Sweetee
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2012
- Posts
- 313
- Reaction score
- 163
- Location
- Wisconsin
- Ram Year
- 2017 Ram Laramie CC 4x4
- Engine
- 3.6 Pentastar
Greetings and Happy Thanksgiving to All!
Every so often, I see some "buyer's remorse" here and other forums. With that said, if we were totally happy with our trucks from the factory, we wouldn't have much to talk about or do now, would we?
One area that has disappointed me with my 2012 Ram RCSB Express has been the interior lighting. I would have liked to have some overhead reading lights and more light inside the cab when the doors are open. I solved most of the lighting issues by replacing the single incandescent bulb in the dome light with two flat panel (36 LEDs per panel) LED sheets. It is truly "daylight" in my cab now.
The other issue was not being able to see my cup holders in the dark. I thought putting some blue LEDs under the seats would be enough. However, the under seat LEDs cast a nice blue hue on the floor, the cup holders were still hard to see.
To solve this issue, I took the rubber insert out of the cup holder and coiled a strip of LEDs in the bottom and ran the wires through a small hole I poked through the rubber. I ran a pilot hole out the side of the cup holder at the bottom. I did take the entire cup holder assemble out and bored a 3/4" hole in the backside. I snaked a + & - wire through the hole at the bottom of each cup holder and was able to snake them out the back through the 3/4" hole. After attaching (solder and shrink-wrap) the wires, I tested all my connections and was ready to proceed. I attached the + to one of my auxiliary circuits that feeds my radar detector, Bearcat scanner and under seat lights. I did put an additional switch in the circuit so I can turn off the under seat and cup holder lights. The LED's were "really bright," so I covered the LEDs with a disk of blue translucent plastic and then put a disk of mesh (jar gripper material from Dollar Tree) to subdue the brilliance. Even with the LEDs and the covering, I lost only about 1/4" of depth and the jar gripper material is rubbery so that a can or bottle won't rattle. The LEDs I used were sealed, so any spillage shouldn't be a problem.
In the attached photos, you can see how the cup holders truly can now be found! Also, the 3rd photo shows my Garmin mounted on my windshield next to the rearview mirror, my rearview mirror with my Scan Gauge mounted above and radar detector mounted below, and my phone mount attached to my Bayou Goat Mount. I have an app for my phone that turns it into a dash cam, plus I can see if emails come in while driving. (Don't worry, I don't read or answer while driving.)
For those contemplating putting in the auxiliary switch panel, it is a great addition. I got the wiring and install suggestions right here on this forum. Everybody has different needs and wants, but here is what I have running.
#1 - Garmin, #2 - LED bed lights(They can also be turned on in the back from a switch mounted in my Leer topper, #3 - radar detector, scanner, under seat lights and cup holder lights, #4 - auxiliary outlets in upper cubby and lower glove box(rechargeable flashlight)
Thanks to all who have inspired me and anyone else with their suggestions and ideas to help make our "baby's" more special and personal!
Every so often, I see some "buyer's remorse" here and other forums. With that said, if we were totally happy with our trucks from the factory, we wouldn't have much to talk about or do now, would we?
One area that has disappointed me with my 2012 Ram RCSB Express has been the interior lighting. I would have liked to have some overhead reading lights and more light inside the cab when the doors are open. I solved most of the lighting issues by replacing the single incandescent bulb in the dome light with two flat panel (36 LEDs per panel) LED sheets. It is truly "daylight" in my cab now.
The other issue was not being able to see my cup holders in the dark. I thought putting some blue LEDs under the seats would be enough. However, the under seat LEDs cast a nice blue hue on the floor, the cup holders were still hard to see.
To solve this issue, I took the rubber insert out of the cup holder and coiled a strip of LEDs in the bottom and ran the wires through a small hole I poked through the rubber. I ran a pilot hole out the side of the cup holder at the bottom. I did take the entire cup holder assemble out and bored a 3/4" hole in the backside. I snaked a + & - wire through the hole at the bottom of each cup holder and was able to snake them out the back through the 3/4" hole. After attaching (solder and shrink-wrap) the wires, I tested all my connections and was ready to proceed. I attached the + to one of my auxiliary circuits that feeds my radar detector, Bearcat scanner and under seat lights. I did put an additional switch in the circuit so I can turn off the under seat and cup holder lights. The LED's were "really bright," so I covered the LEDs with a disk of blue translucent plastic and then put a disk of mesh (jar gripper material from Dollar Tree) to subdue the brilliance. Even with the LEDs and the covering, I lost only about 1/4" of depth and the jar gripper material is rubbery so that a can or bottle won't rattle. The LEDs I used were sealed, so any spillage shouldn't be a problem.
In the attached photos, you can see how the cup holders truly can now be found! Also, the 3rd photo shows my Garmin mounted on my windshield next to the rearview mirror, my rearview mirror with my Scan Gauge mounted above and radar detector mounted below, and my phone mount attached to my Bayou Goat Mount. I have an app for my phone that turns it into a dash cam, plus I can see if emails come in while driving. (Don't worry, I don't read or answer while driving.)
For those contemplating putting in the auxiliary switch panel, it is a great addition. I got the wiring and install suggestions right here on this forum. Everybody has different needs and wants, but here is what I have running.
#1 - Garmin, #2 - LED bed lights(They can also be turned on in the back from a switch mounted in my Leer topper, #3 - radar detector, scanner, under seat lights and cup holder lights, #4 - auxiliary outlets in upper cubby and lower glove box(rechargeable flashlight)
Thanks to all who have inspired me and anyone else with their suggestions and ideas to help make our "baby's" more special and personal!
