RGB Ambient Lighting project for Palladium Model S - lets do it

[Proppilot]

Hi All, as we know with the early Palladium Model S cars, the 'ambient lighting' is not what we thought it would be. It is simple white lighting in the door bins, under the seats and floor wells. It works well but I crave that cool coloured ambient lighting from my previous M540d so I am on it. I have seen many videos for the Model 3 and Y and there are TONS of kits out there but I have not found anything for our cars so I am taking a go at it.

The lights I chose as they are very small 'pipe lights' with a tab that tucks between the trim. These are active LED strips and not fibre tubes with a light source only at one end. It is impossible from the pictures to confirm the size of the actual light pipe but there is a very short video on Ali at this store that shows them to be what I hope they are.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004428165321.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.5.634818023a8o1B

I ordered a '6 in 1' kit as well as a '1 in 1' kit. These kits are ALL for the 3/Y and the dash is too wide on the S for the long piece in the '6 in 1' so my plan is to use the two long strips on the main dash and then the four doors. You can get much more complex kits from this store that have foot well lights etc but being a simple Engineer....I am going with the same program I did with the tilt screen..... select my favourite color and leave it alone. I don't need rainbows and light chasers... just a nice ambient strip light. I saw another video on Youtube where a guy designed a nice simple circuit that can tap into the existing ambient lights and trigger the new lighting system to go on and off so it then works from the touch screen. If I can buy vs build I will do it so this is on the way.

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B07WWG8DSV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

For my projects, I take power from the connector that feeds the centre console charging tray. Lots of juice there and EASY to get at. This little board will take + and - from that point and the 'trigger' will be tied to the + wire on one of the ambient lights that exist. The Tesla ambient lighting circuit is super sensitive (thus why there are NO third party replacements for the Palladium Model S ambient lights - Abstract Ocean tried for two years now an no joy) so you cannot power the new lighting system from that circuit but you can use it to turn it on and off through this little box.

It is Chinese New Year so I won't get them for probably a month but I will post updates.

INVITE ! If you have personally done an ambient lighting update to your Palladium Model S can you please post your project in this thread. I am looking to build a thread of projects that the general person can buy the parts easily and do it themselves and not have to use a professional installer or know a friend who knows a friend who can code our cars to make it work. Those threads exclude 99% of the people here so if you have done it yourself, please post links to what you purchased and any photos.

I don't have the time to video and produce a 'how to' video but I will take LOTS of photos and will create and post a 'how to' guide as I did when I figured out that one could manually tilt the screen on our early Palladium S cars with the mount that was provided but did not have motors installed.

 

[vcor]

I used the EL lighting approach for ambient lighting. Ultimately, I wasn't entirely satisfied with it, as it's very hard to keep it flat above the steering hole. Still, it is rather cool looking. With EL lighting you have to pick the color, as it can't change like an RGB LED strip. The advantage is it is very thin and fairly easy to install. Here's my entire writeup and video: Electroluminescent Dash Lighting – TeslaTap

 

[Proppilot]

Thanks very much for sharing that vcor. How much runtime do you have on the EL ? In a building I built in 2021 we had EL backlighting installed in the washroom mirrors and within 24 months it had dimmed out to zero. Inverters were just fine so it was the EL panels. Beautiful look.

Here is the Youtube for the RGB on/off controller that connects to the existing ambient light circuit without affecting it

 

[4SUPER9]

@Proppilot , thanks for starting this thread. This is a project I definitely want to perform. As an electrical moron, who has still done his fair share of hacks, can you please instruct me on how to tap the signal from the ambient lights? Do you grab a wire from the foot-well or something?

Also, what about using COB led strips, such as these?

 

[Proppilot]

Hi 4SUPER9, you are spot on. There is a + and - wire to each footwell light. You feed a different +/- voltage source (IE from the phone charging tray) to the little module to power it and then take the + wire from a footwell light and connect it to the TRIGGER port. When the footwell light comes on, it turns on the relay on the little Amazon control board and you would wire the power to your RGB strips through that relay (using the same +/- power source that is powering the control module). see quick sketch attached. Those lights you show could work but you may find them to be way to big. The acrylic RGB strips give a consistent display of light from end to end and the actual part showing is very small and almost blends right into the trim. The ones you are showing will show each LED and will be clunky but if you like em, they would do the job.

Another topic to table is that the Palladium cars have a 15 volt battery not a 12 volt battery so some are reporting that the higher voltage can prematurely burn out the RGB strips. I am sure some brands are more tolerant than others. To combat that, I am going to install a BUCK CONVERTER that will take the 15 volts from the car and deliver a solid 12 volts to the lighting project.

This is the unit

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CFXTMFK3?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

This would install between the phone charger tray power and the little trigger relay unit (and RGB lights). Probably not mandatory but for $ 10 bucks I want to be sure after all of the install work that they don't crap out.

 

[4SUPER9]

Perfect, this is exactly how I planned it. I actually have a 12V source already, tapping into the main post from the li-ion battery under the hood, which is stepped-down from a converter and into a fuse box. I can run a wire from that back into the main cabin to power the lights (I go through the door sill, as I have found it too difficult on my back to get through the firewall). The fuse block powers a custom lighted-T I made, along with my radar detector.

As far as COB lights go, they do seem pretty smooth in real life. I think the photo brings out the separation a bit more. Your point about the size is more concerning to me, so probably not the best idea. Might you have other suggestions of places to buy these light strips, like Amazon or similar? I am really interested in single color, if that is an option, but can deal with a full RBG if needed.

 

[Proppilot]

I believe these

Amazon.ca

Are functionally the same (and there are other options on that listing. I picked solid colours that can be changed but they also have multicolour bars if you like that racing color effect).

BUT !!!! This is why I did not buy those. If you look at every kit, they are for conventional dasbboards where there is a small strip to the left of the instrument cluster and a longer one to the right. The longest strip with these kits will not cover the Model S dash from one side to the other. I chose the AliExpress route (which is SO PAINFUL AND SLOW) because the seller had available the option to purchase single pieces so I purchased the kit similar to this one plus one more 43" strip. This way I can run a 43 from the left to the centre and another from the right to the centre (and cut off the long ends) to give a continuous run appearance with the break being at the middle behind the screen where it cannot be seen.

 

[vcor]

Thanks very much for sharing that vcor. How much runtime do you have on the EL ? In a building I built in 2021 we had EL backlighting installed in the washroom mirrors and within 24 months it had dimmed out to zero. Inverters were just fine so it was the EL panels. Beautiful look.

I had it in for about 18 months. I didn't notice any dimming during that time. I expect if they were on 24/7 they wouldn't last that long, but in a car, that is on for an hour a day, I'd expect many years of life.

Due to some other projects, I reluctantly pulled the EL lighting. It did look great! I'd do it again if they made EL lighting with a stiff carrier. It was great that you could cut it to the exact length needed.

I did an addressable RGBW strip for the front of the car with a range of different effects (shown in my Avatar). It's a complex project that I don't expect anyone to do, but I did write it up. It ties into the CAN buses to automatically change appearance in different drive modes, blinkers, charging, etc. For anyone nutty enough to do it, here's the write-up for Tshow.

 

[GetYourWheels]

Here is mine, I hooked up to the phone charger wiring.
The dashboard is pretty straight forward, I'm stuck on trying to find 12v acc power from the doors. If anyone has any ideas I'd be open.
I found a youtube video online where someone found 12v in the Model X doors, but its from a module that the S doesnt have.


I had some EL lighting in my home for a few years on 24/7 and it never dimmed. But the wire is "floppier"/softer.
The LEDs with the acrylic diffuser are stiffer, I didnt need to use any adhesive or support for the gap above the steering wheel

Also the Led controller I used was rated for 9-20V so the 15-16V from the S shouldnt be an issue for it.

 

[4SUPER9]

Here is mine, I hooked up to the phone charger wiring.
The dashboard is pretty straight forward, I'm stuck on trying to find 12v acc power from the doors. If anyone has any ideas I'd be open.
I found a youtube video online where someone found 12v in the Model X doors, but its from a module that the S doesnt have.


I had some EL lighting in my home for a few years on 24/7 and it never dimmed. But the wire is "floppier"/softer.
The LEDs with the acrylic diffuser are stiffer, I didnt need to use any adhesive or support for the gap above the steering wheel

Also the Led controller I used was rated for 9-20V so the 15-16V from the S shouldnt be an issue for it.

Can you please share what strips you used?
For the doors, can we not just run power from our cabin 12(15.5)v through the jam into the doors?

 

[GetYourWheels]

Can you please share what strips you used?
For the doors, can we not just run power from our cabin 12(15.5)v through the jam into the doors?

These are the leds: Full Color LED Interior Ambient Light Strips

You can, and thats probably what I'll do if I cant find power in the doors. It would just be much easier and quicker if I could find power in the doors, and it would minimize the wires running throughout the car, and tearing apart the entire interior

 

[4SUPER9]

I got it from here: Full Color LED Interior Ambient Light Strips

You can, and thats probably what I'll do if I cant find power in the doors. It would just be much easier and quicker if I could find power in the doors, and it would minimize the wires running throughout the car, and tearing apart the entire interior

We know, unequivocally, that there is power in the doors. There must be if we are going to roll these windows up and down! personally, I find taking the doors apart for this to be a little exhausting, but perhaps, if I get bored and need to do this, I will.

 

[GetYourWheels]

We know, unequivocally, that there is power in the doors. There must be if we are going to roll these windows up and down! personally, I find taking the doors apart for this to be a little exhausting, but perhaps, if I get bored and need to do this, I will.

Well yes, theres definitely power... from where to access/tap it is my big question.
My original plan was to tap the power on the door ambient light tubes, but those only supply 7v and not enough to power the leds

Removing the doors isnt too diffcicult, 4 bolts and some pulling

 

[Proppilot]

so do the modules communicate to each other via BT or some other wireless method ? I saw that video with the power tap in the door at that module was was going to explore the same. Originally I thought the modules all had to be connected back to a central module but now I am seeing that the floor lights will connect to the central module but the others seem to just need power. I will definitely explore keeping everything powered from within each door and per above, there absolutely is power in there.....

 

[GetYourWheels]

so do the modules communicate to each other via BT or some other wireless method ? I saw that video with the power tap in the door at that module was was going to explore the same. Originally I thought the modules all had to be connected back to a central module but now I am seeing that the floor lights will connect to the central module but the others seem to just need power. I will definitely explore keeping everything powered from within each door and per above, there absolutely is power in there.....

Yes they wirelessly communicate, although Im not sure how.. my guess is RF but not sure.
The video from the X theres a very obvious red/black wire on a module he was able to tap
But from when I had the S front driver door apart I didnt see the module or anything that obvious
Im no electrician so im hoping someone can find a source, before I short something trying to find it myself haha

 

[4SUPER9]

Yes they wirelessly communicate, although Im not sure how.. my guess is RF but not sure.

That makes sense for a pre-fab system with multiple sub-controllers for each strip, and a master controller for dimming, color, etc. If building our own system, running off the ambient light controls, I would imagine we could always use a separate relay module for each one, as there is ambient lighting in each door.

 

[Proppilot]

Until now (and the Model X video) I did not realize they linked via RF. So that being said, my plan is to find the power source in each of the doors and my switching circuit that will tie into the existing cabin light (and screen on/off) will just toggle the manual power button that comes with the units.

 

[Proppilot]

These are the leds: Full Color LED Interior Ambient Light Strips

You can, and thats probably what I'll do if I cant find power in the doors. It would just be much easier and quicker if I could find power in the doors, and it would minimize the wires running throughout the car, and tearing apart the entire interior

What strip lengths did you use to get across the dash ? The kits come with one longer and then four for the doors but the longer is not long enough. This has been my blocker any why I ordered from Ali (to get the additional long one). What did you do ?

 

[GetYourWheels]

What strip lengths did you use to get across the dash ? The kits come with one longer and then four for the doors but the longer is not long enough. This has been my blocker any why I ordered from Ali (to get the additional long one). What did you do ?

I used 2 of the mid length strips and trimmed them for the dash. I was going to buy a 2nd kit to do the rest of the doors once i got this all figured out.

 

[Proppilot]

I used 2 of the mid length strips and trimmed them for the dash. I was going to buy a 2nd kit to do the rest of the doors once i got this all figured out.

Okay makes sense. Same issue I am facing. I think your source also ships from China which is on New Years hiatus so I am going to hang with plan A which is basically your kit plus one extra 110 cm piece so I can use the two 110 cm pieces for the dash.