This article was written by me about 3 years ago. There may be mistakes and flaws, but it should get the creative juices flowing
A little disclaimer on this one: Do electrical modifications at your own risk! I recommend at least understanding what you're doing before even tapping into the first wire!!! Electrical modifications can cause car fires if not done properly!!! I have looked at these diagrams and tried my best to verify that they are exactly what I did, but there is no guarantee that they are 100% accurate!!! Again, use these diagrams at your own risk and if you do not understand them or do not understand your cars wiring, don't use them!!! It is YOUR car that could suffer if anything goes wrong!!! I have many years of professional experience installing/customizing/troubleshooting cars and electrical devices such as alarms/sensors/stereos/wiring, but I am not an electrician or electrical specialist!!! There are other (and sometimes better) ways to achieve similar results and it is up to you to find them!!!
I work on a lot of cars (both import and domestic) so I get exposed to a lot of differences among them. When it comes to wiring, I admire the excellent electrical systems Honda equipped the Accords with, but feel it can be improved upon. There is one feature I wanted that was not put into our cars. Normally, when you pull the keys from the ignition switch, everything powers off (except for power windows), right? Well, wouldn’t it be nice if when you pulled the keys out of the ignition, the radio, cigarette lighter, sunroof, and clock (and other electrical items) stayed on (or, had power) until a door is opened? Once the door’s opened, everything powers off and stays off until the next time the key is put into the ignition switch and turned on. Many newer vehicles have this feature which eliminates the need for an “Accessory” position on the ignition switch. The main reason I wanted it this way was because I hated the fact that if I forgot to close the sunroof, I had to put the keys back in the ignition and turn it on just to close the sunroof…..or if I wanted to light a smoke, again, put the keys in the ignition and turn it on so the lighter will work…same with the radio, clock, and so on. Not to mention, wear and tear on the fuel pump, main relay, ECU, sensors, and other electronic parts for getting zapped with quick bursts of power more often than they should. I no longer have a radio or clock in my car so that’s a few less things I have wired up, but I’m gonna show you how to do it for those that want to. I’ve been complaining about it for more than 3 years now, had a bunch of SPDT relays, semiconductors laying around, and some free time so I finally did it. Here is my write up of how to make it work on our Accords along with some ideas of additional things you can do. If you don’t have the stuff laying around like I did, you might have to spend $35 or so on parts. This would easily be an expensive custom wiring job if you paid someone to do it and that’s assuming you can find a reliable shop that’s willing to mess with your ignition system and electrical system and offer a warranty on their work, so $35 doesn’t sound too bad now huh? Previous electrical experience is highly recommended to do any of these wiring changes but I tried my best to write this in a manner that even the most electrically retarded person around can do this without any problems. Good luck and fill me in if you guys do anything crazy with this stuff!
This article is broken down into three main parts. Part1 is the tech write up of what I actually did to my car and everything you need to know to do the same to your car. Part2 is nothing but ideas and variations of what I did, so that you guys can customize it to your needs. And Part3 covers some slightly more advanced custom wiring crap that I’ve done to my car that was all designed and built off of the basics in Part1 & Part2.
This write up was done using a 93 Accord EX. These same procedures will also work on basically every Honda/Acura, and any vehicle with a +12V electrical system and a normally open, negative polarity door trigger. If being done on another vehicle besides an Accord, please reference the wiring diagrams for your vehicle for wire locations, colors, and polarities. Slight variations to these procedures will also work on vehicles with positive polarity door triggers and other types of electrical systems but I’ll leave that up to you to figure out. The procedures, as they are written, will work flawlessly on all Honda Accords (provided there are no installation issues). Even still, I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING YOU DO TO YOUR CAR! DO NOT TRY THIS IF YOU DO NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE DOING IT! PERFORM THIS INSTALL AT YOUR OWN RISK! YOU MAY CAUSE A CAR FIRE IF YOU ARE NOT CAREFUL!!! Please read this entire article before doing anything and most importantly, use some common sense and ask questions if you're unsure of anything!
PART1 - Installation and general concepts
Parts Needed - estimated cost:
six-pack of your favorite beer - $6
2 SPDT relays - $10
9 terminal connectors - $3
1 ground spade - $0.50
about 35 feet of 16awg braided wire (length varies according to model, year, and accessories you wire up) - $10
about 2 feet of 12awg or 14awg braided wire (size varies according to amount of accessories wired up) - $2
1 in line fuse connection - $3
1 fuse 10amp-30amp (varies according to amount of accessories wired up) - $0.25
4 diodes (just about any diode will work) *6 diodes are needed on vehicles with alarm/keyless entry* - $1.50
about 5 feet of wire loom (maybe more)- $2
electrical tape - $2
zip ties - $2
Tools Needed:
soldering gun/iron
wire cutters/splicers
terminal crimpers
60/40 rosin core solder
multimeter or test light
philips head screwdriver
flat head screwdriver
10mm socket
ratchet
various length socket extensions
10mm wrench
Just a little tip….Radio Shack will be your best friend if you decide to do this. They should have just about everything in-stock that you need for this project including the tools. The only downside to Radio Shack is that they are a little pricey, so if you feel like spending the time, you should be able to get most or all of this stuff online at discounted rates. If you’re like me, then you had all this crap laying around already so it basically cost nothing. If you know an electrician or electronics nut, give them a call and see what stuff they got laying around. They might have everything you need, be able to help with the install, and be willing to work for beer.
Step 1. Wire up the relays together. Don’t worry about the connections to the actual cars wiring yet, just make the connections to the relays and leave the wires extra long so that you have plenty to work with when it comes time to install it into the car. Use the 9 terminal connectors to attach the wires to the relay pins. I suggest doing it one pin at a time. As for the diodes that connect to pin 86 on relay #1, for our purposes, just about any diode will work. Try not to use diodes that are incredibly small in size or specialty diodes such as zener diodes. Otherwise, pretty much any diode will work. They are usually black with a silver stripe at one end. The end with the silver stripe is the end that needs to be connected to the relay. Hope that’s clear enough for you and make sure you wire them correctly or this will not work. Below is a diagram of how they should be wired together:
DIAG1
And this next one is the same pic as above except the wires are numbered. The chart following it lists the length and size of each numbered wire from the pic. Hope that makes sense to you?!?!?
DAIG2
Rough size and length estimates for each numbered wire are as follows:
1. 16awg - 3 ft.
2. 14 or 12awg - 2 ft.
3. 16awg - 2 in.
4. 14 or 12awg - 2 in.
5. 16awg - 2 in.
6. 16awg - 3 ft.
7. individual 16awg wires per accessory that you want to function. About 5 ft. of wire per acc. *note- cars with alarm/keyless entry need to add 1 extra wire to this pin*
8. 16awg - 4 ft.
Keep in mind that the wire lengths specified above were based on the 4th gen EX Accord so other models and years may have slight variations in length. Plus how you run the wires also affects the length needed. It is better to have too long of a wire that you can simply trim as needed than too short of a wire that you have to add on to, so slightly over-estimate the lengths you need. Even if it is too short, just add more wire to the end. It’ll still work, it just takes longer to install and leaves more probability of shorts happening down the road. Make sure you don’t forget to include the fuse and diodes when wiring the relays up. Also please don’t forget to add the extra wire to pin 30 on relay #2 for you people with alarms. You’ll see why in PART2. Also, you may want to add another additional wire or two to pin 30 on relay #2 if you want to do any fancy stuff like what’s mentioned in PART2 of this article. Once all the connections to the relays are done, wrap the relays side by side with electrical tape. DO NOT tape up the actual connections you made to the relays or the wires yet cause you still need to see them to make sure you’re running the right wire to the right thing.
A little disclaimer on this one: Do electrical modifications at your own risk! I recommend at least understanding what you're doing before even tapping into the first wire!!! Electrical modifications can cause car fires if not done properly!!! I have looked at these diagrams and tried my best to verify that they are exactly what I did, but there is no guarantee that they are 100% accurate!!! Again, use these diagrams at your own risk and if you do not understand them or do not understand your cars wiring, don't use them!!! It is YOUR car that could suffer if anything goes wrong!!! I have many years of professional experience installing/customizing/troubleshooting cars and electrical devices such as alarms/sensors/stereos/wiring, but I am not an electrician or electrical specialist!!! There are other (and sometimes better) ways to achieve similar results and it is up to you to find them!!!
I work on a lot of cars (both import and domestic) so I get exposed to a lot of differences among them. When it comes to wiring, I admire the excellent electrical systems Honda equipped the Accords with, but feel it can be improved upon. There is one feature I wanted that was not put into our cars. Normally, when you pull the keys from the ignition switch, everything powers off (except for power windows), right? Well, wouldn’t it be nice if when you pulled the keys out of the ignition, the radio, cigarette lighter, sunroof, and clock (and other electrical items) stayed on (or, had power) until a door is opened? Once the door’s opened, everything powers off and stays off until the next time the key is put into the ignition switch and turned on. Many newer vehicles have this feature which eliminates the need for an “Accessory” position on the ignition switch. The main reason I wanted it this way was because I hated the fact that if I forgot to close the sunroof, I had to put the keys back in the ignition and turn it on just to close the sunroof…..or if I wanted to light a smoke, again, put the keys in the ignition and turn it on so the lighter will work…same with the radio, clock, and so on. Not to mention, wear and tear on the fuel pump, main relay, ECU, sensors, and other electronic parts for getting zapped with quick bursts of power more often than they should. I no longer have a radio or clock in my car so that’s a few less things I have wired up, but I’m gonna show you how to do it for those that want to. I’ve been complaining about it for more than 3 years now, had a bunch of SPDT relays, semiconductors laying around, and some free time so I finally did it. Here is my write up of how to make it work on our Accords along with some ideas of additional things you can do. If you don’t have the stuff laying around like I did, you might have to spend $35 or so on parts. This would easily be an expensive custom wiring job if you paid someone to do it and that’s assuming you can find a reliable shop that’s willing to mess with your ignition system and electrical system and offer a warranty on their work, so $35 doesn’t sound too bad now huh? Previous electrical experience is highly recommended to do any of these wiring changes but I tried my best to write this in a manner that even the most electrically retarded person around can do this without any problems. Good luck and fill me in if you guys do anything crazy with this stuff!
This article is broken down into three main parts. Part1 is the tech write up of what I actually did to my car and everything you need to know to do the same to your car. Part2 is nothing but ideas and variations of what I did, so that you guys can customize it to your needs. And Part3 covers some slightly more advanced custom wiring crap that I’ve done to my car that was all designed and built off of the basics in Part1 & Part2.
This write up was done using a 93 Accord EX. These same procedures will also work on basically every Honda/Acura, and any vehicle with a +12V electrical system and a normally open, negative polarity door trigger. If being done on another vehicle besides an Accord, please reference the wiring diagrams for your vehicle for wire locations, colors, and polarities. Slight variations to these procedures will also work on vehicles with positive polarity door triggers and other types of electrical systems but I’ll leave that up to you to figure out. The procedures, as they are written, will work flawlessly on all Honda Accords (provided there are no installation issues). Even still, I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING YOU DO TO YOUR CAR! DO NOT TRY THIS IF YOU DO NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE DOING IT! PERFORM THIS INSTALL AT YOUR OWN RISK! YOU MAY CAUSE A CAR FIRE IF YOU ARE NOT CAREFUL!!! Please read this entire article before doing anything and most importantly, use some common sense and ask questions if you're unsure of anything!
PART1 - Installation and general concepts
Parts Needed - estimated cost:
six-pack of your favorite beer - $6
2 SPDT relays - $10
9 terminal connectors - $3
1 ground spade - $0.50
about 35 feet of 16awg braided wire (length varies according to model, year, and accessories you wire up) - $10
about 2 feet of 12awg or 14awg braided wire (size varies according to amount of accessories wired up) - $2
1 in line fuse connection - $3
1 fuse 10amp-30amp (varies according to amount of accessories wired up) - $0.25
4 diodes (just about any diode will work) *6 diodes are needed on vehicles with alarm/keyless entry* - $1.50
about 5 feet of wire loom (maybe more)- $2
electrical tape - $2
zip ties - $2
Tools Needed:
soldering gun/iron
wire cutters/splicers
terminal crimpers
60/40 rosin core solder
multimeter or test light
philips head screwdriver
flat head screwdriver
10mm socket
ratchet
various length socket extensions
10mm wrench
Just a little tip….Radio Shack will be your best friend if you decide to do this. They should have just about everything in-stock that you need for this project including the tools. The only downside to Radio Shack is that they are a little pricey, so if you feel like spending the time, you should be able to get most or all of this stuff online at discounted rates. If you’re like me, then you had all this crap laying around already so it basically cost nothing. If you know an electrician or electronics nut, give them a call and see what stuff they got laying around. They might have everything you need, be able to help with the install, and be willing to work for beer.
Step 1. Wire up the relays together. Don’t worry about the connections to the actual cars wiring yet, just make the connections to the relays and leave the wires extra long so that you have plenty to work with when it comes time to install it into the car. Use the 9 terminal connectors to attach the wires to the relay pins. I suggest doing it one pin at a time. As for the diodes that connect to pin 86 on relay #1, for our purposes, just about any diode will work. Try not to use diodes that are incredibly small in size or specialty diodes such as zener diodes. Otherwise, pretty much any diode will work. They are usually black with a silver stripe at one end. The end with the silver stripe is the end that needs to be connected to the relay. Hope that’s clear enough for you and make sure you wire them correctly or this will not work. Below is a diagram of how they should be wired together:
DIAG1
And this next one is the same pic as above except the wires are numbered. The chart following it lists the length and size of each numbered wire from the pic. Hope that makes sense to you?!?!?
DAIG2
Rough size and length estimates for each numbered wire are as follows:
1. 16awg - 3 ft.
2. 14 or 12awg - 2 ft.
3. 16awg - 2 in.
4. 14 or 12awg - 2 in.
5. 16awg - 2 in.
6. 16awg - 3 ft.
7. individual 16awg wires per accessory that you want to function. About 5 ft. of wire per acc. *note- cars with alarm/keyless entry need to add 1 extra wire to this pin*
8. 16awg - 4 ft.
Keep in mind that the wire lengths specified above were based on the 4th gen EX Accord so other models and years may have slight variations in length. Plus how you run the wires also affects the length needed. It is better to have too long of a wire that you can simply trim as needed than too short of a wire that you have to add on to, so slightly over-estimate the lengths you need. Even if it is too short, just add more wire to the end. It’ll still work, it just takes longer to install and leaves more probability of shorts happening down the road. Make sure you don’t forget to include the fuse and diodes when wiring the relays up. Also please don’t forget to add the extra wire to pin 30 on relay #2 for you people with alarms. You’ll see why in PART2. Also, you may want to add another additional wire or two to pin 30 on relay #2 if you want to do any fancy stuff like what’s mentioned in PART2 of this article. Once all the connections to the relays are done, wrap the relays side by side with electrical tape. DO NOT tape up the actual connections you made to the relays or the wires yet cause you still need to see them to make sure you’re running the right wire to the right thing.
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