Installed superbright red LED's in my cluster and switches

[707GSX]

Looks great! I have been thinking about doing this mod

 

[Dsmj89]

Nice. I was actually looking into doing the red led idea for my cluster as well. Great write-up. Is this all plug and play ?

 

[rodent]

Appreciate the comments!

Its all plug and play. On the 74 bulbs, just remove the old bulbs from the plastic holders and insert the new LED's. No resisters, soldering, cutting, etc. The HVAC bulb is a little hard to get in since it barely hits the tip. You can file the tabs on the plastic holder if needed.

On the switches, same thing. Take out the old, put in the new LED. They're not easy to get to and you have to take some switches apart to get to the bulb but its not that difficult. You also have to file down the fog light LED but thats it. You may have to turn the LED 180 degrees if the polarity is not correct so I suggest testing each switch with the harness and turning on the lights before final installation.

 

[Dsmj89]

Nice thanks. I will look into changing mine soon.

 

[sirsol66]

That looks great! And thanks for posting the shots I wanted of the HVAC!

 

[manny correa]

im going to look into this! looks awesome. but i have one problem. all of my interior gauges do not light up on my 98 gsx that i just picked up..? what gives? its not a fuse, and the previous owner said it was the little dimmer switch that was damaged, causing every other interior light to not function. any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks.

 

[turbotalon1g]

I tried this on my 1g, but with different LED bulbs.
The problem I ran into was that if I plugged in more than 1 LED bulb the rest of the cluster wouldn't light up and I dont know squat about electronics So i just put the stockers back in and said #### it.

 

[rodent]

That looks great! And thanks for posting the shots I wanted of the HVAC!

No problem. Remember, these will light up more of a red than what my pictures show. Just visualize the same exact red glow as the hazards light.

im going to look into this! looks awesome. but i have one problem. all of my interior gauges do not light up on my 98 gsx that i just picked up..? what gives? its not a fuse, and the previous owner said it was the little dimmer switch that was damaged, causing every other interior light to not function. any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks.

I read the dimmer is common to go out on these cars. Replace the dimmer and see if that fixes it. Do a search on dimmer.

I tried this on my 1g, but with different LED bulbs.
The problem I ran into was that if I plugged in more than 1 LED bulb the rest of the cluster wouldn't light up and I dont know squat about electronics So i just put the stockers back in and said #### it.

First, the LED's has to have a resistor built in to the base so it drops the voltage from 12v to 5v. The lights I mentioned already have the resistor built in. 2nd, you have to have the correct polarity. I didn't think one plugged in the wrong way would bring down the entire cluster. It helps to have a spare battery or a charger for testing. You can use the solder joints on the top left of the cluster to see if they all light up before you install it back in the dash. If one LED isn't working, try to rotate it 180. If you aren't comfortable with electronics, just ask around in your area. I'm sure somebody is more than happy to come over and help.

On another note- Can anyone verify the 1g cluster and switch bulbs and what they are?

Also, I updated the total number of LED's list a few posts ago. I forgot to include the AC button light for a Neo3 LED. Sorry.

 

[707GSX]

"Plug & Play!!!" I'm in!!! Excellent write up up +1

 

[sirsol66]

Not meaning to bump a somewhat old thread but how in the world did you get those switch LED's in there? I was able to get the wiper arm and the mirror control led's in but how would you get the rear defroster one in? Those things are at the end of a long tunnel and I can't even get the stock ones out! I unscrew the stock switch but they dont want to come out, is there any special trick to this that I don't know about?

Oh, and also, for the stock fog and the hazards, how did you get the actual switch disassembled? I tried pushing in the little tabs but they simply will NOT budge. Can you even take these things apart or is it impossible?

 

[clean96GST]

Wait, so you need to buy 70+ bulbs to do this?

 

[SeaveeDSM]

NO.

Read Rodent's post #25 on page 1 of this thread carefully.

The 74 number refers to one of the types of bulb.

 

[clean96GST]

NO.

Read Rodent's post #25 on page 1 of this thread carefully.

The 74 number refers to one of the types of bulb.

O ok thanks for clearing that up.... so how hard would you say this is?

 

[rodent]

Not meaning to bump a somewhat old thread but how in the world did you get those switch LED's in there? I was able to get the wiper arm and the mirror control led's in but how would you get the rear defroster one in? Those things are at the end of a long tunnel and I can't even get the stock ones out! I unscrew the stock switch but they dont want to come out, is there any special trick to this that I don't know about?

Oh, and also, for the stock fog and the hazards, how did you get the actual switch disassembled? I tried pushing in the little tabs but they simply will NOT budge. Can you even take these things apart or is it impossible?

The switches bulbs are hard to get to sometimes and my need to be taken apart to get to the bulbs. Sometimes two small screwdrivers inserted into the plastic where the tabs are holding will help get them apart. The only switch I couldn't get the bulb out was the hazard switch and I decided to ditch the effort since it already lit up red.

If you still have problems getting to the bulbs let me know and I'll try to help more.

O ok thanks for clearing that up.... so how hard would you say this is?

Its pretty straight forward. Cluster LED's are easy but the switch bulbs can be a PITA to get to. Also the HVAC bulb is another one thats hard to get to. If you remove the vents above the HVAC and remove the AC switch, you should be able to get to it from there.

Also take a look at snowborder714 threads on doing his LED's He's got some good info on getting the switches and HVAC out.

 

[clean96GST]

Ok I will look for his right now. I was looking at this one last night at it looked like a little too much electrical work just for different color LED's.

 

[turbotalon1g]

Thanks for the response, it is much appreciated.

 

[meliketoball]

Looks good!


Why did you downgrade to a darn ol' DSM for?

 

[rodent]

Looks good!


Why did you downgrade to a darn ol' DSM for?

I wouldn't call it a downgrade but here's a few reasons:

-No more $600/month payment (only paid 1500 for my 95)
-Engine, head, turbo cheaper to upgrade
-Turbo easier to get to
-Transmission cheaper to upgrade
-Much easier to work on
-2gb better looking car IMO
-New and used parts easier to come by cheap

Granted the stock drivetrain (not including engine) is pretty stout on the STi but the DSM has more potential with upgrades.

 

[chinojuice]

Hey, just been lurking and stumbled upon this thread and liked it a lot. Just wondering which LEDs you'll be using to upgrade the mirrors and/or foot lighting? Are those normally bulbs in those two areas?

 

[rodent]

I tried to replace the foot lighting with super bright white LED's but had issues with the connection in the sockets. They're basically 194 bulbs. Not sure which bulb the overhead mirror takes.

 

[Dsmj89]

You can also use 168 bulbs as i did for my foot lighting bulbs, works just as good and bright at night. Looking into replacing my dome lights in the rearview mirror as well in an led red as well as the trunk light. Where did you say you get the bulbs for the cluster at ?

 

[rodent]

194 and 168 bulbs are the same size. 168 has like 1-2 watts higher rating I think but still not as bright as some of the LED's. I posted the place where I got the LED's in the very first post. superbrightleds.com

 

[chinojuice]

This is the bulb I pulled out from the dome light from under the rear view mirror.

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Was looking at the site you posted for these, cross referenced them and says that 3022 "Festoon bulbs" replaces the one pictured. Just wanting to get some feedback as to which one should be getting. I know this is not really a big thing to worry about. but it keeps me busy, idle hands are the devils playground.

 

[rodent]

That looks like the same bulb for the hatch correct? I did do a bright LED for the hatch area and works great. I'm sure the mirror would benefit with the same bright LED.

For the bulbs by the kick panels, you want to use something like this:

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[chinojuice]

just for some reference i guess. but i kinda pulled out the connectors holding the bulb in the mirror. it didn't feel like coming out so i ripped em from their little glue companion. pictures not clear. but idea is there.

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