I just did the resistor mod to the OEM flasher module, after replacing all turn signals with LED bulbs and replacing the front sockets because they looked like they were going to melt soon. Being cheap at the moment, and because I'm a frequent customer at Digikey, I ordered an assortment of resistors to modify the OEM module.
To get at the module under the dash, I found that I didn't have to remove any paneling - just reach up behind, and the first task is to depress the connector lock and disconnect the harness (easier said than done, but it's possible with a proper application of swearing and pleading).
But I couldn't figure out how to dismount the module from its mounting clip. Figuring I needed smaller hands, I got my early-teen daughter out to see if she could dismount it. Here was our exchange:
Me: "Did you find it? It's a simple little black box. It's held on by some sort of clip on the bottom."
Kid: "Yeah, I see it. You want this out?"
Me: "Yes please."
Kid: "Ok." SNAP CRACK "Here you go."
She did indeed just break it off, but I think it's better that way: one can get at the connector easier if it is hanging loose. When I finished I just zip-tied the module in place with a couple adhesive zip-tie pads/feet stuck to the back of the white electrical box. Her request to be chauffeured to the mall with her friends was still denied.
Getting to the resistor, a Tacoma forum said the threshold voltage for their module was 49 mV. I knew that my new front bulbs drew 710 mA and the rears drew 550 mA, so by my calculations, 50 milliOhm would get it to work properly and hyperflash on a dead bulb. I replaced the resistor, and it almost worked: it worked fine with the engine off, including hyperflashing on a missing bulb, but it hyperflashed all the time when the engine was on.
The next size resistor up I ordered was 70 milliOhm (1 Watt), so I put that one in. Now it works as desired: normal flashing when engine is on and off, emergency lights all work, and it hyperflashes when I remove a front bulb.
To get at the module under the dash, I found that I didn't have to remove any paneling - just reach up behind, and the first task is to depress the connector lock and disconnect the harness (easier said than done, but it's possible with a proper application of swearing and pleading).
But I couldn't figure out how to dismount the module from its mounting clip. Figuring I needed smaller hands, I got my early-teen daughter out to see if she could dismount it. Here was our exchange:
Me: "Did you find it? It's a simple little black box. It's held on by some sort of clip on the bottom."
Kid: "Yeah, I see it. You want this out?"
Me: "Yes please."
Kid: "Ok." SNAP CRACK "Here you go."
She did indeed just break it off, but I think it's better that way: one can get at the connector easier if it is hanging loose. When I finished I just zip-tied the module in place with a couple adhesive zip-tie pads/feet stuck to the back of the white electrical box. Her request to be chauffeured to the mall with her friends was still denied.
Getting to the resistor, a Tacoma forum said the threshold voltage for their module was 49 mV. I knew that my new front bulbs drew 710 mA and the rears drew 550 mA, so by my calculations, 50 milliOhm would get it to work properly and hyperflash on a dead bulb. I replaced the resistor, and it almost worked: it worked fine with the engine off, including hyperflashing on a missing bulb, but it hyperflashed all the time when the engine was on.
The next size resistor up I ordered was 70 milliOhm (1 Watt), so I put that one in. Now it works as desired: normal flashing when engine is on and off, emergency lights all work, and it hyperflashes when I remove a front bulb.
