Upfitter Switches

[8ball_99]

Upfitter switches! So, I figured I'd share just in case anyone was looking to add these to your ZR2. Gm doesn't offer any upfitter switches for the refresh. I needed to add some switches and really wanted the factory look of the upfitters. Slapping a generic toggle or rocker on this new fancy dash didn't seem right. I also really wanted the fuse block kit that comes with the kit as well as the terminals for the battery box under the hood.

So I figured I'd take a gamble and give it a try. Found a relatively cheap kit on ebay. Wrong color which doesn't matter cause the dash panel diffenitly wasn't going to work on a ZR2. The kit was around 200.

The wiring is almost plug in play. All the components plug in and bolt up just like the previous years minus the dash panel of course. The one hick up on the wiring is the ignition wire and the back lighting wire are missing from the 14 pin plug under the dash. Same connector, just is missing those pins. Pin 3 (yellow wire) is back lighting and pin 13 (violet) is ignition wire.

All I did to resolve that was run an ignition wire over to the harness and clip it into both those wires on the upfitter harness. The other issue is mounting location for the switches themselves. I ended up adding some length to the switch harness and mounting my switches in the center console under the climate controls. That just seemed to be the best spot where it fit and I only had to cut into a single trim piece.

It's diffenitly not just plug and play, but it's not to hard. Love the fact the switches match the factory look. I also how clean it makes the connections under the hood in the battery box. The 4ga wire there where the plow connection would be is for my on-board air compressor. HTH!

 

[ikaika]

I know that on the Trail Boss you can literally just swap out the front driver panel with the one from the RST but I'm not so sure with ours and the redesign. There was a post on the Traill Boss forums where a guy made the swap and he gave pretty good instructions.

2019-2022 Silverado Sierra Upfitter Auxiliary Switches Package

Purchase that new truck and looking to add some factory auxiliary buttons to hook up some more lights or other optional equipment? The 9L7 Upfitter package here at 404 Parts will give you everything you wanted! The best part, it's all OEM! Simple installation and hook up. Follow all the steps...

404parts.com

 

[8ball_99]

I know that on the Trail Boss you can literally just swap out the front driver panel with the one from the RST but I'm not so sure with ours and the redesign. There was a post on the Traill Boss forums where a guy made the swap and he gave pretty good instructions.

I know it was kind of a long post, but that's what I was posting about. I was able to use the upfitter switches in my ZR2 with some minor modifications. They work well though and I've been running them for a couple weeks.

 

[TXHC_6.2]

I know it was kind of a long post, but that's what I was posting about. I was able to use the upfitter switches in my ZR2 with some minor modifications. They work well though and I've been running them for a couple weeks.

Brother!! i have been on this idea since i first bought the truck, like where are the new refresh interiors supposed to put upfitter switches? your post now gives me a ton of hope. How did you get that center panel off to cut the hole fore the switches? or did you just cut with it still installed? where do the switch connections actually end up at with the kit? if you have an instagram id love to send a follow, I have a refresh high country but im a tinker'r and i know alot of the ZR2 community loves to do mods. TXHC_6.2 on instagram.

 

[8ball_99]

NP. So to get that panel off is actually really easy. First time it might seem hard, once you do it once though it's no big deal. You start by taking the drivers side fuse panel cover off. On each side of the center console those trim pieces just pop off and are held with clips. They sort of hook into the dash in the front. So once lose you lift them up from the back. That piece of the dash with the switches has one or two 7mm bolts under the steering wheel and the rest is just held on with clips. When you remove the fuse panel you can see the bolts.

I'm horrible with taking pictures when I do stuff lol. I just don't think about it. I've been trying to post when I figure something out on this truck, because there just isn't any info out there on the refreshed trucks.

 

[TXHC_6.2]

NP. So to get that panel off is actually really easy. First time it might seem hard, once you do it once though it's no big deal. You start by taking the drivers side fuse panel cover off. On each side of the center console those trim pieces just pop off and are held with clips. They sort of hook into the dash in the front. So once lose you lift them up from the back. That piece of the dash with the switches has one or two 7mm bolts under the steering wheel and the rest is just held on with clips. When you remove the fuse panel you can see the bolts.

I'm horrible with taking pictures when I do stuff lol. I just don't think about it. I've been trying to post when I figure something out on this truck, because there just isn't any info out there on the refreshed trucks.

View attachment 1162

Awesome Man! I really appreciate it.

 

[8ball_99]

Oh and the connections for the switches are wire leads coming from the fuse panel that mounts under the dash. What I did was add wires to them and I ran them all out and under the hood over by the battery while I was running the harness that came with the upfitter switches. I guess it depends on what your using the switches for. I needed the connections under the hood for a couple of things, so I just ran a wire for each switch to a location under the hood. Then I taped up those wires and the upfitter harness wire under the hood together.

If you look at the picture below. The wires circled in red are the wires I added from each switch in the cab.

 

[TXHC_6.2]

Oh and the connections for the switches are wire leads coming from the fuse panel that mounts under the dash. What I did was add wires to them and I ran them all out and under the hood over by the battery while I was running the harness that came with the upfitter switches. I guess it depends on what your using the switches for. I needed the connections under the hood for a couple of things, so I just ran a wire for each switch to a location under the hood. Then I taped up those wires and the upfitter harness wire under the hood together.

If you look at the picture below. The wires circled in red are the wires I added from each switch in the cab.
View attachment 1163

Very nice! Definitely going to be doing this now

 

[Stigg]

I spoke with 404 parts a couple of weeks ago and they are working on a panel with the Upfitter switches that is a LOT easier than the panel for previous models. I’m waiting for something that is made for the ZR2.

 

[8ball_99]

I spoke with 404 parts a couple of weeks ago and they are working on a panel with the Upfitter switches that is a LOT easier than the panel for previous models. I’m waiting for something that is made for the ZR2.

The problem is the panel the upfitter switches originally used is now the fuse panel in the refreshed models. You also can't go to the right side of the steering wheel because the dash is solid there underneath the trim. There really isn't any where else on the dash to mount the switches except in the center below the screen where I put them. I guess they could sell that panel prefitted for the switches. But really that just saves you from cutting the hole in the plastic. You could also mount the switches in the headliner infront of the cab lights like Ford does. But that would require running the harness up the apiller and cutting the headliner.

 

[ODAVE]

Upfitter switches! So, I figured I'd share just in case anyone was looking to add these to your ZR2. Gm doesn't offer any upfitter switches for the refresh. I needed to add some switches and really wanted the factory look of the upfitters. Slapping a generic toggle or rocker on this new fancy dash didn't seem right. I also really wanted the fuse block kit that comes with the kit as well as the terminals for the battery box under the hood.

So I figured I'd take a gamble and give it a try. Found a relatively cheap kit on ebay. Wrong color which doesn't matter cause the dash panel diffenitly wasn't going to work on a ZR2. The kit was around 200.

The wiring is almost plug in play. All the components plug in and bolt up just like the previous years minus the dash panel of course. The one hick up on the wiring is the ignition wire and the back lighting wire are missing from the 14 pin plug under the dash. Same connector, just is missing those pins. Pin 3 (yellow wire) is back lighting and pin 13 (violet) is ignition wire.

All I did to resolve that was run an ignition wire over to the harness and clip it into both those wires on the upfitter harness. The other issue is mounting location for the switches themselves. I ended up adding some length to the switch harness and mounting my switches in the center console under the climate controls. That just seemed to be the best spot where it fit and I only had to cut into a single trim piece.

It's diffenitly not just plug and play, but it's not to hard. Love the fact the switches match the factory look. I also how clean it makes the connections under the hood in the battery box. The 4ga wire there where the plow connection would be is for my on-board air compressor. HTH!

Hey 8BALL- is the switch bezel angled, thicker on one side then the other? Or is it just the picture?

 

[8ball_99]

Hey 8BALL- is the switch bezel angled, thicker on one side then the other? Or is it just the picture?

View attachment 1169

It is a little. It actually works out OK since it angles the switch towards the driver slightly. I'm not sure if there are any other options for the switch trim. I would have preferred just a straight bezel. I thought about digging through gm parts and seeing if there are any others.

 

[polarisnchevy]

Upfitter switches! So, I figured I'd share just in case anyone was looking to add these to your ZR2. Gm doesn't offer any upfitter switches for the refresh. I needed to add some switches and really wanted the factory look of the upfitters. Slapping a generic toggle or rocker on this new fancy dash didn't seem right. I also really wanted the fuse block kit that comes with the kit as well as the terminals for the battery box under the hood.

So I figured I'd take a gamble and give it a try. Found a relatively cheap kit on ebay. Wrong color which doesn't matter cause the dash panel diffenitly wasn't going to work on a ZR2. The kit was around 200.

The wiring is almost plug in play. All the components plug in and bolt up just like the previous years minus the dash panel of course. The one hick up on the wiring is the ignition wire and the back lighting wire are missing from the 14 pin plug under the dash. Same connector, just is missing those pins. Pin 3 (yellow wire) is back lighting and pin 13 (violet) is ignition wire.

All I did to resolve that was run an ignition wire over to the harness and clip it into both those wires on the upfitter harness. The other issue is mounting location for the switches themselves. I ended up adding some length to the switch harness and mounting my switches in the center console under the climate controls. That just seemed to be the best spot where it fit and I only had to cut into a single trim piece.

It's diffenitly not just plug and play, but it's not to hard. Love the fact the switches match the factory look. I also how clean it makes the connections under the hood in the battery box. The 4ga wire there where the plow connection would be is for my on-board air compressor. HTH!

Where/how did you get the ignition wire, any pictures? I have a refreshed trailboss I a, looking to do the same setup as soon as I can find a good deal on kit. Thanks in advance.

 

[8ball_99]

Where/how did you get the ignition wire, any pictures? I have a refreshed trailboss I a, looking to do the same setup as soon as I can find a good deal on kit. Thanks in advance.

Check ebay. The kits are around 160ish for brown and 190ish for black.
As for the ignition wire, I pulled it from the fuse in the passenger side fuse panel marked USB. I just used a fuse tap. All the ignition wire does is trigger a relay in the upfitter fuse block. Everything on the switches is powered by that main power wire included in the kit. Everything has worked well and I use the switches all the time. Still very happy with the setup. Everyone who has looked in the truck thought they were factory. I have a buddy who has a Trailboss and when he checked out my truck, first thing he said is I wish mine would have came with accessory switches like that. Lol

 

[polarisnchevy]

Thanks for quick reply.

how did you connect the ignition wire to the Upfitter harness? Any picture of fuse box? For extending the switch wires I assume you just cut and spliced additional wire for length?

 

[8ball_99]

Thanks for quick reply.

how did you connect the ignition wire to the Upfitter harness? Any picture of fuse box? For extending the switch wires I assume you just cut and spliced additional wire for length?

Np, Mother n Law is in town so I'm sitting my my shop watching TV and playing on my tablet lol.

I just used scotch locks and clipped into the wire on the upfitter side of the harness. I also used another scotch lock to tie those two wires together on the harness. Yellow wire and the violet, which are pin 3 and 13 on the upfitter harness. I mean you could also cut them and just use a butt connector if you wanted. It's the upitter side of the harness so you aren't messing with the trucks wiring at all.

And yeah to extend the wires for the switch I just cut them one at a time and added a length of wire to each one. I think I added about 20" or so of 18awg wire, but I don't remember. I just held one wire in place got a rough measurement and then cut all the others the same length. I soldered and heat shrinked them. But again you could just use butt connectors there too. Not that it matters cause you can't see any of the wiring. I just wanted it to look good. I also rewrapped the wires in tesa tape after I extended them. Basically looks like it was just made that way from the factory.

The picture above of the box with wires on the tailgate are of the fuse block. I don't think I took any others of it. I can take one of it mounted in the truck though if you want?

 

[polarisnchevy]

If you could take a pic that would be great! Would be curious how the fuse Tap is routed too with pic. I think I am going to spend some money… Christmas present to me I guess.

 

[8ball_99]

So I actually miss spoke. Sorry, I used a fuse tap for my dash camera. I actually clipped into a ignition wire under the trim off the passenger side door. I completely forgot I was working on my kicker sub and it clips in there. I pulled my ignition wire from there because I was already in the wire harness and I didn't have a fuse tap on hand. Unfortunately I don't think I have a picture of it. BUT what I said is correct still and is easier. Just plug a fuse tap into the USB fuse and run the wire under the dash over to the driver's side. That's what I had planned on doing but I didn't have a fuse tap so I scotch locked directly into the wire.

Here is what the upfitter fuse block looks like installed with and with out the cover. It mounts with two bolts that are supplied in the kit. They just screw into existing places in the dash.

 

[polarisnchevy]

Thanks! Will the switches only with truck on or accessories power on Where they time off after the 10 min? I am looking to wire emergency lights into the switch so would need to when truck is off.

 

[8ball_99]

Thanks! Will the switches only with truck on or accessories power on Where they time off after the 10 min? I am looking to wire emergency lights into the switch so would need to when truck is off.

So they are actually really cool in this aspect. They can do either. They have a couple fuses that you can move. Mine are setup so switch 1 and 2 have power all the time and 3 and 4 only have power when the key is on. You simply move the fuses over to change if they are hot all the time or on keyed power. But you can't just do one switch. It does two at a time. Switch 5 doesn't work this way and is supposed to power a wire behind the third brake light for a sport bar, ect. I'm not 100% on that one because I haven't messed with it.