Remote Angel Eyes.... (halos)

I love these easy mods.... and in case you were considering adding remote functionality to your angel eyes.... I would say go for it! Sorry no pics, but based on doing it today to my M3, I can give a quick DIY which may help folks.

Firstly... It really should cost next to nothing. (if you're like me, you already have wire and connectors laying in the garage). The most it could cost would be the cost of the relay (which I didnt need).... and that will depend on whether your exisiting relay supplied with your Angel Eyes is already set up for 5 prong or 4 prong. As stated, my manufacturer is kind enough to already supply their kit with a 5 prong relay (thanks).... but if all else fails and you have to buy a 5 prong relay... then head to Pep boys and find a 40 amp 5 prong SPDT relay (mine was $2.50... but I didnt even need it)

So for the installation - simply replace or convert the exisiting angel eyes relay with the 5 prong version.. then run a wire from the center prong (this will be prong 87A ). This wire will now be the live (hot) wire that you tap into a positive wire in your car. One other thing I did (it's actually not neccessary.. but Im also on the side of caution), I added an inline fuse to this wire.

Next step - routing the wire....For me.. my angel eyes relay is located on the passenger side of the engine bay, (next to the positive terminal). So... I ran my new wire (the center...87A on the relay) into the car fire through the large rubber grommet opening on the firewall that is behind the glove box. This opening is easy to locate... and even easier to feed wires through! From inside the car - remove the glove box. (never done this..... no worries... its simple).

Glove box removal - Open the glove box, remove contents, and the rechargable flashlight. Pry the little courtesy light cover and the light pops down.. and unplug the little light. (put it somewhere safe). Now you will see (either side of the glove box) two hanging devices (the one on the left is spring loaded, and the one on the right is fabric). .... simple push out the retaining pins on these and release them from the box. Finally unscrew the screws. ... (three across the top, one more on the left and two on the right). The glove box now drops out and down.

Wiring the courtesy light - Now that the glove box is out (laying on the floorwell), you should be able to locate the wire you poked through from the engine compartment. Hint - its behind and underneath the electrical box that sits behind the glove box. Once you have located the wire, then you just need to tap it into the courtesy light (hot) wire. To locate this wire... locate the light that is under and behind the glove box (it would be above the passenger's left foot). There are two wires going into this lamp. you want the RED / BLUE striped. Using a 3M T Tap .. simply tap your wire coming from the engine bay onto this blue / red wire. and.. bingo... you're done. Go ahead and put the glove box back in place and put a 10amp fuse in the inline fuse holder (if you added one).

So now that's done... when you open the doors with your car remote... the angel eyes illuminate, and when you lock them... they fade. AND... when you start your car.... they stay on.. (as normal).

Ultimately - I think it was quicker to add this feature than it was to type this write up... but... I thought I would post in case someone was considering this easy and effective mod.

holy crap this is amazing. GREAT writeup. I wish you had pics though. (im a visual person)

Great write up thanks...no instructions with my kit for use with a relay (UK) they are supposed to be wired to the parking lights ...I would prefer them to be remote and independent ...what happens on the other terminals of the spdt relay? thanks

ps what size fuse did you use?

Need pics....need pics

you don't even have to remove the glove box.. i did mine without.
basically, when you feed it through the grommet, you can feel the interior carpet...
bring your wire there just temporarily...
then take out your footwell courtesy light, and stick a few fingers through that hole...
and reach towards the front end of the car.
then with your other hand, bring the wire back up and try pushing it towards your other hand.. once you grab it, pull it through, tap the wire.. and you're good to go.

^ sounds pretty easy, let me try that, Thanks!!!

this is a great diy that impresses everyone when your walking up to the car, and you see these halos fade in, people stare.

I tried this set-up and when I un-lock the car the halos come on...start the car, they are on....then a few seconds later...they turn off...just like the footwell light. Any comments or help?

Originally Posted by kadpoe

I tried this set-up and when I un-lock the car the halos come on...start the car, they are on....then a few seconds later...they turn off...just like the footwell light. Any comments or help?

wow that sucks, did this happen to anyone elses car n u guys didnt notice or is it just that kadpoe did something wrong??

your relay isn't wired to an ignition on live wire e.g.

this set up has a switch too for extra controlability
so 85 is your ign on live which takes over when the footwell lights go out...i got this one from the dme/dde box its red and white with yellow dots

The one catch with wiring your switch like depicted is that you wont gain full control of switching your halos on/off in all cases. Specifically, if desired, keeping them off when the footwell lights turn on. In this case simply moving the switch to pin 30 will then give you full control.

Brilliant! Why didn't I think of that!?

Thanks to Highvoltage


so just for explanation .. when the footwell lights are activated via the key power is supplied via 87a across the relay to 30 and then to the angel eyes. when the ignition is turned on (ie power supplied to pin 85) the coil in the relay is activated which pulls up the bar away from 87a to connect with 87 instead. the footwell supply is broken and power is supplied to the angel eyes via 87 and 30. the switch of course makes or breaks the circuit after the relay.

Originally Posted by 320de46m47

Great write up thanks...no instructions with my kit for use with a relay (UK) they are supposed to be wired to the parking lights ...I would prefer them to be remote and independent ...what happens on the other terminals of the spdt relay? thanks

ps what size fuse did you use?

I have the ones that are powered by the parkers, and have done the remote feature.

It's pretty similar to the above write-up. The difference is that I used the footwell light to power the angel eyes. So connect a wire from the footwell to the positive of your angel eyes, and be sure to put a diode in between. You should be able to use the same wire to power both sides.

Hope this is understandable. There was a diagram floating around somewhere...

sorry dont understand that ..need more info. the footwell light goes out a second after starting the car. where did you put a diode and why?

Seems to be a bit of confusion. Its possible to simply use a pair of diodes in lieu of the relay as depicted below. Just replace "Grey wire" with the + wire to the eyes where you can then also, if desired, place a switch. I believe Atlas means to say he is using the parking lights as the power source in this example instead of the typical ECU tap.

Yep. The halos are powered by the parkers when the car is on and by the footwell when the car is off.

Originally Posted by HighVoltage

Seems to be a bit of confusion. Its possible to simply use a pair of diodes in lieu of the relay as depicted below. Just replace "Grey wire" with the + wire to the eyes where you can then also, if desired, place a switch. I believe Atlas means to say he is using the parking lights as the power source in this example instead of the typical ECU tap.

now you've lost me completely ..."in lieu of the relay" means instead? wouldn't that mean everything fries if something shorts out? ...and "grey wire" where?

Glad you explained parkers by the way. Parker is a type of coat or book detailing car prices here! I guess parking lights are sidelights (in the UK)

also what if you want the choice between sidelights (parkers) and angels?

Originally Posted by 320de46m47

now you've lost me completely ..."in lieu of the relay" means instead? wouldn't that mean everything fries if something shorts out? ...and "grey wire" where?

Yes it means "instead" or "in place". If something shorts, it simply means the fuse associated with that source point will blow. This does leave the ECU open to potential problems that the relay circumvents. However simply placing a fuse sequentially in the circuit between the ECU and diode will solve those problems in the vast majority of failure possibilities. It also does require that the ECU tap point is capable of supplying the total power required to power the rings and not just a relay coil. However as I believe that this point also provides power for the electric fan, that shouldnt be an issue.

That jpg is something I drew up sometime ago for someone else who was having issues with their halos and harness off ebay. The "grey wire" was the + wire going to the halo rings on that setup.

Glad you explained parkers by the way. Parker is a type of coat or book detailing car prices here! I guess parking lights are sidelights (in the UK)

also what if you want the choice between sidelights (parkers) and angels?

Yes, with regards to his setup. If you use the "parkers" as the source than you must have the parking lights on in order to have your halos on after the footwells go off. Not my preference either.

We always use diodes instead of relays for DDE installs. Although DDEs normally draw less than 1A, during initial start the ballasts have a current surge, so I would suggest getting 3A diodes. Much more elegant, simple and reliable (no moving parts) than a relay.