[Z06] PIAA Driving Lights Installed
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Team Owner
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 20,054
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From: Swansea IL
PIAA Driving Lights Installed
I finally got around to installing the PIAA driving lights I bought over a month ago. As we all know Z's don't come with fog lights, So I bought the PIAA kit from TL Electronics and a OEM switch from Gene @ The Kar Shop. My total investment was just at $225.
With the help of a talented buddy we managed to install them in just under 3 hours. While mounting the bracket/light assemblies was stratight forward it is a tight fit and only one hand at a time can be working. Running the wires was easy. Our only problem came when we tried to connect the white wire from the PIAA's to the purple wire up under the fuse box. There just wasn't enough slack even though the process should have taken 5 minutes following with the wire bundles and determining where and how to tap in to it slowed us down. We finally settled on using the wire crimper. The red one supplied with the kit was a PITA to work with. Luckily my friend has a well stocked garage and he found a different style crimper that held both wires in place until you snapped it closed.
While we were in there we also installed a battery mat, just in case the battery leaks as they are prone to do. We reinstalled the battery and I turned on the lights. I pushed the fog light button and the PIAA's fired up.
Last night after coming home from a movie I took the car out for a test drive to see if the lights needed any adjustments and how they looked in the real world. All I can say is HOLY COW these things are bright and throw a brilliant bright light with just a slight blue tint. I can now believe folks that say with these lights they no longer use their head lights. I did turn on my head lights and then switched the PIAA's on and off to see the affect they had. They not only filled in the dark unlit area directly in front of the car they also over powered the headlights, turning on the high beams was the only way the headlights could over power the PIAA's.
I also got lucky, they seem to be perfectly adjusted too.
If any one is on the fence about installing these I say do it. They flooded the road with a bright light and wider pattern than the OEM headlights and from my 30 minute test drive I never offended (blinded) any on coming cars/drivers.
Tom
With the help of a talented buddy we managed to install them in just under 3 hours. While mounting the bracket/light assemblies was stratight forward it is a tight fit and only one hand at a time can be working. Running the wires was easy. Our only problem came when we tried to connect the white wire from the PIAA's to the purple wire up under the fuse box. There just wasn't enough slack even though the process should have taken 5 minutes following with the wire bundles and determining where and how to tap in to it slowed us down. We finally settled on using the wire crimper. The red one supplied with the kit was a PITA to work with. Luckily my friend has a well stocked garage and he found a different style crimper that held both wires in place until you snapped it closed.
While we were in there we also installed a battery mat, just in case the battery leaks as they are prone to do. We reinstalled the battery and I turned on the lights. I pushed the fog light button and the PIAA's fired up.
Last night after coming home from a movie I took the car out for a test drive to see if the lights needed any adjustments and how they looked in the real world. All I can say is HOLY COW these things are bright and throw a brilliant bright light with just a slight blue tint. I can now believe folks that say with these lights they no longer use their head lights. I did turn on my head lights and then switched the PIAA's on and off to see the affect they had. They not only filled in the dark unlit area directly in front of the car they also over powered the headlights, turning on the high beams was the only way the headlights could over power the PIAA's.
I also got lucky, they seem to be perfectly adjusted too.
If any one is on the fence about installing these I say do it. They flooded the road with a bright light and wider pattern than the OEM headlights and from my 30 minute test drive I never offended (blinded) any on coming cars/drivers.
Tom
The PIAA's are a great mod! I use mine a lot of times instead of my headlights, they are that bright! 
