LED switchbacks.
08-06-2012, 02:52 PM
#1
LED switchbacks. I love the look of them but one of them is acting up. Driver's side is flickering like it's on fast strobe almost.
It's blinking fine, switches from amber to white when parking light is on and when just the DRL on, it switches off and on.
It only happens when it's on steady ie DRL.
Housing is tight and nothing is loose.
Any ideas?
I've looked into google and it seems normal but I didn't see/read any fix.
It's blinking fine, switches from amber to white when parking light is on and when just the DRL on, it switches off and on.
It only happens when it's on steady ie DRL.
Housing is tight and nothing is loose.
Any ideas?
I've looked into google and it seems normal but I didn't see/read any fix.
08-06-2012, 02:57 PM
#2
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do you have them front and back? either way LED's use way less voltage then a stock bulb so your car thinks its a "burnt out bulb" which in case causes a fast blink. you need load resistors in your turn signal harnesses. front and rear. that converts the regular car voltage into enough power to compensate for the LED's. correct me if i wrong people!
08-06-2012, 03:00 PM
#3
do you have them front and back? either way LED's use way less voltage then a stock bulb so your car thinks its a "burnt out bulb" which in case causes a fast blink. you need load resistors in your turn signal harnesses. front and rear. that converts the regular car voltage into enough power to compensate for the LED's. correct me if i wrong people!
08-06-2012, 04:29 PM
#6
216StealthSS has a very good question... are they made for DRL use? Just because they are a 3157 type replacement bulb doesn't mean they are compatible with DRL use. For example, v-leds.com specifically denies warranty for DRL use because their bulbs can't handle the heat of long term usage. I've had them start doing weird things after the heat damages the internal circuitry... such as flickering or randomly turning off one row or another of the LEDs.
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08-08-2012, 02:16 PM
#14
Unless you drive around with your foot on the brake all the time, your brake lights are not on for extended periods. 
The 3157 LED bulbs work like dual filament incandescent bulbs - they have a dim "filament" and a bright "filament". The tail lights are dim and only produce the equivalent of a 3 watt bulb so they don't generate much heat. On the other hand, the bright side (brake lights and DRLs) produces the equivalent of a 40 watt bulb which can generate more heat than the circuit board can handle.
The thing about LEDs is that they produce very little external heat (unlike a normal bulb) but they produce quite a bit of heat on the back side where they connect to the circuit board. So it's the circuitry that gets damaged rather than the LED itself. That's why you get weird symptoms like flickering.
The 3157 LED bulbs work like dual filament incandescent bulbs - they have a dim "filament" and a bright "filament". The tail lights are dim and only produce the equivalent of a 3 watt bulb so they don't generate much heat. On the other hand, the bright side (brake lights and DRLs) produces the equivalent of a 40 watt bulb which can generate more heat than the circuit board can handle.
The thing about LEDs is that they produce very little external heat (unlike a normal bulb) but they produce quite a bit of heat on the back side where they connect to the circuit board. So it's the circuitry that gets damaged rather than the LED itself. That's why you get weird symptoms like flickering.
08-08-2012, 02:26 PM
#15
Unless you drive around with your foot on the brake all the time, your brake lights are not on for extended periods.
The 3157 LED bulbs work like dual filament incandescent bulbs - they have a dim "filament" and a bright "filament". The tail lights are dim and only produce the equivalent of a 3 watt bulb so they don't generate much heat. On the other hand, the bright side (brake lights and DRLs) produces the equivalent of a 40 watt bulb which can generate more heat than the circuit board can handle.
The thing about LEDs is that they produce very little external heat (unlike a normal bulb) but they produce quite a bit of heat on the back side where they connect to the circuit board. So it's the circuitry that gets damaged rather than the LED itself. That's why you get weird symptoms like flickering.
The 3157 LED bulbs work like dual filament incandescent bulbs - they have a dim "filament" and a bright "filament". The tail lights are dim and only produce the equivalent of a 3 watt bulb so they don't generate much heat. On the other hand, the bright side (brake lights and DRLs) produces the equivalent of a 40 watt bulb which can generate more heat than the circuit board can handle.
The thing about LEDs is that they produce very little external heat (unlike a normal bulb) but they produce quite a bit of heat on the back side where they connect to the circuit board. So it's the circuitry that gets damaged rather than the LED itself. That's why you get weird symptoms like flickering.
08-08-2012, 02:37 PM
#16
You guys might be on to something. If these LED switchbacks aren't made for DRLs wouldn't both of my LEDs flicker?
Only one side of mine does the flickering, the driver side. With both getting equal wattage, both should get the flickering effect.
Only one side of mine does the flickering, the driver side. With both getting equal wattage, both should get the flickering effect.
08-08-2012, 03:41 PM
#17
Not necessarily... at least not yet. The effect of heat can be quite different on individual bulbs so you may not see the other side flicker for a while (or possibly ever).
The easy way to confirm is to swap the bulbs side to side and see if the problem switches sides.
The easy way to confirm is to swap the bulbs side to side and see if the problem switches sides.
08-08-2012, 03:46 PM
#18
Not necessarily... at least not yet. The effect of heat can be quite different on individual bulbs so you may not see the other side flicker for a while (or possibly ever).
The easy way to confirm is to swap the bulbs side to side and see if the problem switches sides.
The easy way to confirm is to swap the bulbs side to side and see if the problem switches sides.
08-25-2012, 04:24 AM
#19
Just for an update. It's not DRLs causing the LEDs to flicker at least not on mine. Upon further observation, my DRL housing socket for the LED has given up the ghost. I have to buy a new one from Autozone to replace it as it doesn't firmly hold the LED 3157 light in it to get good contact on power.
FWIW, the LEDs were cool to touch even when it was on for minutes to an hour.
