LED Tail Lights Teaser
#17
Pole Position
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Nightmare on Elm St.
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Cant wait to see the pics... I have one of my 97 tail lights out for the same retrofit. Except, I chose to work with red superflux leds b/c of their greater light intensity and viewing angle.
Unlike yours, I am working on a low profile board for the upper rear light, as well as the brake application.
Personally, it is way too much work involved for a partial led retrofit.
Maybe I will post-pone any plans now to see what you come up with
Unlike yours, I am working on a low profile board for the upper rear light, as well as the brake application.
Personally, it is way too much work involved for a partial led retrofit.
Maybe I will post-pone any plans now to see what you come up with
#18
Maintenance Moderator
iTrader: (2)
my question is this - how are you handling running light vs brake light...
in the stock setup, you've got a dual filament bulb, are you running two separate power supplies with different resistors, or just adding more led's to be on with application of the brake?
in the stock setup, you've got a dual filament bulb, are you running two separate power supplies with different resistors, or just adding more led's to be on with application of the brake?
#19
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lextoy: i am using red superflux LEDs, like OLT said, heat/time is the main problem, which is also a reason i did not do the running lights because those will have the greatest risk of problems.
mitsuguy: in the the 97+ tails, there are no dual filament bulbs, but i do know a work around for that as well. there is a flasher unit you can buy which dims the LEDs and then brighten thems.
mitsuguy: in the the 97+ tails, there are no dual filament bulbs, but i do know a work around for that as well. there is a flasher unit you can buy which dims the LEDs and then brighten thems.
#20
Pole Position
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CleanCL,
You are right about you using superflux led. I can barely make out the square outlines.
I am curious as to why you chose to go with RED leds for the turn signal application instead of AMBER leds?
Also how much prep have you done for the tails- in terms of total man-hours? 6 months is a long time to experiment...
You are right about you using superflux led. I can barely make out the square outlines.
I am curious as to why you chose to go with RED leds for the turn signal application instead of AMBER leds?
Also how much prep have you done for the tails- in terms of total man-hours? 6 months is a long time to experiment...
#21
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because i didnt like the yellow turn signal. i'm spraying the amber with a red coat as well.
well i basically wanted to do this right the first time... picked out LEDs, picked out different resistors, soldered a bunch of test boards, ran them high and low to see what it would be like with surges/drops. also had to decide how many LEDs would look appropriate and how to mount the boards. at first i actually started to cut up the housing, but decided to go a totally different route with layout/mounting. as it stands with my current set up, there is no physical modification to the tail light other than opening it up and coating the amber section red. i also decided to use 7440 sockets so they plug right in to the stock wire harness with no tapping/splicing needed.
well i basically wanted to do this right the first time... picked out LEDs, picked out different resistors, soldered a bunch of test boards, ran them high and low to see what it would be like with surges/drops. also had to decide how many LEDs would look appropriate and how to mount the boards. at first i actually started to cut up the housing, but decided to go a totally different route with layout/mounting. as it stands with my current set up, there is no physical modification to the tail light other than opening it up and coating the amber section red. i also decided to use 7440 sockets so they plug right in to the stock wire harness with no tapping/splicing needed.
#24
i've been dreaming of doing this mod to my ls400 for some time. what is the "final load point"? I just spent the past couple days learning about leds, resitors and soldering. I really want to do this mod. Is it just too difficult?
#26
Lexus Fanatic
Jose, in using wedge bulbs AND LED's in the same tail lamp, will the LED portion of the tail lamp light up a split second prior to the wedge bulb portion when the driver applies the brakes?
#29
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#30
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