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Topic: LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car) (Read 17603 times) previous topic - next topic

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #30
Quote from: EricCoolCats;465796
Speaking of...turn signal demo, full LED conversion:

http://www.coolcats.net/ximages/84leds/84ts.mp4

Love it :D


This is the recording of mine with the webelecticproducts sequencer kit installed:

https://youtu.be/5lqxRJlsBpI

These were awful AutoZone LED bulbs that didn't have any back firing or side firing LEDs on them so they had a very spotted effect but still pretty cool... I was trying to go for that 2nd gen S197 look, it kinda worked...

I later turned off the brake light pulsing as that was pretty annoying.


For the glovebox light that keeps blowing out... Have you considered wiring in a resistor, the type that's sometimes put in line with taillights to keep them from hyperflashing?
--Steve
[thread=28690]1988 Cougar V6[/thread]
2012 F-150 3.7L
2011 Mustang 3.7L

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #31
Hey Steve, that looks pretty cool! I know what you mean about those bulbs...some of them just don't put out the right kind of light that our cars were designed for. It took me a LOT of time to find the right ones. But for what you did, it gets the effect done and the sequencing is killer.

Honestly I've not had time to mess with the glove box light. Thought about a resistor...but I'm still trying to figure out why the test light trips the fuse. Very odd indeed.

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #32
So are you going to post up which brand and part number of bulb you put where so we can avoid dropping coin on bulbs we cannot use?

83 351W TKO'd T-Bird on the bottle


93 331 Mustang Coupe - 368 rwhp

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #33
LOL Yeah, I still have to get some comparison photos, before/after kind of thing, plus the final versions in a photo shoot. Probably put those pix and the info on my site but will share here as well.

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #34
Quote from: EricCoolCats;465907
Thought about a resistor...but I'm still trying to figure out why the test light trips the fuse. Very odd indeed.

How big is the fuse? Maybe the test light is arcing ever so slightly when you make contact and the resulting flash causes the fuse to blow...?

I wired mine in after-the-fact after nabbing a j/y socket so I wouldn't have any experience with this...
--Steve
[thread=28690]1988 Cougar V6[/thread]
2012 F-150 3.7L
2011 Mustang 3.7L

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #35
It's a 15A fuse (#8) and everything is fine until the glove box is opened, then the fuse pops. I might have to do some testing of the resistance...this particular LED bulb might need an inline resistor to work properly. Nothing else in the car did. The fact that someone else confirmed the same thing happened to him means it's more or less a "factory" issue. Very odd indeed but maybe a resistor will fix it, who knows...

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #36
I replaced all of my interior bulbs with LED's and I haven't had any issues with the glove box light (as of yet).  I'll have to see if I can research what the bulb part number was.  I bought most of my bulbs here: https://www.superbrightleds.com/

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #37
The '86 has no problems with an LED glove box light either. It just seems to be 1983-84 models with the fuse popping issue. For the earlier cars it's a 168/194.

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #38
Quote from: Aerocoupe;465910
So are you going to post up which brand and part number of bulb you put where so we can avoid dropping coin on bulbs we cannot use?


Sooooooo are we going to find out the brand and possibly where to purchase those headlights?????? ��


86' T/C 4.6L DOHC
16' Chebby Cruze 1.4L Turbo
17’ Peterbilt 389 600hp 1850ftlb Trq 18spd

[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

“Heavy Metal Mistress”
[/COLOR][/SIZE]

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #39
At the same time that the '84 was getting upgraded...I also converted the '86.

Sneak peek:






Turn signals, front:
[video]http://www.coolcats.net/ximages/86leds/86turnsignal02.mp4[/video]


Turn signals, rear, with sequentials:
[video]http://www.coolcats.net/ximages/86leds/86turnsignal01.mp4[/video]


Hope to get some outside shots and videos soon for that. The LED conversion really woke this car up.



Quote
Sooooooo are we going to find out the brand and possibly where to purchase those headlights??????

Again, I'm compiling a list and will make it available here when it's ready.

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #40
On the glove box led blowing fuse 8:
I suspect the bulb socket is shorting. Maybe the led is a looser fit in the socket than the 1816 bulb. I'm thinking the led can rock side to side enough to allow the outside (ground) part of the led to touch the center contact in the socket.
Compare the contact ends of the led and the 1816 to see if the led ground is closer to the center, making it less tilt tolerant.
Since this was early enough in the change over from inches to metric maybe the parts suppliers were still using the 0.4" bayonet sockets.
The Ba9s base sockets are 1 cm (10mm) for the 9mm bulbs.
The power is "hot at all times", so you may be blowing the fuse while plugging in the led.
Try disconnecting the battery and make sure the led is in straight before reconnecting the battery.

If your bulb socket and switch are separate as shown in the 84 EVTM you could unplug C241 to do some OHM metering to see if or when the socket shorts out.

If the bulb socket and switch are one unit you probably have to take the unit out to make the OHM meter checks

Wish I still had my 84 so I could see what it looks like.  PS; was the original bulb an 1816?
Pic from the 84 EVTM:

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #41
Hrmmm....thanks for the info. There was a 168 or 194 in there from the factory. The bulb socket is indeed integrated into the lamp base. I have a spare lamp assembly that can be bench tested.

Bulb fitment is good and tight with either the stock or the LED bulb. The trick with most LED lights is that they only work one way. If they don't light up the first time, you flip them around 180 degrees and then they work. That does seem to have something to do with the location of the contact on the bulb itself. I never swap out bulbs with the battery connected. Each time the bulb has been replaced on my end, the battery was disconnected, and the glove box closed when reconnecting. As soon as I open the glove box, the fuse pops instantly.

I will say that there's a "third" set of bulb clips in the center, between the hot leads, whose only job seems to be keeping the bulb in place. I have tried both pushing those together (to make bulb fitment tighter), and bending them down (to take out the possibility of power arcing over), and it didn't seem to matter either way. I'll try to get some pix of everything this weekend so you can get a better visual.

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #42
Man I wish my car had a glove box light :hick:
88 Thunderbird LX: 306, Edelbrock Performer heads, Comp 266HR cam, Edelbrock Performer RPM intake, bunch of other stuff.

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #43
OK i'm really out in left field here. The 84 owner's manual I have calls for a 1816 bulb in the glove box. They do make a led that uses the same socket type as the 1816 bulb. If you  are visualizing a 168 type bulb, then my blabbering above makes no sense at all.
1816 bulb pic:

LED Bulb Conversion (Whole Car)

Reply #44
Mine's got a 168/194 type bulb. IIRC that similar glove box lamp was used in older 1970's Fords and those might have had the 1816 bulb. But mine definitely does not.

EDIT: Here's what the lamp looks like, just for reference, until I can get some pix:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.A0.H0.X1973+ford+galaxie+glove+box+light+lamp.TRS1.TSS0&_nkw=1973+ford+galaxie+glove+box+light+lamp&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_osacat=0&_odkw=73+ford+galaxie+glove+box+light+lamp