h0rn3t920

I Had Led's and they keep going out. Im really getting tired of them. I was wondering if anyone had DIY's for our cars or any ideas before i do this unreversable mod?

Whitey

Been using 12V LED ribbon strips in the licence plates for almost 2 years, not even a flicker .

Cut a 1ft stip into 1" (3 LED) sections, 2x3LEDs side-by-side inside original housing. Resistor set up same as previous DIYs. You should be able stick these on the handle, outside if you're lazy or want to get creative since they should be waterproof but I prefer the "OEM" look.

You'll have enough LEDs left over to do the ceiling lights too

MB>BMW

PICS PLEASE!!!

Whitey

You mean pic of the product or how I did mine? Will take pic off my ride if anyone interested but this is a similar, if not the same stuff I used:

ohlord

https://mbworld.org/forums/showthrea...te+led+licence

Whitey

As everyone who's done it had all discovered, the widely available festoons all suck and burn out in no time. Hence the quest...

raymond g-

i've been trying out electroluminescent for various use inside the compartment.
natch, i've tried it back by the license plate but wanted more light than my
application could provide. so I think you can take EL off your list to experiment
with out there.

dude, Whitey....where the heck have you been?

ohlord

thought you guys had it all figured out.Or gave up trying
The Lexus lights look kind of fey anyway

h0rn3t920

so what your sayin is LED ribbon strips do not burn out and theres not much stuff you have to do to them? U just put them in?

Whitey

Agreed, ELs just don't compare with super bright LEDs or the original festoons for that matter.

I've been around Ray, just didn't see a need to post with so many opinions already

Whitey

Well, I can't say they won't burn eventually but I've had them in for over 2 years - trouble free.

There's a bit of work to connect the two strips side-by-side and secure them inside the original housing but its not rocket science. I took out the original contacts (to allow more room for the strips) and simply connected the wires coming off the strip (soldered onto the strip) to the power leads. You might find that the length of the strips is a tiny bit longer than the inside of the lens/housing but u can flex them (inwards on each side) a bit to fit - this also helps disperse the light a bit wider to the sides since LEDs are directional (i.e. only shines more or less straight on). The tension pretty much holds the strips in place inside the lens but you may wish to find other ways of securing them.

For securing the 2x3-LED strips together, I simply used a piece of electrical tape on the underside. I'm sure you'll figure it out or find a better way.

As said, you can simply stick them outside on the lower part of the trunck handle or onto the outside of the lenses...or alternatively, a signle 1ft length of the ribbon along the handle would do too but that'll be a bit on the rice side IMO.

raymond g-

well, i'll just take the opportunity to let folks know that you were the one who
was most helpful in answering a ton of my questions when I was a newcomer
and had tried to make sense of all the wheel specs considerations when I was
upgrading from my 16-inchers. so thank you again! Whitey was the Jedi
master of rim knowledge.

h0rn3t920

Ok cool where could i get a pair of these led strips?

raymond g-

thx for the tip on LED strips Whitey. just ordered 3' length off flea-bay.

keywords i used - led strip 12vdc white

Whitey

You're too kind Ray...but buying off E-Gay? As most know, LEDs do vary in quality, so the Ebay ones might be a bit shadey. 3ft? Mine came in a shorter length - are you sure you got the right one? Some strips mightn't allow you to trim them - anyway remember to ONLY cut them at the points with the "scissors". I bought mine locally so I can't help but I found the following site which seems to have good reviews, so I guess safer? I really have no idea. Sorry Ray, I came too late to warn you on this.

http://www.oznium.com/led-ribbon

Just realised, these come with an adhesive backing. Mine didn't so I used d3M double-sided tape.

Good luck to all!

raymond g-

i performed minor research....emailed previous buyers....eschewed HK or China
sellers and went with USA seller with high degree of satisfied purchasers. my
mistake...24" (36" was cable length). yes, trim-able every 3 LEDs. same price
as Oznium. am at work now so can't look up the Ebay thang.

hmm, how do you think this lighting would look in place of the door bottom
courtesy light (dim yellow). i love experimenting with light.

Whitey

They would look just as good as the LED festoons in the door's courtesy lights, if you've ever tried them. I've not had many festoons burn out in the doors nor care too much for them as I have the puddles under the skirts so not bothered to go through the trouble of hooking up the strips.

I've used the left overs from my strip on the interior ceiling lights which works nicely - very bright. The tricky part is to figure out a way to position them nicely in there as the LED dots are quite obvious when lit. Sounds like you'll have a few left over from the 2ft strip to play around with all over the car