Originally Posted by Domer911

resurrecting an old thread (one that I suppose I would be directed to if I started a new one, lol).

Anyway, this option from Carmagic is awful. Far from a plug-and-play option, they are fragile and poor-fitting. If you don't get the bulb housings seated right the first time, and you attempt to bend the metal tabs a SECOND time, they will likely break off. That's what happened in my case.

Money down the drain. Caveat emptor.

Originally Posted by Chymos

Yet another resurrection. The Superbright LED's work great and I replaced all of my warning lights (except airbag) with colored LED's that match the respective filters. The fog/defrost/headlight ***** were plug and play with other bulbs from Superbright as well. I'm holding off on the console until I can gain a little confidence with my soldering iron! Only troubles were bending the tiny wings a tiny bit for better fitment/contact, as well as the 50/50 chance on polarity. Just put them in, if they don't work, rotate 180.

As has been mentioned many times, the bases for the general lights are the PITA. I ordered them from CrazyLED (the UK site), but because of troubles beyond their control, they cannot currently ship overseas. Does anyone know of a decent US source for these bases? I have the bulbs from Superbright, but no bases. If it's an impossibility, I have a buddy in Luxembourg that can play middle-man with the CrazyLED gents, but I hate to call in a favor for something so simple!

Originally Posted by Harley42

Originally Posted by aklgndry

Oh I can actually contribute here! I reached out to the person who works on the B8.5D 509T plugs.

​​​​For folks in the US there is an eBay link that he referred me to: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/195549945310 Hope it helps someone else take on this project!

Originally Posted by will007

This has been a great post and thought I should add my experience to help those coming after me.

1. Components

Bulb Holder -- I ordered them from the UK -- http://www.crazyleds.co.uk/
a. Holder Type : 509THOLDER > B8.5D 509T Twistlock Bulb/LED holder
b. Ordered 40 of them to have spares (I did break a couple)
c. They are about $0.35 each. With shipping to CA the cost was $20.00

LED Lights -- I ordered them from the US -- https://www.superbrightleds.com/
a. 74-WWHP3 : Warm White > 16 (extra to do the Climate Control Unit as well)
b. 74-BHP3 : Blue > 1
c. 74-GHP3 : Green > 4
d. 74-AHP3 : Amber > 4
e. 74-RHP3 : Red > 13
f. the total with shipping was $99.00

2. Install -- Instrument Panel

Bulbs into holders
a. A bit stiff, so you have to force the LED into the holder.
b. Keep the bulbs organized by color. You can tell the Warm White from the others. However, the LEDs look the same for the other colors.

Remove instruments
a. Use a flat blade screwdriver or similar to pry up either the clock or fuel indicator gauge (starting from left or right), careful to not damage the rubber gasket which "holds" the gauge in place or the gauge or panel. I use a plastic blade for removing interior panels. "Greasing up" the rubber also helps -- ad good time to clean them and freshen them up at the same time. Once you get the first out, you can push from the rear to get the other gauges out.
b. The difficult one is the Tach gauge as it will bump up against the steering column. The trick (I believe Tor was the originator) is to push the gauge out and REMOVE the rubber ring in order to get to the back of the gauge.
c. TIP! -- before removing the gauges turn on the car ignition and take a photo of each gauge to get an idea of what color the warning lights are and their position.

Remove factory bulbs
a. The easiest way is to use a small flat head screwdriver -- there is a slot in each bulb socket. Just turn 90 degrees counter-clockwise.
b. IMPT! -- do not change/remove the bulbs for the AIRBAG, CHECK ENGINE or AUTO DOOR LOCK/REMOTE warning lights. Especially the AIRBAG and CHECK ENGINE -- it will cause a code failure and you will see it and the "!" warning light go on each time you start the car. Eventually it does go off. The only remedy is to have the code reset. I had my local Porsche garage -- Hi-Tec Automotive -- do it and it was free and took them 2 minutes to do.

Install LED bulbs
a. The holders I am using are a bit tight to get in and be able to turn. So you have spread open the metal tabs on both ends a little bit. Just using your thumb to push up is sufficient. Not too loose or you won't get a good connection. Tight is fine, just not so tight that it starts to rub away at the contact on the gauge board.
b. TIP! -- Just remember to take your time to get the bulb flush into the hole before turning.
c. I also used a pair of needle nose pliers to help twist the bulb in -- clockwise.
d. TIP! -- Test that the light works before moving on to the next bulb or gauge. Turn on the ignition switch and you can see if the bulbs light up or not. If not, remove the bulb and turn it 180 degrees and try again. The LEDs have a polarity, so if they are in "backwards" will not light up. My first time in success rate was about 50%.

Install the instrument gauges
a. Clean the rubber gaskets to bring them back to new.
b. Push the gauges back in by hand -- visually keeping them level.
c. For the Tach, you need to install the rubber gasket first.
d. TIP! -- Sometimes it is helpful to "wet" the opening so that the rubber slides back in smoothly vs. wanting to slide to the front and over the gauge.

DONE! The light is much brighter and still has that warm look to them (not as warm as factory but not cool at all). I especially like that I can now see the turn signal light as I can't really hear the flasher, so I rely on the light to see if on or not. (side note -- would love to update the indicator stalk to make them a 3-peater when you tap it like the new cars -- anyone done that? PM me!)

It's about a 1 hour job if you prepare the bulbs first and follow a systematic approach. I'm going to do the CCU later after I refurbish it (send it to Tor?)

Great update for under $150.

Originally Posted by PFDGSB

Maybe it's the pic, but those warning lights look waaaay too bright to me.

Originally Posted by Eddymo25

I think it looks good, What's the name of the bulbs ?

Originally Posted by TheFatArmadillo

I see references to B8.5D and 509T in this thread. Which one did you guys order from the EBay store link?

Thanks
Jordan