

what do you mean exactly with : I then pulled another power lead from an unused fuse (constant power) up to the dome and put that into the second power input pin on the LED dome.? Two wires on de constant 12v on pin 1? to the fuse box? you say that some people
share a single supply cable and split it to the two pins on the front. can you explane that?

 

[Urazilia]

Hi i have today try your coding. But the coding doesn't help. who knows what the problem is?

What is outside temperature on the dashboard? If outside temperature is below 5℃, this coding has no effect. I searched for this problem, but I only discovered this was concerned with voltage of pin 5th.

 

[Frank753]

the outside temperature on that moment was 12℃ It has to do with resistance measuring the bsm I think. there is no other channel that needs to be adjusted? if the car while the sun is the problem away.

 

[GAGE GAGLIARDI]

Okay so I just bought this dome light, I'm trying to get this done but a bit confused. I don't know where to locate the harness. The dealership is telling me I can't do this because they can't get this part.... Any help also what are the exact things I will need. I already have the front assembly and the rear assembly. Im really wanting this in my car!!!!

Hi QuiQue,

The new domes are quite a bit more involved than swapping out the vanity bulbs, but it's nice, particularly if you are willing to spend some time pulling panels apart because there is a fair amount required. I listed my pin assignments below but if you were to just swap assemblies (which I think I tried), nothing worked.

The parts I used were:

• Black Interior Light Package LED Front Dome light assembly: 8V0-947-135-D-6PS
• Black Rear Interior Light Package LED Rear light assembly: 8V0-947-111-A-6PS
• Wiring harness between the front and rear lights (the non-LED harness won't fit): 8V0-971-100-C
• You will also need to source a pin for the T6 connector to the front dome light, I think I used one from a dead computer
• soldering iron, solder, fabric insulating tape, etc.

The connector itself for the non-LED front dome light is the same as the LED assembly but the pins are different as in you will need to remove some of the pins and put them into different ports on the connector. Additionally, what a couple of us also did was to pull an additional power lead from the fusebox and run it up through the A-pillar, across the windshield header (tucked into the headliner) and source an additional pin to plug into the main connector for the LED/ILP dome light as it seems to need two power connections. Bridging the existing single power source to the two pins resulted in the strobing while the engine was running.

To connect the front and rear factory LED dome lights you will need the aforementioned wiring harness and that will have to be run through the headliner, which means removing some trim and snaking the cable back. I didn't *love* the way that I did it but I wasn't willing to pull out the entire headliner and the old halogen bulb rear light won't work with the new front.

Originally my pin assignments into the T6 dome light connector were this:
Original stock
Pin 1 - Ground - Brown
Pin 2 - Door Trigger to ground - Green
Pin 3 - empty
Pin 4 - +12v constant power - purple w/ white stripe
Pin 5 - illumination - Gray w/ white stripe
Pin 6 - empty

I believe my final pin assignments on the front dome light connector ended up being this (it's the end of my notes, so without pulling stuff apart, I can't say I'm positive but it seems to line up with the wiring diagram):
Pin 1 - to +12v [run dedicated lead to fuse box constant power]
Pin 2 - door trigger (to ground) [green]
Pin 3 - ground [brown]
Pin 4 - [empty]
Pin 5 - +12v [purple w/white]
Pin 6 - illumination [gray w/ white stripe]

This is what worked for me, can't say it will work for everyone. I took my lights out onto my work bench and used a 12 volt DC power supply to test it before I started moving pins around in the terminal connector and wiring it up. My car is a MY 2015 US-spec A3 2.0 (petrol) Quattro, Premium-Plus trim level with B&O, top-level MMI, sport package.

Hope that helps,

Aron

 

[asmetana]

Okay so I just bought this dome light, I'm trying to get this done but a bit confused. I don't know where to locate the harness. The dealership is telling me I can't do this because they can't get this part.... Any help also what are the exact things I will need. I already have the front assembly and the rear assembly. Im really wanting this in my car!!!!

I can't speak for your car, but in mine, I used the same T6 harness that connected the original dome light, however I had to move the pins around as I earlier detailed. You don't need a new harness to power the main dome light, you just have to re-wire and add a conductor for a second +12v source (at least in my case). If you don't replace the back-seat dome light and add the other harness, you won't have a working back seat dome light as there's not a spot for the incandescent harness for the back dome light to plug into on the premium front dome light assembly. I replaced my rear dome light as well and bought the harness, the part numbers are in the earlier post as well.

I purchased all of my parts from an authorized US Audi dealership. If your dealer isn't able to order the parts for you, I'm sure another will.

 

[GAGE GAGLIARDI]

How did you get the old connector to work with re wireing? I have a small red plug and a longer narrow plug. But the premium assembly has a longer and fatter connector ? The red connector being the one that runs to the rear assemble. So the fatter section on the new housing gets re wired correct ? But how do that pin fit and stay ?

I can't speak for your car, but in mine, I used the same T6 harness that connected the original dome light, however I had to move the pins around as I earlier detailed. You don't need a new harness to power the main dome light, you just have to re-wire and add a conductor for a second +12v source (at least in my case). If you don't replace the back-seat dome light and add the other harness, you won't have a working back seat dome light as there's not a spot for the incandescent harness for the back dome light to plug into on the premium front dome light assembly. I replaced my rear dome light as well and bought the harness, the part numbers are in the earlier post as well.

I purchased all of my parts from an authorized US Audi dealership. If your dealer isn't able to order the parts for you, I'm sure another will.

Awesome

 

[asmetana]

Can't say for sure on yours. On mine, it was the T6 plug that where I moved the pins around (carefully open up the connector, use a small pick to release the tabs for the pins that need to be moved around, etc.), not the fatter red plug (not sure I even remember that, it's been over a year now). There was the T6 plug, another big plug for the sunroof controls, one plug to go to the rear dome light, and one or two other smaller plugs, I think.

On the premium dome light, the bigger/fatter plug goes to the rear dome light which requires a different harness that I sourced from an Audi dealership.

 

[rawrmcrawrrawr]

Can't say for sure on yours. On mine, it was the T6 plug that where I moved the pins around (carefully open up the connector, use a small pick to release the tabs for the pins that need to be moved around, etc.), not the fatter red plug (not sure I even remember that, it's been over a year now). There was the T6 plug, another big plug for the sunroof controls, one plug to go to the rear dome light, and one or two other smaller plugs, I think.

On the premium dome light, the bigger/fatter plug goes to the rear dome light which requires a different harness that I sourced from an Audi dealership.

I'm thinking about doing this upgrade but I'm a little confused. If you can repin the front dome light plug, why can't you repin the plug that runs to the rear dome light? It seems like that would be way easier than trying to run a new harness under the headliner.

 

[asmetana]

Maybe you can, it's been over a year for me so I can't recall the number of conductors in each, but considering that there's considerably more functionality with the uprated rear dome light it may require more conductors to provide that functionality so if you plan to replace that too, I'd recommend consulting erWIN for the wiring diagrams.

 

[rawrmcrawrrawr]

Maybe you can, it's been over a year for me so I can't recall the number of conductors in each, but considering that there's considerably more functionality with the uprated rear dome light it may require more conductors to provide that functionality so if you plan to replace that too, I'd recommend consulting erWIN for the wiring diagrams.

What kind of extra functionality? I thought the only difference was that you can control the left and right sides individually.

 

[asmetana]

Considerably more functionality was an overstatement, yes, you can turn them on individually from the back seat. Maybe you can do it all by re-pinnng the rear harness but you'll still need the plug to fit into the new front assembly. I personally wouldn't go to the trouble of getting all the parts and not doing the OEM harness. I'd certainly consult erWIN before going that route though.

 

[rawrmcrawrrawr]

Considerably more functionality was an overstatement, yes, you can turn them on individually from the back seat. Maybe you can do it all by re-pinnng the rear harness but you'll still need the plug to fit into the new front assembly. I personally wouldn't go to the trouble of getting all the parts and not doing the OEM harness. I'd certainly consult erWIN before going that route though.

I took a look at the wiring diagrams. The LED rear dome light has a 6 pin plug fed by 6 conductors to a 12 pin plug on the front LED dome light. On the halogen lights, the rear dome lights has a 4 pin plug fed by 3 conductors to a 4 pin plug on to front dome light.

I think the halogen rear dome lights can work with the LED front dome light but I'm not certain.

 

[asmetana]

And don't forget current draw, that could play a factor too if you're powering the rear halogens (which will draw more current than the LEDs) from the front light kit. The circuitry on the front LED dome may not support enough current for halogens in the back. Just a thought.

 

[dandav1985]

Great Mod lads, I'm going to try this one myself, Anyone have the part no for the LED vanity Mirror light?? also anyone know or anyone supplying the puddle light and footwell light mods?? Cheers Dan

 

[GAGE GAGLIARDI]

I'm stuck. I re wired the pins have the harness for the rear LED light can't get the actual map lights to work. The illumination (red lights behind the buttons) is working but no the reading light. Haven't done the second power supply... is this why I can't get any lights to come on?