How to add an extra OEM switch for accessories

Overview:
Some of us like to preserve the OEM look and feel in our interiors as much as possible. At some point, most of us add some kind of accessory that requires a switch in the cockpit. Most aftermarket accessories come with a cheap looking toggle or rocker switch that simply looks out of place. And of course there is the age-old question; where do I mount this thing? After looking at the dash and center console umpteen times, I realized that I have never seen an OEM switch in the bottom position of the hazard/defrost switch group next to the center A/C vents, either in pics or in my junkyard visits. This article covers how to go about filling that bottom position of the switch group with something useful.

Parts List:

• Hazard switch w/pigtail (from classifieds,junkyard, eBay...)
• Hazard/Defrost switches w/housing pulled from your car (or source a spare)

Tools Recommended:

• Dremel w/cutting bit

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Safety Precautions:

• Wear safety goggles while using the Dremel to avoid getting bits of plastic in your eyes. This can ruin your whole night and put your project on hold.
• Disconnect battery when wiring up your accessory to the new switch.

Steps:

This is the switch housing you will be modifying. This is a spare I pulled from a junkyard car.

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Take out the hazard switch and blank. We will be modifying the housing where the blank is to accept the extra hazard switch.

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Here you can see why the housing needs to be modified because of the angled corner to accept the hazard switch.

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Starting from from the top of the housing, use the Dremel to cut the angled side away until only about an 1/8" is left at the bottom. DO NOT cut all the way down! You want that little bit at the bottom for support. Look at the areas in red and green to see what I did.

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Look at the hazard switch and you will see a notch on the side that keys it to the housing. You need to create the same notch at the bottom switch position using the Dremel. Just put the hazard in the housing to where the key hits and note where to notch.

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If you performed the cutting and notching correctly, install the hazard switch in the modified portion of the housing. It will click in just like it does at the normal top location. Notice that I lightly sanded and painted the switch button with black plastic paint. I will be customizing the button face by making a stencil and painting it on the button with white paint, or just leave it blank.

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Cut off the top flange corner of the installed hazard switch even with the angle of the housing.

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The wiring of your accessory to the pigtail is up to you, but the hazard switch does have contacts that are closed in either switch position. I am using the Red/White and Green/Orange for several reasons. They are larger gauge than the rest of the wires, they are connected when the switch is pushed in, and being a traditionalist by nature, I like using red for battery/positive.

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Here is the switch group completely assembled and ready to put in the car. You can throw away the blank plug, or keep it if you want to go back to original, it still fits!

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