My daughter just emailed me from college a sketch of her truck with Christmas lights outlining her cab, hood, and bed and a lit up tree in the bed. She wants to actually do it when she gets home. So my question is, if I put a converter into the cigarette lighter, will I be able to power up some Christmas lights using DC current that is produced by the alternator? And if so, how many strands of it? It is a 75 302. Is it legal? No 3G setup.

 

I highly recommend you NOT do this if you plan to drive the vehicle on public roads, as she will surely get pulled over. Most states mandate what colors can shine from what end of a vehicle. There's also the issue of her safety and that of others on the road because of the distraction such a setup would create (hence the laws in the first place). Sorry, put a bow on the grille instead.

This particular case was all over the news last year: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/1...n_2287994.html

 

fmc400. Thanks for the good advice, as always. When she asks why not, I will blame it on you.

 

Haha, sounds like a plan!

 

Find a town doing a Christmas parade and enter it in. My town has one every year and we all decorate our trucks

 

Scoop531. Great idea. Thanks

 

In the yard .... Yes.

On a public roadway .... No.







Whether or not a buddy or the guy down the street has or hasn't been stopped or ticketed is poor yardstick. The more lights one adds, the greater the chance that a LEO will take a moment, make the stop, and even write.

 

I put a cheap little pre-lit wreathe on the front of my truck every year and I get tons of compliments on it. Never been pulled over for it either

 

truck drivers do it all the time, I think most cops don't bother because of the season.

Use LED christmas lights and you won't have to worry about how many or power draw.

 

I remember when I was a kid the Guiness Book of World Records had a picture of one of our trucks that the owner did something like this to. Only with his truck the only part of the body that covered by lights were the windows. I don't know if he drove the truck like that or not, but if I remember correctly he had something like 600 lights total. But there was no tree in the bed. I remember the truck was in there for many years. At least from the mid eighties to the nineties. Heck it might still be in there.

 

Last year I wrapped my roll bar in Christmas lights. It got lots of thumbs up. Being that I was still in high school then, everyone thought it was pretty cool. Here's a picture of it:

 

Lots of cool ideas. I suggested we add a roll bar to my daughters truck. Her response was "Ew! No way!!". I guess I have not influenced her enough. Happy Holidays guys.