Interior led conversion
Instructor
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 214
From: Ontario, Canada
Looks good. A few years ago, I replaced my under-mirror lights and trunk lights with the highest lumen LEDs I could find at the time. They are significantly brighter than the stock bulbs and I highly recommend everyone doing this - no reason not to.
I don't like the idea of having LEDs for interior bulbs, as their blue-white spectrum interferes with night vision and just looks harsh. I find incandescents better for preserving night vision and the fade-out is smoother. Same reasons for using the app called F.lux on PCs and cell phones.
Toyota/Lexus was smart in using orange-red all around the interior - red is used in many illumination applications requiring night vision. BMW interior lighting is all red. Some companies like Hyundai use blue and white interior lighting, but I suspect this is based purely on aesthetics or just to be different, as opposed to be being based in science.
The lights inside the headlamps and taillamps assemblies can NOT be replaced with LEDs without causing the computer to think there is a headlight failure. There is a thread here on how to disable that detection circuit by changing a few surface-mounted resistors inside the ECU located inside the trunk on the driver side. I haven't gotten around to trying that yet..
I don't like the idea of having LEDs for interior bulbs, as their blue-white spectrum interferes with night vision and just looks harsh. I find incandescents better for preserving night vision and the fade-out is smoother. Same reasons for using the app called F.lux on PCs and cell phones.
Toyota/Lexus was smart in using orange-red all around the interior - red is used in many illumination applications requiring night vision. BMW interior lighting is all red. Some companies like Hyundai use blue and white interior lighting, but I suspect this is based purely on aesthetics or just to be different, as opposed to be being based in science.
The lights inside the headlamps and taillamps assemblies can NOT be replaced with LEDs without causing the computer to think there is a headlight failure. There is a thread here on how to disable that detection circuit by changing a few surface-mounted resistors inside the ECU located inside the trunk on the driver side. I haven't gotten around to trying that yet..
Looks good. A few years ago, I replaced my under-mirror lights and trunk lights with the highest lumen LEDs I could find at the time. They are significantly brighter than the stock bulbs and I highly recommend everyone doing this - no reason not to.
I don't like the idea of having LEDs for interior bulbs, as their blue-white spectrum interferes with night vision and just looks harsh. I find incandescents better for preserving night vision and the fade-out is smoother. Same reasons for using the app called F.lux on PCs and cell phones.
Toyota/Lexus was smart in using orange-red all around the interior - red is used in many illumination applications requiring night vision. BMW interior lighting is all red. Some companies like Hyundai use blue and white interior lighting, but I suspect this is based purely on aesthetics or just to be different, as opposed to be being based in science.
The lights inside the headlamps and taillamps assemblies can NOT be replaced with LEDs without causing the computer to think there is a headlight failure. There is a thread here on how to disable that detection circuit by changing a few surface-mounted resistors inside the ECU located inside the trunk on the driver side. I haven't gotten around to trying that yet..
I don't like the idea of having LEDs for interior bulbs, as their blue-white spectrum interferes with night vision and just looks harsh. I find incandescents better for preserving night vision and the fade-out is smoother. Same reasons for using the app called F.lux on PCs and cell phones.
Toyota/Lexus was smart in using orange-red all around the interior - red is used in many illumination applications requiring night vision. BMW interior lighting is all red. Some companies like Hyundai use blue and white interior lighting, but I suspect this is based purely on aesthetics or just to be different, as opposed to be being based in science.
The lights inside the headlamps and taillamps assemblies can NOT be replaced with LEDs without causing the computer to think there is a headlight failure. There is a thread here on how to disable that detection circuit by changing a few surface-mounted resistors inside the ECU located inside the trunk on the driver side. I haven't gotten around to trying that yet..
I have a 2005 so my taillights are all ready led's. I love the stock hid's I have no desire to change them to led's. Hid's project light farther then led's anyways the only thing I would do to my headlights is change the bulb to 5500k so it matches my fog light bulbs.
Last edited by 05ls430518; Dec 4, 2017 at 08:14 PM.
Intermediate
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 354
Likes: 46
From: North Carolina
yep - great upgrade, pretty cheap too. Here are a couple things I recall.
Buy nylon interior tool kit on amazon - about $13? saves you from scrapes and scratches.
There are youtubes - but for sure do the under rearview mirrors on the exterior. Also the lights at the bottom of the doors had a trick - the online vid shows you the correct way to pop them open :-)
I had a 'bad' LED and every time my son popped on a rear map light a fuse would pop that ran the front clock display. So be sure to flip each light on and off just to check nothing on the dash shuts off.
Buy nylon interior tool kit on amazon - about $13? saves you from scrapes and scratches.
There are youtubes - but for sure do the under rearview mirrors on the exterior. Also the lights at the bottom of the doors had a trick - the online vid shows you the correct way to pop them open :-)
I had a 'bad' LED and every time my son popped on a rear map light a fuse would pop that ran the front clock display. So be sure to flip each light on and off just to check nothing on the dash shuts off.
yep - great upgrade, pretty cheap too. Here are a couple things I recall.
Buy nylon interior tool kit on amazon - about $13? saves you from scrapes and scratches.
There are youtubes - but for sure do the under rearview mirrors on the exterior. Also the lights at the bottom of the doors had a trick - the online vid shows you the correct way to pop them open :-)
I had a 'bad' LED and every time my son popped on a rear map light a fuse would pop that ran the front clock display. So be sure to flip each light on and off just to check nothing on the dash shuts off.
Buy nylon interior tool kit on amazon - about $13? saves you from scrapes and scratches.
There are youtubes - but for sure do the under rearview mirrors on the exterior. Also the lights at the bottom of the doors had a trick - the online vid shows you the correct way to pop them open :-)
I had a 'bad' LED and every time my son popped on a rear map light a fuse would pop that ran the front clock display. So be sure to flip each light on and off just to check nothing on the dash shuts off.
Trending Topics
Pit Crew
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 205
Likes: 36
From: WA
Ash tray light
So are there lights in the ash tray as well as the little compartment under the CD access? And how hard to replace the gearshift indicator lights? The ones on the counsel. 2004 ls430 up.
And one more,, does the glove box light work with key off? I would think it would.
And one more,, does the glove box light work with key off? I would think it would.
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