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PlumCrazy
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Original Poster: PlumCrazy
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Time to install: 2-4 hrs
Disclaimer: The Ranger Station.com, The Ranger Station.com Staff, nor the original poster are responsible for you doing this modification to your vehicle. By doing this modification and following this how-to you, the installer, take full responsibility if anything is damaged or messed up. If you have questions, feel free to PM the original poster or ask in the appropriate section of The Ranger Station.com forums.
Brief Explanation:Adding puddle lights and LED turn signals to 93+ Ranger mirrors
Tools Needed: Phillips screw driver, 11mm deep well and ratchet, multimeter, heat gun, wire cutters, strippers, crimpers, or solder gun, shrink wrap, etc for electrical connections.
Parts Needed:93+ Ranger mirrors ( power, or least the same housing)
95+ Explorer power mirror shells with puddle lights and the motors.(be sure to snip the wires and leave yourself with a few feet of wire)
Rousch Racing LED mirror glass for ThunderBolt Ed. Ranger
You will also need some wire, terminals, solder etc.
Did this few years back, so bear with me.
To remove the mirror you must pull the door panel off. It is held on by two screws under the handle and one in the rear lower corner. The handle/bezel will pop off with a firm tug. Then the whole panel will lift up and off.
Remove the three nuts holding the mirror on and unplug the power connection.
I swapped the outer housing and motors from an Exploder with puddle lights. I would have just swapped the whole deal, but the angle of the triangle peice is different between Expos and Rangers. I tapped into the door switch wiring, so they come on when ever the doors are open but not when the dome light is turned on from the dash switch.
With a firm hit from the bottom the outer housing will pop off the triangle shaped door bracket.
Stock Ranger mirror assembly
Expo outer housing popped on Ranger triangle door bracket
I also installed the mirror glass from a Thunderbolt edition Ranger with the LED turn signals behind the glass. I got them from Rousch Racing since they own all the rights and overstock parts for the Thundertbolt Ed. Ranger.
The plastic backing plate that the Signal mirror come with are made for like 03+ Rangers, so the pegs for the motors dont line up. The backing plate has to be heated with a heat gun to soften the glue, then carefully seperated and the glass must be clipped/glued onto the older backing plate. A hole has to be cut in the older backing plate to allow room for the LED indicator.
Heres the Expo housing with backing plate trimmed for LED indicator
Thunderbolt glass seperated from the backing plate
As far as wiring goes. I didn't take any pictures. But heres how I ran mine.
For the puddle lights there are a few ways to do it. I wired mine so they only come in when the door they are on is opened. I simply ran a constant power wire from a fused power source (I used a mini fuse slot in my auxiliary fuse box) and ran the ground down and tapped into the door ajar switch since it grounds out when the latch id opened.
You could also run your ground wire to the dome light ground and both your puddles will come on when either door is opened. The factory dome also has constant power and a switched ground. Normally these wires run under the carpet along the driverside door sill.
The turn signals can be tapped into in a few places. You can ground them to anything metal in the door. Then run a wire up to the appropriate signal light up front and tap into the plug there, or run the wire up to the column and splice into the wire at the multifunction switch. As far as I know Ford used the same color wires for the signals from 83-12. White/blue for right, and Green/white for left.
Depending on the year you may have to cut and splice the Explorer power mirror harness with the your Ranger plug. There is a year break somewhere they changed plug styles.
I recommend having a schematic and an understanding of basic 12v wiring and how to use a multimeter on the continuity and DC voltage settings. I also prefer solder and heat shrink for all connections so they are water tight and secure.
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Time to install: 2-4 hrs
Disclaimer: The Ranger Station.com, The Ranger Station.com Staff, nor the original poster are responsible for you doing this modification to your vehicle. By doing this modification and following this how-to you, the installer, take full responsibility if anything is damaged or messed up. If you have questions, feel free to PM the original poster or ask in the appropriate section of The Ranger Station.com forums.
Brief Explanation:Adding puddle lights and LED turn signals to 93+ Ranger mirrors
Tools Needed: Phillips screw driver, 11mm deep well and ratchet, multimeter, heat gun, wire cutters, strippers, crimpers, or solder gun, shrink wrap, etc for electrical connections.
Parts Needed:93+ Ranger mirrors ( power, or least the same housing)
95+ Explorer power mirror shells with puddle lights and the motors.(be sure to snip the wires and leave yourself with a few feet of wire)
Rousch Racing LED mirror glass for ThunderBolt Ed. Ranger
You will also need some wire, terminals, solder etc.
Did this few years back, so bear with me.
To remove the mirror you must pull the door panel off. It is held on by two screws under the handle and one in the rear lower corner. The handle/bezel will pop off with a firm tug. Then the whole panel will lift up and off.
Remove the three nuts holding the mirror on and unplug the power connection.
I swapped the outer housing and motors from an Exploder with puddle lights. I would have just swapped the whole deal, but the angle of the triangle peice is different between Expos and Rangers. I tapped into the door switch wiring, so they come on when ever the doors are open but not when the dome light is turned on from the dash switch.
With a firm hit from the bottom the outer housing will pop off the triangle shaped door bracket.
Stock Ranger mirror assembly
Expo outer housing popped on Ranger triangle door bracket
I also installed the mirror glass from a Thunderbolt edition Ranger with the LED turn signals behind the glass. I got them from Rousch Racing since they own all the rights and overstock parts for the Thundertbolt Ed. Ranger.
The plastic backing plate that the Signal mirror come with are made for like 03+ Rangers, so the pegs for the motors dont line up. The backing plate has to be heated with a heat gun to soften the glue, then carefully seperated and the glass must be clipped/glued onto the older backing plate. A hole has to be cut in the older backing plate to allow room for the LED indicator.
Heres the Expo housing with backing plate trimmed for LED indicator
Thunderbolt glass seperated from the backing plate
As far as wiring goes. I didn't take any pictures. But heres how I ran mine.
For the puddle lights there are a few ways to do it. I wired mine so they only come in when the door they are on is opened. I simply ran a constant power wire from a fused power source (I used a mini fuse slot in my auxiliary fuse box) and ran the ground down and tapped into the door ajar switch since it grounds out when the latch id opened.
You could also run your ground wire to the dome light ground and both your puddles will come on when either door is opened. The factory dome also has constant power and a switched ground. Normally these wires run under the carpet along the driverside door sill.
The turn signals can be tapped into in a few places. You can ground them to anything metal in the door. Then run a wire up to the appropriate signal light up front and tap into the plug there, or run the wire up to the column and splice into the wire at the multifunction switch. As far as I know Ford used the same color wires for the signals from 83-12. White/blue for right, and Green/white for left.
Depending on the year you may have to cut and splice the Explorer power mirror harness with the your Ranger plug. There is a year break somewhere they changed plug styles.
I recommend having a schematic and an understanding of basic 12v wiring and how to use a multimeter on the continuity and DC voltage settings. I also prefer solder and heat shrink for all connections so they are water tight and secure.
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