nile13

So, my upper console switch lights needs replacement bulbs. And I'm thinking of putting LEDs in there. It would make sense to put in 12V LEDs so there's no need for an extra resistor, as in Tore B's kit, for example. The question would be, what intensity LED to chose.

The LEDs are not rated in lumens, of course, They are rated in millicandelas. More importantly, it's not trivial to translate one to the other, as it depends on angle. What I want to avoid here, is the little assist light being way too bright.

So... does anyone have a suggestion on what clear or red 12V LEDs to chose or what approximate millicandela rating should be to match the incandescent bulbs on the lower switch bank (green ones)?

pp000830

If you speak of the bulbs in the gauges, bulbs have such a long service life I would just replace them all once and be done with it. I did add a LED through a small hole in the facia near the ignition key-way. It illuminates the keyhole and is wired to the dome light circuit so it only illuminates when needed.

KeninBlaine

I agree with pp000830 above. I added the LED above the ignition switch too and love it. I wasn't sure what OP meant by upper console lights, and couldn't find them on Tore's website. I replaced my center console switch lights with Tore's kit, and they look great. No resistor was needed on them as I recall.

nile13

Ummm... upper console switches. I'm talking about the two 3-switch banks. The little light boards above switches for Achtung!, blinkers, etc. This is Tore's page on it: http://www.bergvillfx.com/consolerepair, thought he offers 5V LEDs and I don;t know what their intensity is and how it compares to OEM incandescent bulbs. The pics here:



BTW, I'd lobe to have a light above ignition switch as well. My '95 did not come with it. I've seen some older threads about wiring it in, but have not investigated yet. What LED did you use there?

KeninBlaine

Tore's kit has 6 LED's. I soldered mine in and installed the resistor as described in his instructions. It isn't a terribly easy job unless you're good a soldering small items on a PCB board. His description says they are red on both rows, but they are actually red on one row and green on the other, consistent with original lights. They are much brighter than the old ones, and look great IMO. Do a search for the ignition LED install, as it describes the LED that you can get at Radio Shack. Good luck. All these LED projects make a big difference.

AZ Targa

I bought Tore's kit as well but have been putting off the install

nile13

I specifically do not want those LED to be brighter than the original incandescent bulbs. Plus I don't see any reason to use 5V LEDs with a resistor when 12V LEDs are readily available.

The question, however, remain, what intensity LEDs would be about the right match to the original incandescents?

Allen

Unfortunately...I think the only way your gonna know how well they match is to try one a see.

BesideTheBox

I didn't want brighter either. I purchased some LEDs on eBay and added my own resistor for each LED. I did not use the resistors that came with the LEDs as they did not sufficiently cut down the light intensity. The resistor I used resulted in light output comparable to the original incandescent bulbs.

LED: 3mm Warm White Diffused Bright Round LED
Resistor: 3.3 kohm 1/4 watt carbon film resistor

Here's a picture of how I installed the LEDs and each resistor.

BTB

Allen

You could actually clip a pot in series with the LED, then adjust the pot until you get the desired brightness on the LED, then measure the resistance setting of the pot, then buy a resistor of that value. OR just use the setup that BTB did above.

nile13

Thanks, BTB!

Since I don't really want to use resistors in the first place, I can simply go with very low power LEDs (saw some at Radio Shack of all places). Just trying to get an approximate luminosity. But I guess I'll have to start with the lowest output LED available and play it by ear.

pp000830

Brightness and color are highly subjective. Consider buying a sheet of ROSCO neutral density or even color filter gells/sheet designed for theatrical lighting from B&H photo. One can layer the sheets until the brightness desired is achieved and then cut a small patch to put between the light and the console. Rosco gells are designed for high heat applications and won't melt or deform from a bulb or just sitting in a hot car.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...3_Neutral.html

nile13

They are not. And it's a pretty interesting subject, actually. I'm saying this as a person who worked as an engineer in color science industry, making a spectrophotometer for color matching.

While color and brightness can be subjective, especially on a sample viewed by itself, any time you have a comparison to another nearby sample, the differences, even minute ones, become so apparent to human eye, that you can be half-blind (like me) and still see them immediately. That's why it's so hard to color-match paint, especially on a car. That is also why blending to adjacent panels is used as a crutch to give gradual transition to that obvious color mismatch and trick the human eye (an extremely powerful and precise sensor, actually).

The biggest issue is not even that, unfortunately. Color reflects very differently at different lighting conditions. On a car with curved panels, that means that a perfectly matched color will look mismatched when you bend down and look at a different angle, or when you simply walk from front to the back of the car. That's why it's fairly easy to tell if the car's panel been repainted, just need to know how to look. The professional car people have their tricks and can tell right away, which is fairly amazing to see.

So, in my case, while the lower console will have its green-filtered incandescent light bulbs remain in place, a particularly bright LEDs will be obvious on the top switch console. Plus, they will simply be distracting. That's also why I don't much care about the color in this case, as the upper lights are orange and the lower are green, IIRC. That's also why if I get "close enough" to incandescents, in brightness, I'll be fine. If they were the same color, it'd be immediately obvious.

So... I'm really, really curious what LED rating would get me close enough. Ah, the first world issues

Thought of that as well. Not a bad idea, thanks!

pp000830

Here is a filter set that will give you complete control over color balance and intensity for any nearly white LED:
http://www.freestylephoto.biz/31633-...x3-in.-22-Pack

uniquenamehere

If you're that concerned with color,why don't you just replace them with OEM? Do they burn out for you a lot?