[jefro]

Yes, a loom kit for most diyers could help. I get the problem now.

Should make a complaint to NHTS or whoever does that.

 

[Electric Personality]

Just FYI that they are not fool proof and do "burn out". I had the driver side lamp assembly replaced due to failure last winter.
It looked like there was moisture behind the lens so I think there was a bigger issue but covered under warranty so I didn't pursue things any further.

I guarantee you that once the additional wiring is seen, the light will be on you, unless you have a very copacetic technician who choses not to see it. That said, I am willing to risk it.

 

[Oxyno]

I guarantee you that once the additional wiring is seen, the light will be on you, unless you have a very copacetic technician who choses not to see it. That said, I am willing to risk it.

"According to the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act: a vehicle manufacturer cannot void the warranty of your vehicle due to an aftermarket part unless they can prove that the aftermarket part was the cause of or contributed to the failure of the vehicle (15 U.S.C. 2302 (C))"

If the cause of the assembly burning up, was due to additional, un-grounded voltage, and the dealer technician is able to prove this - then yes, it's on you. The owner will need to pony up for repair. If that was NOT the cause, and if it's shown that the owner modification did NOT cause the failure, then it's considered a manufacturing defect and GM must cover it.

With regard to the person you quoted - whose tail lamps were replaced due to moisture - if BobBolt never opened the tail lamp lens, then the failure is not their fault and must be repaired under warranty by GM. Unless the Chevy tech can somehow prove how they magically teleported moisture into a sealed assembly...

With all that being said, the tail lamp assembly SHOULD be fine because it appears it's being wired parallel, and not in a series. Only series would increase the voltage to the assembly.

 

[Electric Personality]

"According to the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act: a vehicle manufacturer cannot void the warranty of your vehicle due to an aftermarket part unless they can prove that the aftermarket part was the cause of or contributed to the failure of the vehicle (15 U.S.C. 2302 (C))"

If the cause of the assembly burning up, was due to additional, un-grounded voltage, and the dealer technician is able to prove this - then yes, it's on you. The owner will need to pony up for repair. If that was NOT the cause, and if it's shown that the owner modification did NOT cause the failure, then it's considered a manufacturing defect and GM must cover it.

With regard to the person you quoted - whose tail lamps were replaced due to moisture - if BobBolt never opened the tail lamp lens, then the failure is not their fault and must be repaired under warranty by GM. Unless the Chevy tech can somehow prove how they magically teleported moisture into a sealed assembly...

With all that being said, the tail lamp assembly SHOULD be fine because it appears it's being wired parallel, and not in a series. Only series would increase the voltage to the assembly.

Yeah, well that’s all well and good, but don’t forget who is sitting in the drivers seat. It’s a club, and as Mr Carlon so aptly put it, “You ain’t in it”.

As to your series/parallel assertion, it’s a load, putting two in series would halve the voltage the load sees. Feeding it the nominal voltage it always sees, (minus the .7 volt loss of the isolating diode) should cause it zero stress. However, it would be considered modified, and if it failed due to no fault of the modifications, it would still be on you if they wanted to raise the issue. Ever price out a lawyer? It’s on you.

 

[p7wang]

So simple - GM should be doing this as a recall.

File a NHSTA complaint. If enough complaints are regiatered, they would probably look into it. Other cars have the same problem, I think Hyundai's too.

 

[gtoaddict]

Thanks for the video great infomation that will be on the list of mods once EUV gets here..

 

[Oxyno]

Yeah, well that’s all well and good, but don’t forget who is sitting in the drivers seat. It’s a club, and as Mr Carlon so aptly put it, “You ain’t in it”.

As to your series/parallel assertion, it’s a load, putting two in series would halve the voltage the load sees. Feeding it the nominal voltage it always sees, (minus the .7 volt loss of the isolating diode) should cause it zero stress. However, it would be considered modified, and if it failed due to no fault of the modifications, it would still be on you if they wanted to raise the issue. Ever price out a lawyer? It’s on you.

🤷‍♂️

I supplied the information, and reminded one that there is consumer protection for changes and modifications done to the vehicle you purchased.

As to what you choose to do with that information, well, YMMV.

 

[gtoaddict]

My car will be with me for a long time... 2013 Volt 190,000 and still going. Cars seem to hang around for a long time. My cars both drivers and classics work for me. and I do alot of the work myself. This mod is a minor change to make it better.

 

[C W]

So this mod only works when the headlights are off.
So at night it is the same as factory.
Good Mod nonetheless, better than nuthin.

Ideally they would get brighter when hit the brakes with lights on or off, but that not possible prolly.

 

[BoltLookie]

Hello folks,...........

View attachment 48081
Thanks for posting this modification. However I was a bit confused by your simplified schematic. With the diode oriented as shown, am I right to assume that you are intercepting the negative connection to the "Left tail light" and "Right tail light"? This would draw current thru the "Top 3rd brake light" assuming its positive connection is always energized. Also, you did not show it, but I assumed you tested the current thru the 1N4001 to make sure you were not exceeding the 1 A specification for this rectifier. Actually the current should be less than 1 A because that is the rating at 75 degC assuming some heat sinking to a PCB which is not present in your case and the heat shrink does insulate.

This is an important mod that I will be adding, I think.

 

[BoltLookie]

Actually I realize I must be totally confused. Is the highest light, refered to here as the "Top 3rd brake light", driving the "Left tail light" and "Right tail light" so that they are both on when the brakes are on due to this mod, whereas these two would not be on during braking without this mod? I don't have my Bolt yet, so can someone please explain the light behavior of all five rear lights on the unmodified Bolt when the headlights/parking lights are off and on and the brakes are off and on and a turn signal is off and on, i.e. all 8 conditions?

 

[Frajit]

Actually I realize I must be totally confused. Is the highest light, refered to here as the "Top 3rd brake light", driving the "Left tail light" and "Right tail light" so that they are both on when the brakes are on due to this mod, whereas these two would not be on during braking without this mod?

Correct. Without this mod the lights on the tailgate do not illuminate when braking. With this mod those lights will illuminate when braking unless the lights are already on due to the headlights or parking lights being on.

 

[Robaroni]

Federal law mandated high third center light didn't they?

YES, the third brake light became a law in 1986 on all new cars and 1994 on trucks. If your third light isn't working contact GM.

 

[Robaroni]

File a NHSTA complaint. If enough complaints are regiatered, they would probably look into it. Other cars have the same problem, I think Hyundai's too.

Right , the third tail light is a law since 1986, call GM.

 

[tinilk]

I don't have my Bolt yet, so can someone please explain the light behavior of all five rear lights on the unmodified Bolt when the headlights/parking lights are off and on and the brakes are off and on and a turn signal is off and on, i.e. all 8 conditions?

Here's a video showing how the normal brake lights, taillights, turn signals and hazards look:

 

[RacerX00]

Could be worse, your tails could cost $6100 to replace.

 

[Robaroni]

Here's a video showing how the normal brake lights, taillights, turn signals and hazards look:

There's a way to stop smudges on the screen, you can get an anti blue light protector:

Amazon

Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

You should try it before installing it to make sure you like the change.

 

[stangbat]

I did this mod today. It worked just fine. Many thanks to @RTCalifornia for the video and information.

Some notes on my install. The side pegs for the sunshade on my 2022 (June 2021 build) already had the modification to make them removable. See pic below. If you are going to remove the pegs on an earlier model car and they break, I'd recommend ordering the later model pegs if your interior color matches the 2022 and later cars. Otherwise be ready to modify them as RTCalifornia mentioned.

I tapped into the wiring at a different spot than in the video, see pic below. Accessing the power here meant I didn't have to strip back as much of the tape to get to the wires. I didn't want to tap into the wiring after the connector that goes to the third brake light as doing so would put extra stress on the connector. I doubt it is much and probably wouldn't be an issue, but GM didn't design the connector to power the third brake light and two more larger lights, so I figured it would be best to tap before any connectors.

Finally, I really don't see how another set of brighter lights can be inserted into the tail lights to light them up. There is a large circuit board inside the tail light that would obstruct any lights you mount from behind. And even if you did try to light the housing, there really isn't a lens that can be illuminated. The LEDs are in two strips along the top and bottom. Blasting light into the housing isn't going to really illuminate the strips where you need the lighting. Hope that makes sense.

 

[usedBolt]

Just checked all the lights on my 2017. The tail and stop lights are all on the tailgate, not the bumper. So what changed for 2022? Was there a rule change, as I read somewhere previously, that prohibits the stop lights from being only on the tailgate? If so, can somebody provide a reference so the problems that causes can be addressed? Another reason why I'm going to keep my old one for a while longer, and probably won't replace it with a new Bolt.

Does suggest that raiding a junkyard Bolt for tailgate components might be productive, if you want to DIY a fix.

There are red sections of the light bars (which include the turn signals and backup lights - making the turn signals a bit inconspicuous from the rear) in the bumper. They are not illuminated - presumably just reflectors.

 

[BoltLookie]

If the desire is to brighten the two back lights on the tailgate when the brakes are applied, would it be possible to reduce their intensity under normal headlights-on running with a pulse width modulator or even a resistor inserted into the circuit driving them from the headlight relay? Then, when the 3rd brake light comes on, the intensity of these two other lights would increase as 100% duty cycle voltage would be coming thru the diode used in the modification that started this thread. However, this would reduce the light intensity of the two tailgate lights for normal night driving, so should not be carried to extremes.

I suppose this idea could be used individually to also make these two lights work as extra turn signals at the expense of a more elaborate modification and more wire fishing.

BTW has anyone checked the current thru the diode to make sure it does not exceed the diode's 1 Amp nominal rating? I might be tempted to use a Schottky diode just to lower its power dissipation and get every little bit of the voltage.

I don't have my Bolt yet, so I am curious about what others are able to find out. I do really like the function of this modification as I had nor realised the brake light problem when I took my test drive.[/QUOTE]