Technical Cab lights - what to expect

[dilby]

Hi all - I’ve got a 2017 ducato which I’ve purchased to convert into a camper. The previous owner had wired in their lien led strips and reversing camera and generally made a a bit of a mess of the wiring in the cab and in specifically trying to work out how the cab lights are meant to operate. They’ve been removed, and their wires were tapped for the existing lighting. From what I can tell the lights just switch on and off, but I’ve also seen some folks mention that their vans have courtesy lights when you open doors. So I’m trying to work out if that’s the case as standard so I can work backwards from there; do the cab lights come on when a door is opened and if so is it all the lights for any door (rear and side?). And are they in a timer or do you have to then turn the lights off manually? Would love to find out some more info - thanks!

 

[MSjoberg]

How the lights are meant to operate should be described in the Ducato manual. If you don’t have one, it can be downloaded from Fiat. I don’t have the URL where I am now, but it was quite easy to find.

 

[Anthony489]

Hi

On my 2008 Ducato, the cab lights can operate as courtesy lights. They time out after a period, and fade out rather than turning off quickly. This all suggests to me that there is a controller between the 12 volt supply and the cab lights, so it's not a good source of power for anything else.

I suggest you find a source of power from somewhere else, ideally a fused supply from the habitation battery.