The Hella maplight is a high quality accessory light that has some nice features like a red lens that won't interfere with night vision.

The parts involved in the mod	Backplate for extra rigidity
Details of the wiring needed	Brighter shot showing results
Darker shot w/light on

What and Why?

The Hella maplight used in this mod is the 9" type, although a longer, 21" length is also available.

Why add another maplight to the X when there are already several lights up front? A few reasons, really - none of the stock Xterra lights are adjustable being a big reason. In this case, I wanted to keep the maximum amount of the stock, white lighting and add an adjustable red light for night driving tasks. The red light will not interfere with your night vision, a big plus when out on dark trails at night. You can aim it right at the passenger seat where you might have a map, for example. If you really need more normal lighting, use the clear lens instead of the read one. These things are really bright and of top notch quality.

The reason for choosing the existing lighting pod as the location for this install was because of simplicity, keeping permanent modification of the X to a minimum (pod easily replaced) and its central location. The pod already has the necessary power and ground for the electrical hookup so no extra wiring was needed. Both the passenger and driver can use the light equally and for very low lighting needs, you can aim the light at the ceiling for a wide, diffuse glow from above.

Installation

Removing the stock lighting pod is as simple as carefully pulling the entire unit down. It is held in place with flat springs that catch on the headliner. To fully remove the unit to work on it, you'll need to disconnect the harness on the wiring. This may be a little tricky at first, but you'll figure it out easily enough.

Position the maplight against the pod and center appropriately. Pay attention to the backside, where you'll need to drill the holes and leave enough space for the nuts. When the position is finalized, use a Sharpie or other pen to mark the holes and then drill them to match your bolt's diameter closely.

For installation, I fashioned a small "backing plate" out of aluminum stock that was laying around and its purpose is to add a little rigidity to the install. I don't know what it would be like without it, but with it -- the light is very steady and does not shake about when the Xterra is active. Instead of the screws that came with the Hella, I used a stainless steel nut/bolt combo for looks and longevity.

Supplying power to the Hella maplight (which has its own on/off switch in the head) was a matter of just tapping into the existing wiring in the pod. The ground was soldered to the flat area of one of the contacts of a stock light and the positive was T'ed off of that same light's pre-switch power lead. Make sure to have good solder connections and use electrical tape to cover your T connection when done.

Test the light before remounting the pod by reconnecting the wiring harness and actuating the switch on the head of the Hella maplight. Works? Okay -- reassemble.

Enjoy!

Play around with the different lenses and positions of the light to find combinations that work for you. In the photos above, I position the light up and out of the way when not in use. It can easily rotate if necessary without moving the gooseneck stalk that it's on.