Problem with Switchback LEDs

Degu67 · Jul 1, 2016

Hello,
I need a technical advice.
I bought the switchback LEDs from Diode Dynamics for my 2014 Quadcab Sport. The car is equipped with the projector low beams and the LED turnsignals. As the headlight switch has an AUTO position, it has factory DRL which is enabled. Default is DRL on turnsignal, options would be DRL on lowbeams or foglights.

Now, I exchanged the original LED panels with the one from Diode Dynamics.
Everything works fine except that the DRL is running bright amber instead of bright white as they promised me.

The turnsignal is amber, during day and night, which is correct.
When it gets dark, the amber DRL changes to lowbeams and white parking light, which is correct. That confirms for me, that the drivers get the DRL signal.

In my eyes, the function of the drivers of Diode Dynamics are not working correctly, as they don't "switch back". How I understand the system, it should turn the turnsignals to amber and when there is no turn signal input anymore, it should switch back to the white color.
Diode Dynamics are telling me, that my export car might have different headlight wirings but honestly I don't believe.

So, please, if there is anybody in the forum, who has the required techical knowledge, please help me to solve this problem.

Thanks you very much for your (helpful) answers.

Regards
Degu67 from Switzerland

PS: Please apologize my english as it is not my mother tongue.

adurm · Jul 1, 2016

https://shop.retroshop.us/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=13.SB

Go to the bottom and see the wire colors. Maybe something isn't wired correctly. I added projectors and switchbacks at the same time. The white wouldn't come on if I didn't have the resistor from the projector adapter harness hooked up.

Also look at the boards to make sure there are 2 different color led chips.

Degu67 · Jul 1, 2016

I bought the switch back LEDs directly from Diode Dynamics one month ago (not the RGBWAs).
Mine are the ones where you had to drill a hole and connect it on the outside of the lamp case.
White to pin 2, Red to pin 4, yellow to pin 12, black to pin 9.
And: of course, they have 2 LEDs amber and white, I wrote, that the turnsignal runs amber and the parking light white.

adurm · Jul 1, 2016

Sorry I missed the white working part up there. According to the retroshop link, black is pin 13. I doubt there are 2 black wires but maybe that has something to do with it? Or there are different led drivers for drl equipped trucks. Jeremy at retroshop is very helpful if it comes down to it.

I don't have drl so I don't understand how they're bright amber in day light but turn white when it's dark out. Mine are always white until turn signal is on.

If you don't do the auto feature, are they white when on parking light mode?

Degu67 · Jul 2, 2016

adurm said:
According to the retroshop link, black is pin 13. I doubt there are 2 black wires but maybe that has something to do with it?

according the wiring instructions from Diode Dynamics, black on pin 9, but anyway, black is black and is ground.

Degu67 · Jul 2, 2016

adurm said:
Mine are always white until turn signal is on.

more exactly, please. They are always white with the light switch in which position? Do they run alone or with your low beams?

adurm · Jul 2, 2016

I don't use auto feature. When I put the switch to parking lights or low beams they are white. Only amber when turning.

In the picture you posted, isn't 13 black too? I did mine with lots of help from retroshop. That plug has wiring for headlight and turn signals I believe. So there should be two grounds. I think you have your switchback connected to headlight ground.

Degu67 · Jul 2, 2016

adurm said:
I don't use auto feature. When I put the switch to parking lights or low beams they are white. Only amber when turning.

In the picture you posted, isn't 13 black too? I did mine with lots of help from retroshop. That plug has wiring for headlight and turn signals I believe. So there should be two grounds. I think you have your switchback connected to headlight ground.

Ground is Ground, it makes absolutely no difference. I could even attach it to the blank metal of the body/chassis.

Right now, my DRL is disabled (but the red Driver-cable is still attached to pin 4).
And my lights work/ run the same way as on your car.

Over here, we have a lot of tunnels and it would be so convenient to have the lightswitch on position AUTO, so the white LEDs would run during the day and the lowbeams would run in the tunnel and would switch back to white LEDs w/o lowbeams after passing the tunnel.

I try to find somebody who
-has a 2014 RAM 1500
-with DRL enabled
-with Switch Back LEDs from Diode Dynamics installed
-run the car with the lightswitch on AUTO
-and have white/ bright LEDs running during daylight

Until now, I have not found anybody in a european dodge forum...

adurm · Jul 2, 2016

Try Canadian spec trucks.

So let me get this right, you are using auto. Parking lights are white, turn goes amber then back to white when turn off. Through a tunnel, headlights come on and still have white parking lights. Then when headlights turn back off you have white parking lights again. Is that correct?

Looking back, I don't know why there are 2 grounds on the headlight harness. It could just as easily go through one wire. Maybe pin 9 on Euro trucks, even black in color, isn't ground. Just a thought.

Degu67 · Jul 2, 2016

adurm said:
Try Canadian spec trucks.

So let me get this right, you are using auto. Parking lights are white, turn goes amber then back to white when turn off. Through a tunnel, headlights come on and still have white parking lights. Then when headlights turn back off you have white parking lights again. Is that correct?

Looking back, I don't know why there are 2 grounds on the headlight harness. It could just as easily go through one wire. Maybe pin 9 on Euro trucks, even black in color, isn't ground. Just a thought.

Hmmm,

for trouble shooting reasons, right now, the DRL is disabled in the BCM. Therefore with AUTO during daylight: no lights at all (turn goes amber then back to off when turn off), in the tunnel (nightlight): lowbeams with white LEDs (turn goes amber then back to white when turn off).

What I want:
DRL enabled in the BCM.
During daylight: bright white LEDs (turn goes amber then back to white when turn off).
in the tunnel (nightlight): lowbeams with white LEDs.

I don't call them parking or turn/ signal lights anymore, because it is so confusing: for somebody without switchback boards, turn and parking is physically the same, for somebody with switchback boards, the amber is the turnsignal and the white is parking or DRL.

About Ground: If pin 2 would not be ground, nothing would light up on my boards. But except the wrong colour, everything works fine.

Maybe you know somebody I am desperately looking for, so I could check the wiring which would give me my white DRL-LEDs.

adurm · Jul 2, 2016

There's a quote in this DRL 's - Daytime Running Lamps that may help. I don't have options to do drl in my truck so I can't test it. Maybe it's just matter of selecting the right option. Best wishes.

Problem with Switchback LEDs

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