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better visibility from behind

4K views 19 replies 10 participants last post by  Squid4Life 
#1 ·
Hello
I'd like to increase the visibility of my 09 Nomad from behind when stopped at a light. Dealer says since the tail/brake/turn signal wires are on the inside of the rear fender I'd need the rear wheel removed just to get to them which would make tapping into those wires prohibitively expensive. Does anyone have any other alternatives?
Thanks
 
#3 ·
I haven't taken my 2013 Nomad apart to that point yet, but I've seen in other Vulcans the rear fender is usually just bolted on. Isn't it possible to disconnect the rear electricals, remove the bags and any support bolts on the side/under the seat and fully remove the fender/work on the wiring directly?
 
#4 ·
On my Voyager, I took the cross saddlebag brace off that runs just behind the rear tire. That and putting it on a lift and raising it a few inches made all the difference in getting to those wires.
 
#5 ·
If you remove the seat the harness to the rear lights goes through a grommet in the fender easily accessed from there. I spliced an auxiliary break light and modulator in at that location. Unwrap the harness tape and splice into the blue wire if I remember right.I think I have some pics some where if you need them.
 
#7 ·
Have it done when you are doing a tire change if you have to pay someone else to do it.

I like the Skenedesign LEDs that mount on the sides of the license plate.
 
#10 ·

Here it is all taped up and ready to go back under the seat.


This is what it looks like finished

I used the bullet connectors so it all could be removed easily. The first modulator was bad out of the box and had to be replaced.

Hope the pics help.
 
#14 ·
Has anyone tried the Vololights breakless deceleration indicator on their vulcans? On my nomad I see that there is a red (power) and black/yellow (signal?) wire to the license plate bulb that is accessible under the chrome tail light assembly cover. Thanks
 
#15 ·
You can tap into that but it will be constant 12 volt power. Those wires are for the bulb that illuminates the license plate. The signal wires are in that assembly too, you just have to cut back some of the protective wrapping. I tapped load resistors in those wires for my LED signal bulbs and tucked all the taps under the chrome housing. No issues thus far.
 
#16 ·
I wanted to add additional rear brake lighting but was surprised I was unable to find anything that was made for rear of our 1700's. So I added some led strips and am really pleased with the final result. Unlike some of the previous posts, I didn't splice into existing wiring as I'm always concerned about corrosion when the insulative covering is compromised. Instead I removed the pin inside the harness connector and added a brake wire into which I connected my new lights. When the connector is separated there is a tab which will release the pin allowing it's removal. You either lift or press the tab (I can't remember which) while gently pulling on the wire.Then you can carefully separate the "fingers" that hold the factory wire in place and add the new wire, pressing the "fingers" back in place. Simply replace the pin back into the connector until the tab snaps back in place. For the ground I simply connected to existing bolts under the seat. I included some pics of the finished product. The lights I used are 5050 super bright led's with a 3M adhesive backing available on Amazon at $18 for both. I added an automotive waterproof connector to each side to facilitate removing the side bags when changing rear tire, etc. The pics were taken in during the day so you can see that the lights are visable in daylight. At night they really stand out! The 1st pic shows my white wire going to the brake light pin in the connector and an insulated connector at the other end to which I connected the led strip wiring. The 2nd shows the overall wiring with grounds attached, 3rd shows brake lights off and 4th shows brake lights on. The last pic shows the auto style connector so the bags can be removed.
 

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#17 ·
Carguy. Thanks for the detailed description and photos. Very informative. One question, i cant quite see where you added the *********** wire into the connector? Are you adding your *********** wire into the spot where the red wire resides? Thanks.
 
#18 ·
rturnr, I did this some time ago and should have taken pics back when I did it. I added the white wire (the only color wire I had) and added it to the blue with red wire/pin which is the brake wire and is directly under the red wire. Here's a better picture.
 

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