LED Steering Wheel Power Help Needed

[Gt2stinger]

Hey All,

I’m new to these forms so I apologize if this is in the wrong place.

TL/DR: I have no clue how to safely provide switched 12V power to the LEDs in my steering wheel since I was given raw wires and no instructions from the seller.

I recently got an aftermarket steering wheel for my Stinger that has LEDs. The LEDs are powered by a 12V wire, but I’m unsure of what to tap into. The seller is extremely unhelpful and suggested I take it to a professional, but I’ve already installed the wheel and don’t really want to bring it in if this is simple. I’ve seen people say you can use the headlights wire, but then the LEDs only work at night. I’ve also seen people tap into the heated steering wheel wire for switched power, but I’d prefer an alternative where I don’t need to use heated steering. On other cars, I’ve seen people tap the horn wire, but they report battery discharge issues. I don’t really need heated steering at all so I guess I could just leave it disconnected besides the LEDs if possible? On that note, my wheel also has 4 raw wires for heating, which the seller says I should just plug into the factory adapter after removing the old wires. Has anyone done this? Seems easier than the LEDs but figured I’d add it here in case anyone has input. I’m not sure how to upload pictures, as the two hosting sites I tried did not work in the upload box on this site, so please let me know how to go about that if pictures would be helpful!

 

[Brotherspoon]

You can't post links or pictures here until you get your points up by making more posts or commenting on others.

A good switched power source to use would be, 'INTERIOR LAMP' - the 10A fused circuit that feeds the lower lighting serving the driver and passenger foot areas.


I use this for powering other lighting, it is activated when you unlock the car and always available in accessory or drive ready modes.

I advise you use a micro fuse tap and solder splice your extended +12 V wiring. However, you can get away with compression connectors (butt splices) here.
The steering wheel ground should be made longer to reach the convenient chassis ground location which is found under a panel beside the fuse box.
See this video at the 7:20 mark for the chassis ground - you should use an appropriately sized ring terminal that accommodates for both the wire size and the bolt size, again compression style is fine provided you have a good tool.

You said, "On that note, my wheel also has 4 raw wires for heating, which the seller says I should just plug into the factory adapter after removing the old wires. Has anyone done this?" can you clarify a little bit more here? You have 4 wires coming out of the new wheel but no connector? And the OEM has 4 wires into a connector? Get some pictures of this.

Happy to help you out.