How to modify front indicator for led's

[mantianak]

If you've tried fitting led indicators to the front you may have noticed they don't work. This is because the +/- are swapped on the front to how they are on the rear indicator holders. So to make it work the wires need to be swapped but rather than cutting wires the bulb hold clip can be cut/filed to allow the connector to go into the wrong way around.

Cut to two plastic guides. Simple.


Before doing it's worth testing the led indicator on the rear to ensure it canbus friendly first. Most led's will not work, only those with correct resistance will.

[Dragrad]

Good tip

Copies to here with link back

[NOCTURNAL]

I'm going round and round in circles

[Plezier]

Ahhhhh I have been thinking of getting LED's in a lot of my lights.

So the LED ones work OK in the rear tis just the front which is backwards?

Bulbs need replacing on TGB as they are dim, burnt or orange is flaking off when I feel up to wrestling with the side lamps again I have some canbus LED's to go in them to replace the non canbus ones I got first time .

Replaced the number plate lights with LED's already but got ordinary orange tinted bulbs to replace the rear indicators as they were almost white and had to replace two of the 21w rear bulbs as they had gone................. Am wondering if they were the originals?

[suzublu]

If you put led's in your indicators,you will need resistors as well to stop them flashing too quick, & to cancel the bulb out warning on the dash.I have led indicators front & back,led sidelights,foglights,brakelights,rear fogs,reversing lights,all interior lights,& ambient interior

[NOCTURNAL]

Originally Posted by suzublu

If you put led's in your indicators,you will need resistors as well to stop them flashing too quick, & to cancel the bulb out warning on the dash.I have led indicators front & back,led sidelights,foglights,brakelights,rear fogs,reversing lights,all interior lights,& ambient interior

Carls Leds for indicators have the canbus proof led resistors built in though, and thats where this thread spawned from..

ionly highlighted this one as I came here for the 'live' thread on how to modify the fronts.... but it was the same as the original technical thread....

dosen't matter as I have seen enough on how to do it

[Plezier]

Well my aim is to get red LED's for the rear and brake lights and orange for the indicators eventually.

The front fogs look very yellow now so really require new bulbs the question is which type :-



As you can see .

However a set of Osram Night Breakers for the front head lights is more important and will be bought first as the "Blue" hued lights that are fitted and were in it when I bought the car are bright but very poor performers on the road. OK in town but pretty useless out here with no street lights.

The side lights were also very yellow and the bulbs when removed quite blackened with age:-



The current LED's flicker which is why I have now acquired canbus friendly ones to fit. This is just ongoing work to bring the car up to scratch .

[T-Cut]

Is the indicator flasher system based on the old heated bi-metal leaf switch or a different system? If so, it seems to me that fitting resistors in parallel with flasher LEDs consumes just as much energy as is used by ordinary hot filament bulbs. Maybe I'm wrong, but don't the flasher LED resistors get damned hot?

TC

[Steve916]

Originally Posted by T-Cut

Is the indicator flasher system based on the old heated bi-metal leaf switch or a different system? If so, it seems to me that fitting resistors in parallel with flasher LEDs consumes just as much energy as is used by ordinary hot filament bulbs. Maybe I'm wrong, but don't the flasher LED resistors get damned hot?

TC

My thoughts exactly, but I think people change to led for the different light effect, not for any energy saving purposes

[T-Cut]

So do LED indicators require a 20-odd watt resistor per lamp to drive the flasher unit?

This has nothing to do with being so-called CANbus friendly.

TC