GearHead69

Hi All,

Well it didn't take long for me to start doing some mods to my RC. I was in awe of all the LED lighting that car has with the exception of the door courtesy lights & footwell lights, which is still incandescent.

I found in the owner's manual that both sets of lights take the same bulb, #194 . Luckily I had a bunch of LED "T10 5-smd (surface mount device) 5050 LED White Lights Bulbs for 194 168 W5w" left over when I installed these into my 65 Mustang Fastback custom.

I popped out the covers of each, very easy to do, and put in the new LED white bulbs. It gives a much cleaner look, IMO, than seeing yellow light from the incandescent bulbs, and is much more in tune with what Lexus has done with this car for technology.

Peter

unc879wins

n00b here. Is this what you're talking about as far as the replacements?

GearHead69

Yep, just like those.

You can find them where the shipping is free.

dchar

That's kind of weird of Lexus to install those dim incandescent bulbs on the footwell and door lights on their newest (definitely not cheapest) model. Here in the GS, those are LEDs from the factory. Do the footwell and upper door trim ambient lighting dim a lot when putting the car out of park too?

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

I'm surprised Toyota didn't use the blue tint filament bulbs in the doors like the GS.The blue tint bulbs burned white but were dull too me.I replaced them with VLEDS 4 LED flanks.
Toyota should start going with LEDs with all bulbs in Lexus models..

GearHead69

The footwell lights go out when the rest of the interior lights go out after the door is closed. The ambient lighting only goes on when the key is present. They are brighter when in park, and when shifted to anything else they dim about 30% regardless of whether or not the lights are on.

tfischer

I replaced the lights in the doors and the one in the trunk in order to get more illumination, but I left the footwell lights alone, as the dimmer lights with the orange color is quite nice for that application, as I am not usually rummaging around in the footwell for anything. This works well, and is an easy upgrade. I like the lights on the car ceiling and in the door handles - nice touch.

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

these lights are better than just an bulb swap for the lens in the doors

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lexus-IS-ES-GS-LS-RX-GX-LX-LFA-Footwell-Courtesy-Step-Door-LED-Light-Replacement-/311224676182?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&fits=Make%3ALexus&hash=item48766faf56&vxp=mtr

GearHead69

What's the bulb number for the one in the trunk as I couldn't find it in the manual?

GearHead69

Those are pretty sweet, and thanks for sharing.

tfischer

I don't know what the bulb numbers are, as I found from my last two cars that the bulb number is unnecessary information. I take out the bulb to see what the base is, then get a measurement of the bulb and the room available in the housing. Then go to one of the excellent sites that sells LED bulbs and get the size with the color you want, the base you need, and usually the largest one that will fit. In the RC, for example, the bulb in the trunk is the same as the bulbs in the bottom of the doors, but you can put a larger one (and get more illumination) in the trunk. Thus, you will buy 2 of one size for the doors and another, larger one, for the trunk. (This works out nicely for use, as you really want lots of light in the trunk.) This method is more time consuming, but you get the best results and you don't have to return and replace LED lamps that won't fit.
As noted above, I left the footwell lights alone as the existing dim yellowish lights are all you need to find a place to put your feet. Nobody is going to be doing surgery down there.

GearHead69

Thanks for the info. I will start looking for the right 194 bulb as the trunk is not a bright as it really should be. I'm not doing surgery by my feet either, but I do occasionally drop things down there and it will be easier for me to find them. I'm not as young as I used to be.

Fishman350

Just contacted this seller and they indicated that this part is NOT compatible with our RC350's. Just FYI. There may be a compatible part like this, but not from this seller.

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

that door lens looks exactly the same as the other cars I've seen them in

chaos6458

iTrader: (1)

n00b here, may I ask where you bought your bulbs?
thanks!