05ls430518

iTrader: (1)

Sorry for the crappy angles and dryer sheets the car is in storage for the winter time

StanVanDam

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..

05ls430518

iTrader: (1)

Thanks man appreciate it, and I agree those are just like the courtesy lights map lights etc, the most scary/hardest part was doing the mirror puddle bulbs, i was so afraid of breaking them and having to buy a $300 mirror all for a 12 cent bulb haha. I was looking into changing the center console bulbs with red like audi does so it's not as harsh on the eyes like you mentioned above. I honestly don't know yet it's still up in the air.
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.

biacs

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.

05ls430518

iTrader: (1)

I used to do sound system installs when I was in highschool/college so I have all the tools. The led's were the one of first mods I did. I did them I think like 8 months ago, like I said up above the hardest part was the puddle lights on the mirrors it's super nerve racking lol

LatinLS430

iTrader: (1)

Looks good! Where did you get the LED from?

05ls430518

iTrader: (1)

Thanks man and
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00TFZ7UGS/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That had almost all the bulbs was just short the two bulbs to do the mirror puddle lights I think they are t10's

Hagar

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.