interior LED light mod question...
Thread Starter
TECH Apprentice
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 343
Likes: 1
From: Erin, TN
interior LED light mod question... I put blue LED lights in my instrument cluster and recently had to remove them because my tach needle wouldn't illuminate. Also the brightness contrasted from side to side (one side of the speedo was nice and bright while the other side was dim). Does anyone have any suggestions, or has anyone done this mod themselves and had a similar problem and fixed it?
Swap the lights around to see if the dim area follows a given bulb. Leds are connection directional - + has to be + and neg has to be neg. Could be you hooked up a led wrong.
Also happens connections get dirty or loose, clean em up.
Also happens connections get dirty or loose, clean em up.
Copy & Paste Moderator
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 9,764
Likes: 208
From: Eastern MA
Originally Posted by camaro_five0
well the LEDs are just plug-and-play. they are already 12v with the resistors built into them and they are polarized so it doesn't matter which direction you plug them in.
Originally Posted by VIP1
Polarised means that it does matter which way you plug it in (ex: a polarised plug only fits one way). Have you tested and confirmed that all the LED units work? Also, the cluster was desigened for the spread pattern of incandescent bulbs so I am not surprised that there are some bright/dim spots with LEDs (which are much more focused and directional).
+1 beat me to it
Just in case it isn't clear enough for you, the leds should have a little resistor which you can see if you look in from the top. That resistor should be in the same direction (could be towards up or towards down) when you lock the bulbs in the cluster.
- Make sure the bulbs are uniformly installed, and you should have either all working, or all dead.
- If only some are working, then the next candidate is a bad bulb. Swap positions and see if the dead spot follows that bulb. If it does, bad bulb. If it doesn't then maybe bad contacts.
- The contacts on the ip cluster aren't the best. Clean them up or just try seating the bulb maybe 1mm from fully seated to get into a new contact area.
It is normal for there to be some uniformity problems with leds, particularly on the 1k range of the tach. However you shouldn't have half the speedo dark. If the above items don't work, then post a pic of what it looks like and people will chime in if it's normal or not.
- Make sure the bulbs are uniformly installed, and you should have either all working, or all dead.
- If only some are working, then the next candidate is a bad bulb. Swap positions and see if the dead spot follows that bulb. If it does, bad bulb. If it doesn't then maybe bad contacts.
- The contacts on the ip cluster aren't the best. Clean them up or just try seating the bulb maybe 1mm from fully seated to get into a new contact area.
It is normal for there to be some uniformity problems with leds, particularly on the 1k range of the tach. However you shouldn't have half the speedo dark. If the above items don't work, then post a pic of what it looks like and people will chime in if it's normal or not.
Staging Lane
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
From: Fairfax, VA
You should have just bought WLED-x5 LED Wedge Base Bulbs from superbrightleds.com
The size of the bulbs are 194's behind the cluster.. these leds have 5 mini leds that are projected in 5 different directions... so everything is illuminated
http://www.superbrightleds.com/mini-wedge.html
The size of the bulbs are 194's behind the cluster.. these leds have 5 mini leds that are projected in 5 different directions... so everything is illuminated
http://www.superbrightleds.com/mini-wedge.html
Trending Topics
TECH Resident
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 896
Likes: 0
From: Picatinny Arsenal, NJ
Originally Posted by OneFast97Z
You should have just bought WLED-x5 LED Wedge Base Bulbs from superbrightleds.com
The size of the bulbs are 194's behind the cluster.. these leds have 5 mini leds that are projected in 5 different directions... so everything is illuminated
http://www.superbrightleds.com/mini-wedge.html
The size of the bulbs are 194's behind the cluster.. these leds have 5 mini leds that are projected in 5 different directions... so everything is illuminated
http://www.superbrightleds.com/mini-wedge.html
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
Awesome K5 Blazer Restomod Comes With C7 Corvette Power
Verdad Gallardo
10 Camaros You Should Never Buy
