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I've read somewhere that some brickers are putting LED's in their Instrument Clusters and other various locations
I, for one, want some light above the ventilation controls!
Who's got some info on this upgrade?
Tim
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It was nice to hear that someone has evidently formed a behind the scenes committee to shine some light on this issue.
I was looking into it myself at one point and found a site that sells LED's and in fact has a whole section devoted to 12vdc auto applications. The homepage is at http://www.superbrightleds.com/
Randy
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Yep, we've been talking. Together, we have learned more than most would ever care to know about the 240's cluster and it's optical shortcomings. Discussion trickled out as "real life" intruded, but I believe we're still planning on a semi-formal presentation to the board one of these days.
John and Jim did the most work with LED's, Bruce was working with reflectors, and I did some toying with reflectors/surface coatings and bulb relocation.
Ideally, we'd all like to come up with a design that could be executed by anyone with a modicum of tinkering ability and tools; that would be relatively inexpensive; and that would be more effective and durable than the original design.
We're close - we'll let the board know as soon as we have some solid solutions.
--
Sean - now frolicking in the Land of a Thousand 240's (aka, Fredericksburg) thrice a week.
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Sean:
Excellent reply. Sorry I've been "off-line" folks, Family medical issues have taken priority (under control for now), and work has taken the rest of my time... three projects due by this Thursday! After that, I'll have roughly 12 days to finish up the lighting issue and hopefully finish rebuilding the engine on the Eclipse.
Once we (as a group), have answers, we will let the board know in specific detail on how to accomplish improved instrument lighting. If I had to guess, multiple options will be provided.
jorrell
ps. Sean, please send me an email with a list of the email addresses on the group... old hard drive puked so I have no list. Thanks!
--
92 245 245K miles, IPD'd to the hilt, 06 XC70, 00 Eclipse custom Turbo setup...currently in pieces
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I've been working with Jorrel and others to improve the dash lighting. I have a 240 dash cluster and an '86 Mercedes cluster to play with. I found the problem with both dash clusters was a very inefficient plastic prism system which was supposed to conduct the light from a bulb at the back of the cluster to the front and then reflect this light down toward the gauges. I removed the prisms and installed leds at the front where the reflector was located. The dash was very brightly lit. I did the MB cluster this way with white leds and I like it much better. The Volvo would be similar. Some of the fellows on the MB forum have put leds in console locations like the ones you want to. I haven't done that but it wouldn't be too hard to do. At this time the lighting cannot be dimmed.
I got my leds at both Radio Shack and a local electronics parts house. At the parts house, I got a package of 10 white leds including the dropping resistors for about $5. There are web sites which sell leds which have the same base as incandescent bulbs and have the dropping resistors built in. I haven't looked to see if any of these can replace the bulbs in the console directly. Leds use about 2-3 volts so you need to use dropping resistors to drop the 12v to 2-3v. This isn't hard if you study up on it.
I have an image of this but I haven't learned how to include images on this form. Sorry.
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Hello, Can you give me the link to the MB site. In addition to my 1990 Volvo 240, I have an old 1981 MB 300D that was my mother’s. Thanks for the help.
--
1990 240- 270K- Original Owner-M-47, VX cam, bilstiens, spt exh, euro lamps-turbo whls,- still slow but handles well- Near Houston- also 2004 XC90 T5 AWD
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There are several MB forums. This is the one I like the most:
http://www.mercedesshop.com/shopforum/
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Unless you have the late type lighting with the sockets attached permanently to the bulbs (the kind that are several dollars each from the dealer) it is simple enough to replace burned out bulbs with new ones. I couldn't find blue/green tinted ones so I made my own. I dipped clear bulbs in Testors model paint, the oil based enamel kind, which had been sitting for a while so that all the opaque pigment and metallic particles were settled at the bottom of the bottle. After dipping (don't dip the contacts) I clipped each one vertically in a clothespin and let them dry thoroughly. I used dark green, but it should work just as well with any other color. I did all of them, so that they would match. (I even made some extras in case one burns out) They have been providing satisfactory illumination for about a year now.
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I semi-agree. If colored lighting is all you're going for, it's FAR easier to get a few gels - colored light filters sold for theatrical use - than to wire for LEDs.
I seriously thought about doing my whole car in red light, both for the neat-o night vision aspect and the shock value when people saw my black car coming down the road at night with an eerie red glow in the cabin. Haven't done it yet, though.
I too have been working on the lighting issue along with Jim and John - among others - and have a very simple, utilitarian design that would allow choice of about a dozen different colors, including xenon bulbs, and quick, easy replacement in the event of a dead bulb for about $2 from your local Walmart. Only problem is that I cannot find a component I'd need to make the design feasible for the average tinkerer who doesn't have the skill or tools neccesary for much fabrication.
Now that finals are over I may turn my fried mind to the project again.
--
Sean - now frolicking in the Land of a Thousand 240's (aka, Fredericksburg) thrice a week.
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I'm looking for WHITE LED's for better ambient light, period. I am not interrested in anything leaning to the Pep-Boys Custom aisles / Fast and Furious crapola. The above-mount-type lighting arrangement in the dash seems very inefficient to just what the current bulbs provide..
Essentially I just wanna alter the lighting layout for better legibility of the labels and maybe add some more lighting in the floor board area for seeing that BIC pen i dropped while going thru the drive-thru at Jack In The Box.
When I turn on the dome light i want a little close to what a 48" flourescent bulb does in the office.
Sheading some clarity
Tim
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I believe it was OSRAM that used to (and may still) make a small gooseneck lamp about 8" long that plugs into the cigarette lighter. If I remember correctly, they ran about $20-25. Very nice quality, German made, swivels/flexes to shine the light where you need it.
I did my dash lights in green to approximate the original ones. I changed all the bulbs so the color would be consistent. Red is a valid alternative choice, popular with astronomers and submarine crews as it does not disturb night vision. For many years BMW used red instrument panel illumination. I don't know if they still do.
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Yep, that's what I'll probably end up doing as well, Bryan - green. I could change the color of every last light in the car except for my stereo which is brightly green and blue and would clash horribly with red lights.
I actually opened the stereo, dismantled the faceplate and looked to see if I could change the color of the lights. Unfortunately, the lights are now hard-wired LEDs inside a clear plastic prism that directs the lights where they need to be, similar to the 240 cluster's prism. Too much work, I'll just turn the cockpit lights green or blue.
--
Sean - now frolicking in the Land of a Thousand 240's (aka, Fredericksburg) thrice a week.
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After the dome light in my first Volvo 244 broke a second time, I figured out a way to install a dome light from a 245.
Worked well, doesn't break, and - wonder of wonders - puts more light into the cabin than the fancy sedan flush-with-the-headliner type.
Contact me if you are interested.
Regards,
Bob
:>)
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Tim,
There is a "background" discussion / experiments going on to figure this out, it has stalled a bit but it isn't dead. Starting this Friday, I'll have 12 days of vacation/holiday, so my plan is to finish up the work on the instrument cluster during that time (and finish building a 4G64 Mitsu engine).
If you are looking for incredible brightness and electrical efficiency, check out Luxeon.com. Parts can be had through Future electronics on line, their sole distributor. Not sure if they will work for center console lighting due to the heatsink requirements, but at lower power, they are still incredibly bright.
If you have further questions, please contact me at jorrell@qualcomm.com starting this Friday.
jorrell
--
92 245 245K miles, IPD'd to the hilt, 06 XC70, 00 Eclipse custom Turbo setup...currently in pieces
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