Subaru Impreza WRX STI LED DRL Retrofitting guide

Here is my basic guide to fitting.  You may have a better or different way.

The video

The images.

Looks almost like it’s supposed to be there.

Remove the stock covers, they just pull off.

Using a pick or small screwdriver, remove the clips holding the flap on.

I attached waterproof plugs to the ends of the LED modules.  This means you can remove the covers if you need to.  For example to use the towing eye.

Using hot glue go round a fill any holes at the rear of any plugs you have used.

Again using the hot glue gun.  Attach your LED modules to the covers.  Depending on what modules you buy will depend how they attach.

Now make a wiring look that will connect the two modules to each other and to a power source.  Basically a plug at each end, but one plug has another two wires attached that go to a power source.

Feed the wiring loom across the front of the car (from one hole to the other) and then up into the engine bay.  There is a gap under the headlight.

Push the power wire through the bulkhead grommet.

For the ground wire attach an eyelet and fit to the ground point next to the battery.

Now here is the slightly complicated bit.  Making the loom for the relay that turns the DRL off when you turn your lights on.  If you don’t want that, just wire them straight onto the plug behind the cigarette lighter.

How it works – Using a 5 pin relay (one that has a set of normally open and normally closed terminals).  Connect the pins 85 and 86 to the light bulb at the cigarette lighter.  Connect pin 30 to the + side of power for cigarette lighter socket.  Pin 87 connect to the wire you ran through the bulkhead.  It’s the + source for the DRL.

In this configuration the DRL is given power as soon as you turn the car on.  When you switch on you lights.  The light at the cigarette lighter turns on and this activates the relay switching the output from 87 to 87a.  This makes the DRL turn off.  We don’t have anything connected to 87a.  Just tape it up as it becomes live when you have your normal lights on.

If you wanted to install interior mood lights for example, you could connect them to the unused pin 87a.  That would provide them with power only when you turn your normal lights on.

Now just fit the covers with the LEDs in place.

Turn the key to position 1 and see if they work.

If they do, smashing.  Now turn your lights on and see if they go out.  All that’s left is a tidy up.

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