Philbert

iTrader: (2)

So, I was inspired by this thread to replace my faded dash lights today - best $10 mod ever!

Below are some pics:

The dash before, with no lights on:


There are 5 Phillips screws you need to first remove to get the dash bezel off:







Disconnect the 3 plugs from the dash to the dash bezel:





There are 4 more screws that hold the gauge cluster on:








When you pull the gauge cluster toward you, there are 3 plugs that connect, as well as the speedo cable, which you see in the photo below:



To get the speedo cable off pinch the plastic tab and pull away from the gauge cluster, as you can see the tab on the cable below:



Gauge cluster is OFF:





The OLD bulbs...covered in green plastic skin:




The NEW bulbs:





AND THE NEW DASH WITH AMBER BULBS:






Unfortunately, for some reason, the right side of the gauge lights fade in and out randomly....still need to figure out why that is and how to fix it :/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy_112zW5ZI

BigBluePile

iTrader: (3)

Wow, that looks great!!

camo31_10.50

looks great!

i too am looking for something that is easy on the eyes and brighter, is Amber the way to go?

BigBluePile

iTrader: (3)

I like red too...

camo31_10.50

i thought red was one of the ones out of the "best" visible spectrum or whatever?

ChefYota4x4

iTrader: (5)

NICE, ...so it worked? Glad to hear, Phil.... Hope I steered you more in the right direction rather than wrong? hahaha. Looks great, ...now more vid of it not flickering out! lol.

My buddy has Red, btw, and it looks great. Another person I barely know has blue in there, with what he said are 'wide spectrum led's'.... ??? It's REALLY bright, but I can't see a need for any brighter than what you have, Phil.... LOOKS GREAT! 2 THUMBS UP! LOL.

Anyone know if there is a Xenon or whatever type bulb for my dome that will be lots brighter than the original? I took off the plastic and CLEANED IT UP REALLY good! It's much brighter. I tried the 8 LED pack at Pep Boys, ....it works, but it's just doesn't seem as wide spectrum or brighter ENOUGH to pay 20$ for it... I've seen the 24 LED packs like this 8 pack one.... just not sure it would be the ticket as I want it to be able to light up the whole cab and not just my console, ya know?

Sorry to mini-highjack, ....any ideas on a brighter normal type bulb for that dome?

helidriver

i have a first gen and i'm going to go poking around the junk yards for a overhead console to replace the OEM map light mount. kinda worthless space wasted up there for lights that aren't that bright. gonna find something with a sunglass holder and better lighting maybe even some switches or a compass..... just have to find something that will fit and can be color matched.

For the cab light i was going to try and do the same thing, find something out of a tundra, chevy, fricken escort or something......

angrydogtattoo

Looks great! Phil you changer your avatar, I kinda liked the grinder hehe...

helidriver

do those other bulbs come in blue do you know....? i was thinking of doing something like that to blue to match the radio...

Philbert

iTrader: (2)

thanks Chef - I tested voltage on the circuit board with the guilty bulb in place and lights on - 12 volts. That makes me think it's a loose Yazaki bulb carrier connection....so I took out all 4 bulbs and carriers, bent the 2 contacts out a little more on each carrier, and then used CNC electrical contact cleaner and dielectric grease for all the connections.

After hooking it up again, and letting the lights stay on for a minute or two, it seems to be holding with no flicker...I guess time will tell if that did the trick

I'm going to stop hijacking Cougar's thread now...

Thanks!



I don't know what other colors there are. They only had clear and amber for the 194 size bulbs at the auto store.

I'd just google the size and see if you can find a place that sells them (get 4 bulbs). You may want to check out superbrightleds.com but I'm not sure if they have a size that will fit or if it's too bright....plus they are more pricey.

GL - let us know what you do??

mountaingoat

Looks killer Phil, I really like it!

In fact, I think I might have to make a trip to the parts store today...

86 TOY

Great job Phil! Tons of color options available here:

http://autolumination.com/194.htm

scroll down towards the bottom of the page and they sell colored bulb caps as well

iamsuperbleeder

looks good!

I'd be a little weary of it though... 194 bulbs are brighter, but with that extra light comes more HEAT; I'd pull the cluster back out after about a month of use, just for a checkup to make sure nothing's getting too hot and discoloring or melting



also, is this page loading weird for anyone else? like the first couple responses?

EDIT: nevermind I fixed it... it was all screwed up somehow

irab88

iTrader: (4)

"we now return to cnn- earlier today, auto part stores across the u.s. announced a shortage of 194 bulbs, particularly in red, amber, and blue. authorities have no leads yet, but sources say it is due to photographs posted on a technical forum for toyota owners."

that looks sweet, by the way. now i have to go find some bulbs

thinsley

Great writeup and thanks for the ideas! I was just htinking baout this the other day. Perfect timing!

OutlawMike

Great write-up. I was contemplating doing this for use with different colored aftermarket gages, now I now it will work.

Mike

86 TOY

Good point! What bulbs should also be considered then?

Thanks

Philbert

iTrader: (2)

That's a good point, Bleeder - I'll have to check on that.

Would turning down the brightness on the dash mounted dimmer lessen that chance?

And LEDs run very low, so no danger there for those who are going to do this with LEDs, correct?

ChefYota4x4

iTrader: (5)

LED's run COLD as ice, lol. They also use a lot less power. I've heard you can leave them on for a full night and no worries at all on the 'dead battery' syndrome issue, lol. They aren't cheap like those though.

ChefYota4x4

iTrader: (5)

I'm trying to find a super bright dome that just plugs right in. Just need to figure out which one is best on that Autoillumination page, lol. DANG they have lots of stuff, lol.