Hi, Has anyone out there replaced their standard brake and indicator bulbs with LEDs? Any problems encountered? I understand some cars may have indicator and brake warning lamps and buzzers appear because of the low resistance of these types of bulbs whereby the car thinks the bulb is blown. Any other problems? I'd like to know anything you have to say about them. Thanks, Dan.
I've only swapped the brake/rear lights out for LED ones, and the main problem is: some of the bulbs are red in colour when the light up, despite being white LEDs, if you see what I mean. Avoid them, because they're not bright enough to be brake lights when they're behind the already red indicator lens. Look for ones with a ring of LEDs around the base of the bulb.
Red light will pass through a red lens with no reduction. White light will have all but the red component filtered out. The red LEDs will be a deeper red, as against a white bulb. However you do have to be careful that the bulbs are bright enough, some are not. Also it is likely that the indicators will not work as the system will think that a bulb has blown and flash at twice the normal speed. You can either fit load resistors in parallel with the bulbs, or (if your vehicle permits) fit a special flasher relay.
Thanks for the advice there. I did try some LEDs a while back and they were definitely NOT bright enough. I have a mob from the UK who call themselves hids4u.co.uk and they believe their LEDs are super bright. I will definitely try the ultraleds site also. Thanks for the headsup. Dan.
What is the legal position on these?
IIRC a back sidelight must be rated at 5 Watts.
5 Watts of LED would almost blind a person following you!
Yes, I understand this. What wattage would you get for rear side lights in your experience? Dan.
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