Free, cheap, & low cost mods for your Jeep Wrangler TJ

My favorite thus far is bypassing the relay circuit that makes our OE fog lights turn off when the headlights are switched to "bright". The bright lights are great, but sometimes I'd like to light up the shoulders of the road at the same time.

Using all 5 pins of a 5-pin relay allows electrical components to do the opposite of another. (ie., Fog lights turning off when bright lights are turned on.)

I picked up a spare relay from AutoZone to do this, and kept my OE relay. The fog lamp relay to replace is located in #35 of the power distribution box under the hood.

Pin #1 can either be bent over, or cut to prevent the relay from activating/turning off the fog lights. I have to give credit where credit is due. I'm a nerd when it comes to electronics, but this mod had never crossed my mind. Stu Olson, at StuOffroad.com is great guy. He's shared some very helpful and cool mods on his site.

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This is fabulous !!

I run my a-pillar and roof top light bar off the fog circuit, I have no "fog" lights.
 
My favorite thus far is bypassing the relay circuit that makes our OE fog lights turn off when the headlights are switched to "bright". The bright lights are great, but sometimes I'd like to light up the shoulders of the road at the same time.

Using all 5 pins of a 5-pin relay allows electrical components to do the opposite of another. (ie., Fog lights turning off when bright lights are turned on.)

I picked up a spare relay from AutoZone to do this, and kept my OE relay. The fog lamp relay to replace is located in #35 of the power distribution box under the hood.

Pin #1 can either be bent over, or cut to prevent the relay from activating/turning off the fog lights. I have to give credit where credit is due. I'm a nerd when it comes to electronics, but this mod had never crossed my mind. Stu Olson, at StuOffroad.com is great guy. He's shared some very helpful and cool mods on his site.

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Awesome idea. Going to find a relay now. The 😁
 
One side of my hood had a little bit of play when latched. I was about to buy 2 new new hood cushions (the small, rubber bumpers that support the hood just in front of the latches), but decided to take a look first.

I noticed that the hood's weight over the years had made a depression on the old cushions, but there was still a higher area on the other side of the cushion where the hood doesn't sit.

I pried them out, rotated them 180 degrees and popped them back in (I needed a little bit of dish soap to slip them back in). No more play.
 
One side of my hood had a little bit of play when latched. I was about to buy 2 new new hood cushions (the small, rubber bumpers that support the hood just in front of the latches), but decided to take a look first.

I noticed that the hood's weight over the years had made a depression on the old cushions, but there was still a higher area on the other side of the cushion where the hood doesn't sit.

I pried them out, rotated them 180 degrees and popped them back in (I needed a little bit of dish soap to slip them back in). No more play.
I have one on the drivers side and none on the passenger side. There are no holes drilled for the bumper cushion. That fender is peeling clear coat. I’m wondering now if that is a replacement fender?
 
Lost interest in sending 12v to the hard top. Thought to myself, "What the hell are you doing?" Decided kept it simple. The picture of the lit up mess is with the light rotated upward. When I saw this one can be unclipped from it's base was an added bonus. Dome light/Flashlight.

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Lost interest in sending 12v to the hard top. Thought to myself, "What the hell are you doing?" Decided kept it simple. The picture of the lit up mess is with the light rotated upward. When I saw this one can be unclipped from it's base was an added bonus. Dome light/Flashlight.

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Where did you find this? A preliminary search hasnt shown anything

*Edit Found it: https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...0COaeWjqMMTaDQO52DY-SzoMqSyl_PMsaAlPAEALw_wcB
 
That's a great little light. I seen someone on this site that used one as a dome light and loved the idea. I got a couple from Tractor Supply too and used some Velcro self wrap around the roll bar to attach it. It works great to be able to rotate it to the front seats or back to the cargo area.
 
That's a great little light. I seen someone on this site that used one as a dome light and loved the idea. I got a couple from Tractor Supply too and used some Velcro self wrap around the roll bar to attach it. It works great to be able to rotate it to the front seats or back to the cargo area.
Might have been from me. Few weeks back, wasn't it? Sent it to someone asking about a simple dome light solution. But yeah, I really like it. I'm liking it even more for the ~$14 price tag they have on it haha. I did end up buying another and making it magnetic to use around the Jeep. I took that one way too far. Too much overthinking and it doesn't grip as well as it would have if I would have just gone and picked up a magnet from Home Depot or somewhere.
 
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Might have been from me. Few weeks back, wasn't it? Sent it to someone asking about a simple dome light solution. But yeah, I really like it. I'm liking it even more for the ~$14 price tag they have on it haha. I did end up buying another and making it magnetic to use around the Jeep. I took that one way too far. Too much overthinking and it doesn't grip as well as it would have if I would have just gone and picked up a magnet from Home Depot or somewhere.

I think it may have been you. 👍
 
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Throttle return spring. Springs came in a pack from Autozone, Dorman throttle springs, enough for my Jeep and a few friends:
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Funny story. I finally got by the parts store to pick up a pack and try this. It turns out that (according to the guy hovering over me), for me to "fix" this, I need to re gear the Jeep and "build it". Not sure what I am supposed to be building, but that was irrelevant.
 
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Funny story. I finally got by the parts store to pick up a pack and try this. It turns out that (according to the guy hovering over me), for me to "fix" this, I need to re gear the Jeep and "build it". Not sure what I am supposed to be building, but that was irrelevant.
Wow, have to regear and “build it” to drill a simple whole in the bracket and mount a spring? LOL!
 
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Hmmm....this may be so esoteric as to be annoying, however since it happened to me, it will happen to someone else....Not really a mod, but certainly a free fix on a critical part...

Assuming your issue is the "everything electronic runs in accessory mode, and nothing runs with engine running" problem, and you go for replacing the ignition switch. You are digging away, and get to the key cylinder, then to ignition switch (below)...

71kIgPTMOWL._AC_SL1500_.jpg 61q48myS75L._AC_SL1500_.jpg

And it manages to roll, come apart, and the little spring goes away into the grass.

A standard "Bic/Click" pen spring will work fine. You just have to trim about a 1/4 of its length off. It is the spring that goes around the gold "spring holding device" shown in picture 2 above.

If not really in the spirit of this thread, forgive me. But it is all I can contribute in originality at this time.
 
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How did you do that? By hand? Did you copy a camo pattern?

I'm always amazed at people that can do this freehand. I had an old coworker that could paint any version of camo by hand on anything. He painted his bug in winter woodland in an afternoon. And it turned it perfect.
 
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A free fix I recently came across involved rolling down my full door drivers side window. A couple of months or so ago, when I would roll it down, the inside felt wiper would catch on the window and roll under as the window was going down. Sometimes you could pull the door panel inward some and roll it down with no problem. I went as far as took the panel off to see if the felt strip was coming off the panel or something like that. Everything looked good.

One day I got my arm against the glass accidentally and got sweat all over it. I cleaned the glass with windex. The next day when I rolled the window down, it rolled down perfectly and has been for the last three weeks. The weird thing is the windows looked clean before and I didn’t have any reason to think something was on the glass, but it works smooth as can be now.
 
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How did you do that? By hand? Did you copy a camo pattern?

I'm always amazed at people that can do this freehand. I had an old coworker that could paint any version of camo by hand on anything. He painted his bug in winter woodland in an afternoon. And it turned it perfect.
Just went for it freehand. There is actually a specific pattern used by the military. You can find the pattern on the Internet but I am not a purist with a willy's.
 
I bent the pin. Works great. I've never understood why a vehicle "thinks" I want to turn the fog lights off when my bright lights are on. I looked for a similar easy solution for my 2015 GMC but could not find one.
I realize your post was about a month and a half ago, but figured I'd ask if you have tried any type of after market programmer to access your fog light on/off feature... In this wonderful age of computerized everything even fog lights are controlled by the ECM. Some times even just the "monitors" (not actual engine tuners) can access accessory control. I use my Bully Dog to set head light time delay, daytime running lights on or off, fog lights on with high beam, seat belt minder, accessory time delay..etc..