JDM Honda Window Visors Installed

One of first parts I got for my car, that I didn't install, was a JDM replica Window Visor. However, I wasn't pleased with the way the replicas looked, especially since I know what the genuine ones looked like. So I ended up re-selling them rather quickly.


I noticed right away with this car that the low angle of the windshield allowed water to wrap around the a-pillar significantly, and wanted to get the visors to remedy the situation. 3 years go by, and with the minimal numbers of car washes my car gets, my a-pillar often look like it has dirt/watermark tentacles wrapped around it.

I had recently helped a good friend install a I.C.E. system complete with GPS navigation, DVD player, USB and iPod integration, and reverse camera. We then also retrofitted turn signal mirrors on his car, which turned out to be a much bigger job than anticipated.

Being the great guy he is, instead of thanking me with a case of beer, he purchased the genuine JDM HondaAccess Slimline window visors for me, and even installed them for me on my car to show his gratitude.

I absolutely love these visors. Very discreet, they are so sleek looking and barely stick out at all. The tint on them also helps with the afternoon sun on my drive home in the afternoon. They're very well made with clips and double-side tape to secure them to the car, and also visually lower the roof line of the car making it seem less tall and bubbly.

Installation is very easy. And with the clips, you don't have to worry too much about lining them up right before pulling the backing of the tape.

1. Install the clips onto the visors. Roll down the windows and remove the upper portion of the window seals from its channel.

2. Prep the adhesive surface with rubbing alcohol.

3. Clip in the visors, and replace the window seals (start with the corners first, it will be a lot easier than doing them last).

4. Roll windows back up to hold the visors more securely in place. Remove the backing from the double-side tape, press down to stick to door.


That's it, you're done.

H4 Bi-Xenon HID Kit Installed

It is always during the winter rain season that I find myself wishing for HIDs. While the stock DOT spec headlights on the Honda Fit is actually pretty good, in fact, better than most car's I've owned. I still wished for more light, especially when it's raining and it becomes hard to see the lines in the road.

Well, this past Saturday, while I was at the Winter BBQ Meet, I picked up a 4300k H4 Bi-Xenon HID kit from Aaron (aka. Guinness). Now, I've been into cars for a long time, and is known as somewhat of a lighting guy amongst my friends. So I know all about the pros (not many) and cons (many) of an HID kit. Especially one that's going to be retrofitted to a halogen reflector housing, a dual-beam reflector housing at that! I'm not going to get into that debate here. Just know not to expect your HID kit to put down usable light like a properly designed factory HID system.


The kit from Aaron is very good. Probably as good as a standard HID can get. Bi-xenon bulbs with lower shields to reduce glare and movable bulbs for high/low beam switching. It also comes with a full plug-and-play harness for the H4 bulb system. If the GD chassis Honda Fit wasn't so cramp under the hood, the install would have taken under 10 minutes. If you have a GE Fit, you might not need to remove the front bumper and headlights to do the install. From what I saw at the BBQ meet, the GE has more room behind the headlights to work with.

Tools required:
- Flat head Screwdriver
- Phillips Screwdriver
- 10mm Socket/Wrench
- Cutter (for zip tie)

1. Remove the Front Bumper

Open the hood, and you'll see 4 black clips attaching the top of the bumper to the rad support beam. To remove them, stick a flat head screwdriver in from the side and pry the middle part up. Once it's up, the clips can be pulled off. Now, move to the bottom of the bumper. I don't have photos for these since it was hard to take a photo of the bottom. But basically, you've got two more of those black pop-up clips, and two phillips head screws nearby. Just take a look. you'll see which ones are actually holding the bottom of the bumper. Now for the sides. There's a phillips head screw just at the top corner of the front bumper on each side attaching the bumper to the front fender, and another black pop-up clip at the bottom corner attaching the bumper to the wheel well liner. Remove these on each side.

So basically, you'll have removed 12 screws/clips from the front bumper.


After that, start pulling the bumper away from the car from one corner to release the clips, then move to the other side and do the same. Then move to the middle and pull the bumper away from the car.

2. Remove the Headlights

Use the 10mm socket/wrench, and remove the 4 bolts attaching the headlight to the car. There are two on top, one in the front, and one on the side. On the driver side, you will need to remove a black plastic cover piece first. It's essentially the same idea as the black clips at the top of the bumper. But you don't need to remove the clips completely. Just pop them up (three in total), then pull the piece off. Keep in mind when you're putting the headlights back, that while the two bolts from the front and the side look similar, the side bolt has a longer spacer section behind the bolt head. Twist out the parking light and turn signal, and unplug the H4 plug at the headlight.


3. Find a Place to Mount the Ballasts

After removing the headlights, I found that the ballast fits well in the channel just behind the re-bar attachment points. There are also two holes on the wall there, and I used the top hole and zip-tied the ballast bracket to the car.


4. Run the Wiring Harness

Since the battery is on the driver side, I left most things there and ran the wires going to the passenger side ballast over just above the radiator and under the rad support. After plugging the harness into the ballasts. I grounded each side to the bolt near each top corner of the radiator, also a 10mm bolt. The only other wire you need to attach is the one with the fuse to the positive side of the battery. There's an attachment post next to the main positive post which is also held down by a 10mm nut. Attach the power wire there. Then, just plug the H4 plug from the harness into the car's stock H4 harness on the driver side.

5. Replace the Bulbs

Remove the rubber dust shield behind the H4 headlight bulb. Then unclip the retaining clip behind the bulb, and remove the stock H4 bulb from the headlight. Then replace with the new Bi-Xenon bulb and clip back in. You can try to replace the dust shield, which may or may not require you to cut out the middle of the shield slightly, or just leave the dust shield off as I did. Didn't seem very dirty considering I haven't cleaned the engine bay in the three years I've owned the car.

6. Test the Lights

Now, plug the new bulbs in. There should be three wires per side. Two for the + and -, and one to trigger the high beam switch. It only goes in one way, so should be easy to figure out. Then. Check to make sure everything is plugged in and attached properly. Slide the headlights back into position on the car, and attach just one of the top bolts so that they don't fall off. Now you can turn on your car's headlights and make sure everything works. Check the high-beam function as well.

7. Put the Car Back Together

If everything works, then you can put the car back together. Make sure to replace the turn signal and parking bulbs into the headlight housing, put the headlights back and replace all 4 bolts in its proper place. Line up the bumper from the center first, then tap from just under the inside of the headlight, and work your way to the corner of the bumper to clip it back in place. Then replace all the attachment clips and screws for the bumper and you're done.

Observations:

This kit is not bad for what it is. The glare above the original cut-off line is fairly minimal as compared to some other HID kits I've seen. Probably due in part to the shield on the lower part of the HID bulbs in this kit. I don't find that you actually get MORE light coverage on the ground, but I do notice that the light I have on the ground is a bit brighter than a normal halogen bulb headlight. This is especially easy to see when you're one of the first cars at the intersection, and the car next to you has halogen headlights. But once a true OEM HID car pulls up along the other side, you'll quickly notice why HID kits are never going to be equal to a properly designed OEM HID headlight.


Also, while this Bi-xenon Kit offers a high-beam via a movable bulb, The actual high beam function is actually quite useless except as a flash warning for other motorists. When you switch to high beam, the light output moves up a bit, but at that point, as you can see in the photo, you get basically ZERO light going to the ground. Everything goes straight ahead. I was on a different road with minimal street lamps and no parked cars to reflect light off of. When I switch to high beam there, it was essentially like turning off the headlights.

Custom LED Third Brake Light Retrofit

Ever since I installed the JDM style red/smoked LED tail lamps, I have been a bit bothered by the delayed reaction time of the factory incandescent bulb in the third brake light. Because LEDs turn on and off much faster, the third brake light always lagged behind the tail lights by nearly 1/4 second when I hit the brakes or release them.

So since my buddy was ordering some LEDs for his LED running light project (A la Audi), I took the opportunity to share the shipping cost and ordered me some nice high powered 4-chip Super Flux LEDs in red. These LEDs have a stated 100 degree viewing angle, which is important for automotive retrofit applications. And the wide angle also means the brightness specs mean something. A 20 degree 5mm LED might have more mcd on axis, as soon as you move off that 20 degrees, the brightness drops significantly. The 4 leg Super Flux LED is also shorter than standard 5mm LEDs and it helps a lot in this application as there isn't much depth between the housing and the lens on the sides.

Also important to consider is the colour of the LED used. LEDs produce light in very tight wavelength. This means a white/blue LED will have very little output in the red colour spectrum. And since the red lens on the third brake light is essentially a photo filter that only allows the red spectrum to shine through, if you used white LEDs behind it, you'll lose a lot of light. Test this by shining your white LED source (keychain light, flashlight, whatever) through a red lens, then through a white or clean lens, and see how much of a difference it makes.

So, anyways, onto making the LEDs

1. Remove the third brake light - Take the cover off, which will expose two 10mm bolts on either side. remove them, then un-clip the center from the hatch and unplug the harness from the bulb socket.

2. Remove the bulb and red lens - Twist the bulb holder out. For the lens, there are four clips. Remove the wider, flatter ones first; it's easier. Use a flat head screwdriver (carefully) to help if needed.

3. Cut the circuit board to size - Pretty self explanatory. Cut to desired size to fit the housing and number of LEDs you are using. Keep in mind the board has to fit inside the inner lip in order to clip the red lens back in.

4. Design your circuit - There are various LED calculators available online if you know the specs of your LEDs. And you can design your circuit in series, parallel, or a combination of both. Make sure you know what you're doing here, or get help from someone who does.

4a. Power goes out - What? It didn't happen to you? Well, it happened to me right about here, just before I can test my circuit. Can't just skip to the next step even if I wanted to since the soldering iron needs electricity too. I played some DS and ate some food (love gas stoves) until the power came back an hour and a half later.

5. Test/Make your circuit - Use a breadboard to make sure the circuit will work, and layout how you're going to place the components on the circuit board. then, just solder the pieces in place.

6. Put it together - Place the completed and tested circuit in the third brake light housing. If you cut your circuit board properly, it will sit nicely inside with the pressure from the metal heat shield inside the housing. Then clip the red lens back in, and it should hold the circuit firmly in place.

7. Re-attach third brake light to the car - Run the lead wires out through the bulb hole. You don't need to put the bulb socket back in. Just attach the positive lead to the white wire side of the harness, and the ground to the black. Clip the housing back in and secure with the 10mm bolts. Put the cover back on, and you're done.

I'm using 6 LEDs that have a forward voltage drop of 2.0V, and current draw of 80mA. I want to run each LED in parallel so that if one LED shorts out, no other LED is affected. I also found a circuit board that was printed so that each horizontal line was already connected, making my job much easier as I don't have to solder connections between every LED. I went with a single 150ohm resistor before the path splits to each LED. And according the the LED calculators, I needed a 1W resistor to handle the heat based on a 14v input. So that's what I got. It's enough since the brake light is not constantly on like a taillight or license plate light.


I'm happy with the results. The reaction time now matches the LED tail lights. The viewing angle is very good, and people say it's definitely bright enough to notice driving behind my car. Compare the OEM JDM version which cost $170USD, my retrofit for a fraction of that is a pretty good deal. Plus it was fun making it. I hope you have fun making yours as well.

JDM Replica LED Taillights Installed

I remember some guy saying that he was not going to modify his Honda Fit, that it was just a commuter... I wonder where that guy went.

Early on in this blog I had posted various taillamp options available for the Honda Fit/Jazz. Well, a good deal came up that I couldn't pass up. So I ended up with a used set of N1 Concept JDM replica smoked/red LED taillamps.

The fitment wasn't great. The previous owner had already cut off an alignment tab on one taillamp, and I had to cut off the one on the other side also for a better fit on my car. Aside from the fit, the LEDs themselves are not what I'd consider "Better" than stock. The LEDs are actually pretty bright, and do react much faster than incandescent bulb. However, the LEDs on the N1 Concept taillamps have a VERY narrow viewing angle. Meaning if you're viewing these taillamps slightly off-axis, they become very dim very quickly. This can become a safety issue if someone is merging into your lane behind you and do not see your brakes light up due to the viewing angle.

Looks wise though, I rather like them. I think the smoked/red is a nice contrast on the Canadian only Alabaster Silver Metallic colour, and it's definitely less "bug eyed" looking than the OEM ones. Maybe later on I will buy a set of the same smoked/red replica taillamps made by Depo, which are supposedly DOT approved. That should mean the LEDs will have a much wider viewing angle that's closer to the OEM lamps. And maybe I'll get black housing headlamps to match the look up front... Who was it again that said he wasn't going to modify his Fit?



Installation Guide:

I've read posts saying that you don't need to take off the rear bumper to take off and reinstall the taillights on the Honda Fit if you have a long enough screwdriver. But after doing the install myself, I think it's actually a lot easier taking the bumper off than trying to use a long, and preferably magnetized screwdriver, and then having to work the taillights in/out on an angle while not scratching the surrounding paint. So I suggest you simply take your rear bumper off, which only involves 6 fasteners. Taking the bumper off and putting it back on were the fastest parts of the install. Trust me.

1. Take off the rear bumper: As I mentioned, there are six fasteners in total for the rear bumper cover. Two phillips head screws, one in each of the rear wheel well near where the rear bumper cover meets the rear quarter panel. Two plastic quick clips on the buttom on the bumper. Just slide a flat head screwdriver into the center where there's a slot, and pull the center part out to release the clips. then, two more hex head screws on the bottom of either side of the hatch opening. You'll see them easily after opening the hatch. After all six fasteners are removed. Start pulling the bumper cover from the wheel well, away from the car. This will release the clips on the sides. Then, preferably with the help of someone, pull the bumper straight back from the car to release the clips across the top of the bumper cover.

2. Unplug taillamps: Open the rear cover panels behind the taillamps in the hatch and unplug each lamp at their sockets. There are 4 in total.

3. Remove nuts from back of taillamp: There are three nuts per side holding the taillamp to the body. Find them and remove them.

4. Unbolt the L-brackets at the bottom of the taillamps: Go back outside of the car, take a socket and remove the nuts holding the L-brackets to the car. Do this last so there's still something holding the taillamps in place while you remove the inside mounting nuts. Hold the taillamp while you remove the last nut, then pull the taillamp straight back to remove from vehicle.

(This is where you'll see why it's better to take the bumper off. The taillamps are held to the L-bracket by the phillips screw which some will tell you you can get to without removing the bumper. That's true. but where the screw goes into the taillight actually is lower than where the bumper sits. So to remove the taillamps without removing the rear bumper, you'd have to angle the top of the taillamp out first. However, the taillamps are also held in at this point by the alignment posts behind, which goes straight back from the taillamps to the body, preventing you from easily tilting the top out first.)

5. Remount the L-bracket to new taillamps: Another phillips screw on the bracket. Remove it, and reinstall with bracket to new taillamp.

6. Remount turn signal and reverse lamp sockets to new taillamps: Take the turn signal socket from the OEM taillamps and move them to the upper hole of the new taillamps. Take the reverse socket and move it to the new taillamps. The reverse socket will not fit properly. You will need to modify either the socket (cut off tabs) or the hole in the new taillamp (cut slots longer to fit. Preferred method so socket is still fully reusable in OEM taillamps) for the socket to fit. This is normal, and not a defect. North American taillamps use a different reverse socket then others.

7. Mount new taillamps to car: Reverse as before. Slide the taillamps in, fasten to car by lower L-bracket, but don't fully tighten yet, then go back inside and secure the three mounting nuts. Once the three nuts inside are secure, then go back out and tighten the lower L-bracket.

8. Extending wires: Now, you may or may not need to extend some taillamp wires in order for the plugs to reach their new socket locations. Most likely you will need to. I'm not going to tell you how to extend the wires because if you don't know how, then you should get someone else to do it for you.

9. Test the taillamps: Plug the taillamps back into the sockets. You'll have one plug left over. don't worry about it. check functions of tail, brake, turn signal, and reverse lamp to ensure proper functions.

10. Put the bumper back on: Reverse of removal. line up the clips, the push bumper cover straight in towards the car. then push in the side clips, and attach all 6 fasteners removed earlier. And you're done.

See, what did you spend more time on? 6 easily accessible fasteners for the bumper cover? or trying to remove the six nuts behind the taillamps and scratching up your hand in the tiny cutout space? And if you had to extend wires, I'm sure that took longer than either. Sure, a long screwdriver might be able to remove that hidden phillips screw easy enough, but trying to put it back in while aligning the little hole in the tiny space you can hardly see, and balancing the screw on the top of your screwdriver, would be extremely difficult.

RDX Cargo Light With Switch

This is something that can come in handy. Maybe you're parked having a picnic and want some music from your car, or maybe you're just carrying a long cargo (yes, even too long for the Fit) and need the hatch to remain at least partially open for the drive. The ability to switch off the cargo area light would come in quite handy.

Well, guess what, thanks to local Vancouverite and fellow FitFreak.net member Mugen_Dom, we now know that the cargo light from the new Acura RDX, as well as the 2007+ MDX, is a direct plug-and-play replacement for the Fit.

This cargo light comes with a built-in switch that enable you to turn off the cargo area light completely. The light pictured on the top is the Fit cargo light, and bottom is the RDX light with the switch.

Installation is very straight forward. Use a flathead screwdriver and pry the existing unit off the car; You'll see where you should insert the screwdriver blade. Unplug the light module, and replace with RDX module, then put the new light back in the car. Part number for the RDX light is 34265-SFE-003, and the list price is US$12.30.

Photo by Robert Gold

Budget Red "H" Steering Wheel Emblem

I was digging through the storage box and found some left over red vinyl from a previous project (used for paint masking). So I decided to use it to make a red background for the Honda "H" emblem on the steering wheel.

First, I used regular white masking tape to tape over the emblem. I then used a small knife to cut along the edges of the emblem to make the pattern. Next, I transferred the cut patterns onto a piece of the red vinyl, and proceeded to cut out the pattern on the vinyl. Finally, I taped the cut red vinyl pieces to the steering wheel. Tada! Red background "H" emblem on the steering wheel!



This is super easy to do, and the amount of vinyl needed is so little, you can probably just go to a local sign shop and ask for some scraps of whatever colour you want to use. And the added bonus, since vinyl stickers add 1hp each, I've just gained 4hp!! For Free!

JDM Passenger Sun Visor Installed

Before picking my wife up at work today, I stopped in my mechanic's garage to say hi. He was not too busy at the time, so we walked around the complex to A&J Racing and I picked up a JDM passenger sun visor, while he inquired about the LED daylights for his own vehicle.

The difference between the stock North American one and the JDM visor is that the JDM one has a flip up mirror on the underside of the visor, as well as two pockets in the front for business cards and/or parking passes, etc. The mirror is a big plus as the wife can now fix her makeup easily. The lack of this mirror was a big pet peeve I had about the Fit from the beginning.

Installation of this item is a cinch. There are two exposed torx screws holding the sun visor in place. Remove these two screws and reinstall the new visor in its place. Easy as that. My wife used it as soon as I picked her up from work that day as we were heading straight to a friend's birthday dinner downtown, so it's definitely worth it.

Resetting The Oil Life Reminder

As I mentioned in my first maintenance post, the dealer had forgot to reset the oil life reminder in the dash. So I finally remembered when I got in the car today and reset the reminder myself. The procedure is actually in your owners manual, but here's the quick and dirty of what you need to do:

• Press the trip meter select/reset pin until you the oil life reminder is displayed


• Press and hold the select/reset pin down for approximately 10 seconds until the oil life reminder is blinking


• Press and hold the select/reset pin down for another 5 seconds or so until the oil life reminder is reset to 100%

And that's it. It's that easy. This will be good news for people who change their own oil, or does not wait until the reminder tells them to before changing the oil and filter.

Taillamp Combination Rewired

For reasons unknown to me, the North American spec Fit have their turn signal on the inside of the taillamp, and the reverse lamps on the outside. I don't know why this bugs me so much, but it does. So I finally got around to reversing the two lights around last night.

Let me just say that unless this really irritates you, don't bother with it. It's probably more hassle than it's worth. I had originally thought it would be a simple case of switching the bulb holders over. Unfortunately, that turns out not to be the case, as the tabs on the bulb holders, and the corresponding cutouts on the back of the taillamp, were different between the turn signal and reverse lamps.

So then just swap the bulbs between the clear and the amber and switch the connectors in the back right? Wrong. the connectors for the turn signal and reverse lamp bulb holders are different, and not compatible with each other. And also, the clear reverse bulb (7440) and the turn signal bulb (7440A) are actually slightly different with the glass tabs on the clear 7440 bulb being slightly bigger. This prevents the 7440 (reverse) bulb from going into the 7440A (turn signal) bulb holder.

Ok, now we're getting creative. What if I swapped the pins in the harnesses so that the turn signal wires are going to the reverse lamp bulb holder, and vice versa. Well, that didn't work either since the pins are actually different for each harness, and they won't seat properly in each other's harness (staying loose, able to move back and forth within the harness). Plus, even if that worked, the bulbs still can't swap easily as mentioned above.

So, what would work? Well, I see three ways of doing this.

Method 1. Go behind the driver side rear taillamp rear cover, and you should see a 10-pin harness. That's the floor wire harness from the car to the rest of the taillamps. Disconnect the harness, open it up, and swap a few wires around. Namely the left turn signal wire (green/red) with the left reverse lamp wire (green/black), and the right turn signal wire (green/yellow) with the right reverse lamp wire (green/black). Grounds don't matter since all of these bulbs go to ground themselves. Do this only on one side of the harness. Swapping pins here works because it's all from one connector harness, so the pins are the same. Now, take the turn signal (7440A) bulb holder, remove the connector pins inside, and file down the plastic ridge on both the top and bottom that is causing the 7440 bulb not to slide in. (you'll see which ridge is the problem when you try to put the bulb in).

This method is fairly clean, but the harness is rather difficult to work on unless you remove the entire interior trim panel and remove a few retaining clips. Even then, the removal of the pins might give many a lot of trouble if they're not used to working with such things. Also, the turn signals are a thicker gauge wire than the reverse lamps. They should both be drawing the same current, but because the turn signal turns on and off constantly, the thicker gauge is preferred. By swapping the pins at the 10-pin harness, the rest of the circuit for the turn signals wll be running at the thinner gauge wires. It shouldn't cause any problems, but it's just something to keep in mind.


Method 2. Cut the wires at the bulb holder harnesses and swap harnesses between the turn signal and reverse lamp wires. Then, you'll have to take the 7440A bulb holder, remove the metal connector pins inside, and file down the plastic ridges on the top and bottom that is preventing the 7440 bulb from going in all the way. This is the method I choose as it was easiest for me to work on. I didn't want to remove the entire inside panel in the back to loosen the 10-pin harness mentioned in method 1. And also of note is that with method 1, some wires may still need to be extended to reach their new location (namely the driver side reverse lamp)

Also note, if there is a remote possibility of you swapping out your taillamp for any other types; JDM LED, Altezza, 3D, anything, Do not do this mod with method 1 or method 2, or else you'll have to swap the connectors back again when you change taillamps.

Method 3. (recommended) This is the method I would recommend, provided all the wires will reach without extending (please double check, especially driver side reverse lamp). However, this method might cost you money. Go to Honda parts and order the bulb holders for the reverse bulb (p/n 33515-SJD-003 USD$5.47 retail) and the turn signal bulb (p/n 33514-SAA-003, USD$6.47 retail). These come in pairs. After you get them, use a file to reshape and/or remove tabs so they they will fit in their new locations. Try not to completely remove more than one tab or else the bulb holder may not sit in the taillamp securely. This is probably the cleanest and easiest method for those who would rather not work with the electrical system, and easily reversible (just replace modified bulb holders with stock ones), and keeps the connectors proper for future taillamp upgrades (JDM LED, etc).

Alternately, you can just file down your stock bulb holders to fit. Technically it will probably still be reversible since your tabs are now smaller if anything. But they might not be as secure as before.

As I mentioned before in my blog, patience is not one of my virtues. Since I had already started the project last night (Sunday), and even took the pins out of the bulb connectors, I decided to finish the job then instead of waiting 'til the next chance te dealers open and I can go buy some bulb holders. Well, that plus on my car it really looked like I'd have to extend wires on the driver side anyway. So I employed method #2. Everything is done cleanly, but hey, it's always better if you don't have to cut wires, and is totally reversible easily and without a trace, like in method #3. Oh well. It works. And now my turn signal and reverse lamps are in their "proper" places. So I'm happy.

Independent Fog Light Operation

There had been a thread on FitFreak.net regarding getting the fog lamps to work independently. I had followed it since I'm a bit of a light freak, but had not posted in the thread since I didn't have fog lights on my LX trim Fit.

From the factory, the Fog lamps will only work when the low beams are on. If they're not on, the fogs can't be turned on. And if you switch to high beam, the fogs will cut out. This is the mandatory way for fog lights to operate in some States for some silly reason. So Honda made it work this way for all North American spec Fit. This is however silly in my opinion. If there is indeed heavy fog, you don't want to have to run low beams. You want your light source as low as possible so you don't get the light shining too high and end up hitting the fog and glaring back at the driver. You're not suppose to drive fast in heavy fog anyway, so fogs and parking/taillamps will do. And when high beams are on, it leaves a bit of unlit space directly in front of the car, and fog lights would help fill that void nicely. This is why European spec cars are wired so fogs can be turn on with just parking/tail lamps, and do not cut out with high beams.

Well, after I got my Helm Service Manual, I tried to help out my fellow Fit owners by looking through the diagrams and trying to figure out a way to make the fogs work independently of the low beams. And fellow member Leonine took my suggestion and tested it on his vehicle with success, finally ending the 9 page saga on this issue on FitFreak. Anyways, here are the instructions:

1. Ground the fog light relay
Grounding the fog relay is easy. Go to the fog relay (bottom-right relay in the underdash relay/fuse panel), and cut the red/white wire. Then take the wire coming from the relay side, and connect that to ground. Finally, tape off the other end of the wire you cut.

2. Powering the fog light switch
Remove the top steering column cover and disconnect the 16-pin harness from the headlight switch. Look for the red/yellow wire and cut it. Then, connect a long piece of wire to the end coming from the harness, and run that wire down to the underdash fusebox. Once there, connect the wire to a spare fuse slot that is ignition switched. Then plug your 16-pin harness back into the headlight switch. And your fog light circuit is now completely independent from the rest of the lighting circuit, and should operate whenever you have your ignition on.

2a. Alternate location for powering the fog light switch
The above method will let you turn on your fog lights ANYTIME the ignition is on without having any other lights being on. If you want your fog lights to operate more light Euro-spec cars, with the fog being able to turn on only if the parking lights/taillights are on at least, then instead of using the #24 slot for power, tap into the #22 fuse, which is the one that powers the dash lights, front parking lights, gauge lights, license plate lights, and taillights. (Note: This method makes the circuit identical to the online manual for E-spec Fit, but no one on FitFreak has confirmed its operation)

And here's the link to the post I made in the FitFreak thread on this topic. Scroll down a few posts from my instructions and you'll find Leonine's pictured instructions on how to complete part #2 of my instructions (just don't forget to do part #1 as well), as well as pictures of the results; One of which I borrowed and posted here on my blog. Thanks Leonine for being my tester!

The Fit Gets Even Smaller

Remember this from about a year ago? Making real cars into Micro-Machine looking things using Photoshop. I never really looked into how to make them, but I recently stumbled onto a very easy to follow tutorial. So I made one from a generic side photo of an Alabaster Silver Metallic LX, and ventured onto doing a 3/4 shot of my wife's dream car, a Jaguar XJR. After trying it, I realize it is actually much more simple than I had imagined. Basically you do the following:

1. Find a photo of your desired car, preferrably a side shot
2. Use the Polygonal Lasso tool around the front wheel, getting the wheel arch and shadow, then copy and paste it to a new layer
3. Do the same with the rear wheel, creating another new layer
4. Go back to the original photo layer, then go to Edit, Free Transform, and narrow the photo to desired size
5. Move the layers of full sized wheels to approximately where you wat them on the shrunken car
6. Use Edit, Transform, Distort to twist the full size wheel layers if needed
7. Use the erase tool at around 50% opaque around the full size wheels to blend the wheels into the shrunken background car

If you need more detailed help, check out this tutorial which helped me. It includes step-by-step screen captures, as well as a video example for reference.

Here's the original photo of the XJR I did for my wife:


And here's what it looks like after Photoshop:

Disabling Daytime Running Lights (DRL)

*disclaimer* - This is a general guide based on my personal experience. I will not be liable for any harm to your person or your vehicle, or any tickets and fines or other legal problems you may encounter as a result of performing this modification. Proceed only if you fully understand the instructions, and follow them at your own risk.

I looked in the Owners Manual and it shows two fuses related to the Daytime Running Lamp (DRL) system. A 7.5amp fuse in slot 8, and a 10amp fuse in slot 18. But as I found out, you only need to remove the 7.5amp fuse from slot 8 and the system will be disabled. So removing both will not make a difference. However, removing only the 10amp fuse from slot 18 will result in the DRL warning light in the dash to light up, and I'm guessing most of you would rather not have that.

Follow these steps to disable your Canadian Spec DRL system:

1. Locate the driver's coin tray to the left of the steering wheel column


2. Find the dial on the top side of the coin tray, turn quarter-turn counterclock-wise, then pull the tray towards you and slightly downwards.


3. Find the white fuse puller in the fuse panel and pull it straight out towards you


4. Use the fuse puller and remove the 7.5amp (brown) mini fuse from slot 8


5. Replace the fuse puller to its oiginal holder location in the panel


6. Replace coin tray by lining up the tabs on the bottom, then push in to engage the side clips, and turn the top locking dial quarter-turn clockwise.

Done. Now when you put the parking brake down, the DRL won't light up. Turning the headlight switch to one click will only light up the parking lamps on top of the headlights, and two clicks will turn on your low beams. High beam will operate the same way as before.

<rant>I never liked this function personally. I understand why it is in our cars and how it can help make you car more visible. But I see way too many stupid people who are completely ignorant that they're driving with only DRLs at night because they see light ahead of them, and with many newer cars that have their dash light up anytime your igintion is on, it doesn't matter now many times you flash your light at them from behind trying to warn them they're completely invisible from the rear, they drive along without a clue.

What's worse are these idiots who think they're so cool and drive with their DRL and parking lights on at night without turning on their regular low beams. Many DRL systems are based on a reduced intensity voltage to the high beam assembly or filment, with a light dispersion pattern that will blind an oncoming driver.

I like to have control over my lights. I like to be able to run parking lights when waiting on the side of the street so I don't annoy pedestrians or shine my lights into someone's bedroom. I like to run just parking lights when there's enough light at dawn or dusk so my motorcycle riding friends with always on headlights are seen and differentiated more easily. I also like to be able to run parking lights only with fog lights (another thing stupid US laws don't allow) so that my light is dispersed low, where I need to in heavy fog, instead of up high (even worse with high beam DRLs) where it just reflects off the fog and blinds me.

The North American DRL system is a result of good government intentions caving to the pressures of industry. Had we incorporated the European standards for DRL, I don't think I, and a lot of other people, would have a problem with it. However, because automakers complained that it would be too costly to make cars with new low beam DRL systems, DRL systems in North America are allowed to use their high beams, or parking lamps (so white, amber, or yellow lights. talk about confusion) at up to 7,000 candela of light on axis! (versus 400 to 800 candela white light in Europe) With 800 candela low beam, you would not blind anyone in any ambient lighting condition, nor would you be lead to believe your headlights are already on at night.</rant>

Honda Service Manual

Anyone who might be interested in doing some work on their own should definately check out the available service manuals for the Honda Fit.

The Helm Service Manual is approved by Honda USA and is currently the only publicly available manual for the North American spec Fit. Also, the price on their website is actually $5 less than the price listed in the back of the Owners Manual. I should definately add this one to my "wishlist"

• Helm 2007 Fit Service Manual

Helm also offers a number of other manuals for the Fit, including factory owners manuals and service history booklets. You can see the full list here.

For a quick reference, someone has posted a copy of the 2002-2005 Honda Fit/Jazz Electronic Service Manual (ESM) from Honda online. This service manual is in English only, and is meant for Australian and European export models, and should only be used for general reference, as many detail items, such as wiring diagrams, may not be compatible with North American spec models.

• Honda ESM - 2002 to 2005 Honda Fit/Jazz