LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

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ARCHINSTL
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LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by ARCHINSTL »

So, my aging eyes got tired of the 3 candlepower (OK - 10 watt) individual output of the OE bulbs - actually the OE rear bulb is only supposed to be 5W (!).
I got a 12-LED sticky from AutoZone for the front and liked it so much I moved it to the rear and got a 20-LED sticky for the front fixture.
Talk about a difference! See the pix!
Costs - not cheap - the 12- LED was $15 and the 20-LED was $18. I'd imagine most stores would have similar prices; I will add that I did check Radio Shack and Harbor Freight but found nada.

As per the first pix of the 12-LED initial installation in the front dome light, the packs come with 4 cartridges of varying sizes, one of which will replace the OE bulb. This is then attached to the lead of the adhesive-backed LED strip which in turn is stuck to to the dome unit. Installing the cartridge especially in the front light is REALLY frustrating - not because of the cartridge, but because of the lack of room.

Another item that is awkward is that the OE bulb is pointed on the ends to fit into small holes in the unit's contacts and the replacement cartridge has "domed" ends. This was not too bad in itself for the front, but I had to remove the rear unit and painstakingly enlarge the clips' holes with a very skinny rattail file (do NOT use a drill! Perhaps a Dremel with its bit or emery cone will work, but NOT a regular electric drill - it will twist the metal clip!). The little screws on the rear lens only hold it to the unit; the unit itself just pops out.

All in all, eminently worth it - check out the photos.
Tom M.

> Left-click to enlarge <
> Sorry I did not get a full-on side view before the LED installation - but you get the message. <
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by danzo »

Good to know these exist, thanks for the tip Tom. Did you really take those pics at O' Dark Early? Awhile back I bought a one LED bulb shaped like the OEM but it didn't put out much more light. It cost 10 bucks, so this $15-18 action is not too pricey. Maybe I'll hit up Harbor Fright today, as they typically carry brands like Type S, which I suppose means they are racing vehicles only. Hopefully I won't arouse suspicion and get blacklisted.
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by Petros »

That is really slick, might even be worth the price just to keep from melting the cover. I had thought of another thing that may help, paint the inside of the light assembly white or silver to reflect more of the light downward.
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by dlb »

i love this. i'll look into it for ron.
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by ARCHINSTL »

That's a good idea, Petros.
If those dang lenses were transparent instead of being translucent, that would help a lot, too, but...
Although on the painting - with the LED, all of the light is pretty projected in a straight line (at least initially). The fixture's lens does the diffusion. But Heck - it sure can't hurt!
Tom M.
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by dlb »

you know, while i can't argue with your photos tom, i wanted to say that i just tried this today with the same brand (type s) of LEDs and found that even with 20 LED pack, it was only as bright as with the OE bulb. needless to say, i was shocked! the light in my wife's truck was really dull so i thought i'd use the LEDs there but i found that the bulb and cover were just really dirty and brightened up considerably after cleaning so my LED's are going back, i'm afraid!
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by ARCHINSTL »

Well, your result with the 20-count LED really shocks :wink: and surprises me!
From curiosity, I also had spliced one of the cute little 12V "test" batteries to one of the 10W OE style bulbs and got the same dim result as when installed in the fixture - so I'm positive it was not because of too few electrons traveling along the OE wiring. Note also that these 10W bulbs were only 3+ years old and not the 23-year old ones I'd tossed back then.
Sure wish I'd taken a pix of my experiment - sure wish I hadn't tossed the 12V batteries.
Does Canada have restrictions on the amount of death-dealing rays emitted by LEDs?
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by dlb »

not sure about death dealing rays but almost every kind of light--flashlights, headlamps, keychain lights, etc--is now available in LED. i noticed a warning on the Type S package that said the product contained lead and to wash your hands afterward. at first i was a little alarmed. then i remembered that virtually everything around us is known to cause cancer in some degree or another. whatevs.
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by ARCHINSTL »

Ooops!
I washed my hands, but not after licking the package.
Gee, China is generous to us motorheads, too; it does not confine lead content to childrens toys...
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by HomeSkool »

This is really cool. I'm going to try to find a similar product here in Canada and get to it asap. I can't stand the old yellow bulbs.
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by dlb »

HS, you can actually get the type S brand that tom used at canadian tire. it's in the automotive accessories section, near the stereos.
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by HomeSkool »

Type S brand you say? Thanks dlb! Next time I am close to Canadian tire I'll get some asap. A+
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by 4doorVIP »

Walmart also has the same things in their rice department
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by dlb »

uh oh, you don't want to start the wal-mart debate around here...
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Re: LED Dome Light Replacement For OE Incandescent Bulbs

Post by SynthDesign »

Petros wrote:That is really slick, might even be worth the price just to keep from melting the cover. I had thought of another thing that may help, paint the inside of the light assembly white or silver to reflect more of the light downward.
You know it's cool when even Petros is throwin down slang!
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