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EA82 Dashboard BackLights Upgrade to H.I.D. White L.E.D.´s


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Hi Again! :)

I Have the Idea (Maybe the Project) of Change all the Backlight Bulbs of at least one of my Wagon´s Dashboard, to H.I.D White L.E.D.s (High Intensity Discharge Light Emission Diodes) Have you seen those? They look like the White Ones on the Base-right of this Image:

 


DashboardL.jpg?t=1172980292

 

 

They´re so Bright!, not like Common Leds, so that´s Why they´re Called H.I.D. L.E.D.s. I have two in the Map lights at the Roof, but They Aren´t Extremly Bright, I think that if a Common Bulb do 5 Watts Output, those L.E.D.s may do only 7 Watts Output, but I´m not Sure...

Why Change the Backlights? ... Well, both my Wagons got the Yellowish Backlight (Found on the early EA82´s), instead of the Greener backlight Found on the Newer ones, so, it looks Like it is Just the Direct Light of the Bulb, with no Tint at All... and the Dashboard is so Pretty for that illumination. :-\

 


This is how they Look:

TablerodelSubarudo.jpg?t=1172979878

 

 

 

So, the seven Questions are:

  • Did a Brighter Backlight illumination be Harmful? I think I can use the Dimmer lights on L.E.D.s, isn´t it?

  • is Possible to Change all the Bulbs for those L.E.D.s?

  • Are all of those Backlight Bulbs, the Same?

  • What do you Think About?

  • Have anyone Tried somethin´ like That before?

  • Do you think the Dashboard will look Nicer with Brighter White Lights, or I will just make it look Uglier?

  • Shall I use other color than White?

Finally, I must say that those H.I.D. White L.E.D.s, Looks like a Standard Neon tube´s Light, Plain White, but Near to the Blue...


 

Any opinions / Suggestions \ Ideas will be Wellcome! :)

 

Thanx! :burnout:
► Edited to add Tags, due to the New USMB's system.

Edited by Loyale 2.7 Turbo
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Excuse me: How much What?

 

... Price?: around $ 12.ºº the Pair ( in our Currency, the "Lempíra" it s Around L. 250.ºº )

 

... Wattage Consumption? I think that those L.E.D.s are around 7W or 10W I Think, and they work Cooler than Bulbs, so they´re Safe to use in Plastics.

... Time they´ll Last? they claim Those L.E.D.s will Last 10X more than a Standard bulb, or so...

 

Well, thanx for the Replies, Any other Idea?

 

:)

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i have leds in my dash. i have had red amber and blue. the next color i am going to try is uv or black light. i have some pics you can look at in profile photos. i got mine from a web site pm me if intersted in the site.:banana:

as for your question on the dimmer it works fine with leds no problem. 2. i changed all the dash bulbs that back light. 3. my bulbs are all 194 for dash backlighting. 4. i have not used white yet. but i can tell you blue light makes it hard to see the needles at night. and red looks great but seems to be to much over a long peroid of time. amber looks really nice. i do not like the stock green color.

just make sure to get the l.e.d.s. with the flat tip because they are a wide angel lens. if not then you end up with just small areas lite up when all of the dah should light up.

one more thing right now i am running blue and red l.e.d.s. in my dash. blue on the outside. so gauges for gas, voltage, oil pressure, and water temp area is blue and fades in to red for the tach and speedo. i dont have a pic of that yet give me a couple of days i will get that up on the site.

 

i hope this helps you

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Oh Thank You! ... Yes, you did help me too Much, :) I´ll Love to see the "Fadin´ Blue to Red" Scheme on your Dashboard, it Sounds Great!

 

Also: Do you know How many L.E.D.s Shall I Need? I never has taken the Dashboard out, so That info, along with pics of it´s Back, should be a Great Help too.

 

I´m not Sure about the "Flat Tip" L.E.D.s... but I Saw some designs of ´em that Spread the Light to the Sides, and others Spread the Light just to the Front, is that what you mean? if so, which ones Should I Use?

 

Thanx! :burnout:

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you will need 4 l.e.d.s. on the back side of the dash there are 4 parts that twist out each holding a bulb. two are the color brown and two are black. i am including a web site that yo be able to find what l.e.d.s you would like just remeber they are 194 bulbs. www.superbrightleds.com

 

flat or inverted tips will broadcast the light in all directions. standard tips will work more like a flashlight. i hope this helps. check my member photo's for how the dash looks with different colors. and www.cardomain.com. look under subaru gl and look for name dragonsteel. that is my car check out the change from nov. of 05 till now plus it shows more dash lights.

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you have to look at the angle of the LED's, because some a meant to project a beam pattern (so when you mount them in your dash, you'll get very well lit spots :lol:) and some have a wider angle and are more to illuminate an area.

 

I have a gauge cluster laying around here, with the green tint, and I'll take some pictures of it tomorrow :) I'm also going to try different chemicals to see if I can get the green off, but not the black ;)

 

oh and if I may, I have a '88 XT 5MT, but the cluster is amber colored, what's the deal? just change the bulbs and the color changes? or is there a snag?

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I Really Thank You Soo Much your Help! ... I´ll Search for Dragonsteel on Cardomain (I´m There too, as "JesZeK" :) ) Also, I´ll Love to see Pics of the Dashboard´s Back and some tips to do the L.E.D. Conversion. Thank you!

 

... what's the deal? just change the bulbs and the color changes? or is there a snag?

 

Well... in the Greener Dash, I don´t Think so... but in the Yellow, I hope that there´s no Tint at all, or that it is less than in the Greener ones, ´cos Yellow is done by Just the Bulbs... but if there´s Tint, is more Easy to Fight Yellow than Green...

Thank you so Much, You´re so Kind. :burnout:

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thought you may be interested to hear that in 25 years of working in electronics I have come across one and only one bad LED, And I suspect it had excess voltage applied to it. 10X longer life than bulbs is a world class understatement! Also far more efficient than incandescent bulbs.

I would like to know if they come with a built in current limiting resistor

In the plain bulk ones you buy they self destruct instantly without one at even half the voltage that they are rated for, bulbs only draw X amount at a certain voltage, But an LED is a forward biased diode, so with out limiting resistors in the circuit they try to draw infinite amps! So something gives in the first few milliseconds.

I'm curious to know how the maker dealt with that issue?

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Excuse me: How much What?

 

... Price?: around $ 12.ºº the Pair ( in our Currency, the "Lempíra" it s Around L. 250.ºº )

 

... Wattage Consumption? I think that those L.E.D.s are around 7W or 10W I Think, and they work Cooler than Bulbs, so they´re Safe to use in Plastics.

... Time they´ll Last? they claim Those L.E.D.s will Last 10X more than a Standard bulb, or so...

 

Well, thanx for the Replies, Any other Idea?

 

:)

Answered my own question a link at the bottom of superleds wesite "about leds" states right out that the resistor is built in to every LED they make!

Excellent, Can't see them ever needing replacement unless the resistor opens.

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I didn't use LED for backlight, but I did mount red ones behind each needle. It worked out pretty cool, but it was not easy and somewhat time consuming. I would have a spare dash handy just in case something breaks!!! :-) The placement of the LED's is tricky, and though it's hard to tell from the pic, the Volt meter neelde seems to give the best high contrast color. The speedo and tach need two LEDs to get the best results, as the neeldes are bigger.

 

center-cluster1.JPG

 

Here's more info. I have some pics documenting the process and will post them... if I can find them.

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Well Loyale,,, I dont know if you answered your question about the dimmer switch for the L.E.D. but... At my auto technical school, I am currently taking A-6 which is Automotive Electrical Systems, and we have been over the L.E.D. thing... so... basicly what I should have said to start with is.... Yes the dimmer will work so long as you do not apply too much voltage through the L.E.D. but why would you apply too much voltage?? just buy a 12 V rated leds and you be fine! be sure to take pictures!!!

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