hermanangus Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Hey All, In the course of diagnosing my turn signal issues I discovered that my non-cornering light optioned 64 had the 9 pin signal switch on the steering column and the 3 wire connector hanging next to it.(see pics1 and 2) Further I did some tracing and realized that I was getting power to the signal light connector. So I hooked up two universal 1 1/8" tail light sockets(with wire extension through the connector, weatherproofing tape, and a female stab connectors) and Voila working Cornering Lights for about $12(see pics 2 and 3). I had to take a little plastic off of the inside of the light side connector to get the stab connector to fit, but other than that, easy peasy. It would be best if you could find the correct female fitting for the connector, and the original colour wires, but I worked with what I could source.(Still waiting on the 1195 bulbs from e-bay) I would guess that a number of these cars came like mine, just having the holes for the sockets plugged, and everything else there. Maybe worth a look on your car. Regards, Kevin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC1968Riviera Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Looking forward to seeing this installed on your car. Post a video so we can see it in action! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hazdaz Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 This is a project I've been waiting to work on (if only it got a little warmer already). I don't typically drive it at night, but I had noticed a hell of a dark region when turning with the car because the headlights are so inset. I was hell bent on finding a solution that would work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hermanangus Posted February 7, 2018 Author Share Posted February 7, 2018 Well if your car already had the extras like mine, it will be easy. If I had to find a 9 pin switch and run the wires, it would have been a lot more involved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hazdaz Posted February 7, 2018 Share Posted February 7, 2018 11 minutes ago, hermanangus said: Well if your car already had the extras like mine, it will be easy. If I had to find a 9 pin switch and run the wires, it would have been a lot more involved. I'm going to have to look. We're expecting snow tomorrow, so this project is still weeks and weeks away from even getting started. Do you have any pics of your setup fully assembled? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hermanangus Posted February 7, 2018 Author Share Posted February 7, 2018 Not yet, I am waiting for the large 1195 bulbs to show up in the mail. I'll post some pics once I get it back together and some fresh amber signal bulbs in as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1965rivgs Posted February 7, 2018 Share Posted February 7, 2018 I`m wondering if the switch on your car was changed at some point to a switch with the cornering light terminals/contacts? I would think Buick would have installed a switch without the terminals/contacts if the original customer did not order cornering lights...but I never made a point of checking the `63 and `64`s I`ve encountered over the years. Can anyone chime in on this? Do all `64`s and/or `63`s have the cornering light switch with the 3 extra terminals? Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riviera63 Posted February 7, 2018 Share Posted February 7, 2018 8 minutes ago, 1965rivgs said: I`m wondering if the switch on your car was changed at some point to a switch with the cornering light terminals/contacts? I would think Buick would have installed a switch without the terminals/contacts if the original customer did not order cornering lights...but I never made a point of checking the `63 and `64`s I`ve encountered over the years. Can anyone chime in on this? Do all `64`s and/or `63`s have the cornering light switch with the 3 extra terminals? Tom I added the cornering lights to my 63. It was a later build so the wiring for the cornering lights and the 3 prong plug were already there but, I still had to get a 9 terminal switch as mine only had the 6 terminal switch. Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1965rivgs Posted February 7, 2018 Share Posted February 7, 2018 Out of curiosity I checked the `64 Buick parts book to see if Buick only offered one tilt type turn signal switch w/cornering lights. I found a listing for 3 different switches as follows: less tilt, also less cornering lamps (this would be the standard steering column) less tilt, cornering lights and directional signals (this would be a non tilt column with cornering lights) tilt type steering wheel So it appears, in service parts, Buick only offered one tilt type directional switch which would imply Buick installed a cornering light capable directional switch in all tilt column builds. I used the term "imply" because the info which appears in the parts books does not absolutely dictate how the cars were actually built...but this info is noteworthy. Tom Mooney 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hermanangus Posted February 22, 2018 Author Share Posted February 22, 2018 Hey Hazdaz, Bulbs arrived today and I ran out to the shop to put them in. Here are a couple of pics like you asked. This is probably the only option that I will get to add that cost less than the original price, lol. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hazdaz Posted February 22, 2018 Share Posted February 22, 2018 Its hard to make comparisons from a pic, but that looks WAY brighter than stock. We had a warm day yesterday so I maybe should have tried popping off that trim bezzle, but its gonna snow again tonight so the project on my end is still on hold. One thing I was going to look into doing is cut horizontal slits on the lower trim piece (the one below the bumper) so some light shines on the corners right in front of the car. That's where I was having the most difficulty seeing when turning at night. The problem I see is that even with more light coming out of the corner trim like you have, its still angled too far up and forward, when I think the light needs to be aimed lower. I'm curious what you guys think about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted February 23, 2018 Share Posted February 23, 2018 In order to do that, you'll need to cut out the bottom of the reflector. On my 63 with factory installed cornering lights, everything is well lit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hazdaz Posted February 23, 2018 Share Posted February 23, 2018 1 hour ago, RivNut said: In order to do that, you'll need to cut out the bottom of the reflector. On my 63 with factory installed cornering lights, everything is well lit. I'll have to see how it is assembled, but if there is a reflector directly behind the aluminum I'll just remove it and replace it with a clear lens. I think that whole piece is just held on by 4 screws if my memory is correct so not a biggie to check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted February 23, 2018 Share Posted February 23, 2018 That bottom piece is die cast and there's nothing behind it. After you've driven the car for a while, you'll see that the corners and curbs are lit up pretty well. Remember, you'll be approaching the corner and you'll want to know what's in front of you at the intersection. Once yore in the intersection, you'll want to know what lies down the road. What's outside your window is really of no consequence. The reflectors for the cornering lamps are designed to put the light where you need it. What I can't see in any of the pictures you've posted is the turn signal lamp burning. You're cornering lamps aren't so bright that the turn signals can't be seen are they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hazdaz Posted February 23, 2018 Share Posted February 23, 2018 33 minutes ago, RivNut said: you'll see that the corners and curbs are lit up pretty well. I can not disagree with that more. No way, mate. Look at where the headlights are on the 63 and 64 compared to almost every other car on the road - they look great, but them being inset the way they are does not help with illuminating the road off to the sides (which becomes important when turning). The cornering lights can only do so much, and since they are at the bumper level and up, they aren't illuminating the off to the side and down. There is a very good reason why more and more new cars these days have headlights that actually swivel a few degrees into a corner when taking a turn to illuminate the road in the direction you are turning into versus just straight ahead. I have no idea why I bothered drawing this up, but I felt it needed to be done. (I know that's not a 1st gen Riv in the pic but its the closest I could find.) If you are turning right, you are essentially taking a blind corner if there are no street lights. The headlights will not really help, and the corner lights only do so much. This video describes it better than I could: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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