High brake light installation

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[url=https://imoc.co.uk/app.php/kb/viewarticle?a=69&sid=676f6b9d724a8bac411507b86530b40f]Knowledge Base - High brake light installation[/url]

\\High-level brake light installation\
by Paul Marsden\


The big problem with fitting a brake light to an MR2 is that you need to go through right through the engine bay (and two bulkheads) to tap into the brake light circuit in the boot. Fortunately, Toyota have a couple of grommets in each bulkhead so you can use these to find a way through.

I found that I needed quite a bit of wire to install my brake light (the wire that came with the light was no way near enough). I decided to run the wires down the drivers side all the way as this avoids having to work a way past the air filter, coolant system, etc.

I started at the rear light cluster and tapped into the G-W wire (green with a white stripe) this is the positive brake, and the W-B wire (White with a black stripe) for common ground - check that these are the same on yours first though by removing the rear light cluster and seeing which wire goes where.

If you pull back the carpet in the boot (removing a couple of clips if required) and you should be able to find a suitable point to tap into the wiring loom -most brake light kits come with those tap-lock connectors now so you don\'t need to worry about cutting the wires - it\'s a good idea to wrap the connectors in insulating tape afterwards just in case.

There\'s a grommet on the bulkhead that separates the boot and the engine bay, use a screwdriver to punch a small hole through this and feed the two wires through and then use a bit of insulation tape to make it secure. Feed the wires around the engine bay keeping as far away from the engine as possible, cable-tying and taping as you go just so the wires won\'t get caught on anything.

There\'s a grommet on the bulkhead that separates the engine bay from the cockpit, quite a few wires already pass though here so a couple more won\'t make much difference. Again, use a screwdriver and seal up with tape afterwards. It might be a good idea to move the firewall out of the way before doing this so you can pull the wires through. To move the firewall firstly remove the box lid that is behind and below the drivers seat - on some MR2s this is a lockable storage box, on others (like mine) this contains a subwoofer. Three screws need to be undone and the lid should just come off - you should now be able to pull the firewall up (mostly carpet and soundproofing material).

Underneath you should find the other side of the grommet. From here on it gets a bit tricky as you\'ll need to feed the wire across and up round the drivers quarter light (I couldn\'t get this bit of trim off so I needed to take the long route), and above the rear windscreen. My 2 is a T-bar so it\'s a bit easier to get behind the trim (most of it unclips quite easily). The trim that fits above the rear windscreen comes off very easily (held up by a few clips), I screwed my brake light into this to make it a bit more stable (fixing it with double-sided sticky pads seems a bit amateur to me!).

At this point I used a screw-down connector to link the wires together (this helps if you get the wires the wrong way round!) - luckily, I was right first time. You should now be able to test it by putting your foot on the brake (you don\'t even need the key in the ignition), I don\'t see a reason to disconnect the battery as long as you don\'t put your foot on the brake while you\'re holding the wires.

If you haven\'t already bought your brake light I\'d recommend getting one of those thin LED-strip types just so it doesn\'t affect your rear view (mine cost me just 7 quid!). The LEDs are very directional too so it isn\'t that noticeable inside the car when you\'re driving at night.