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DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

posted by  nick 2012 on  Sun Dec 30 21:06 CST 2012
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last visit: Tue Jul 30 11:15 CST 2013
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Just wanted to share a quick change I made to my 1994 945. It’s pretty basic as I am still taking much more knowledge from the brickboard than giving back.

The stock dome light was pretty useless at actually lighting up the interior of the car, especially at night making finding dropped toys and other detritus was difficult at best. I started thinking about dome light upgrades.

I thought a replacement festoon LED insert would throw off extra light without drawing too many amps or creating unwanted heat, so I got a LED panel from Amazon for ~$3.00 that included a bullet style bulb adapter (picture below). After install, it is a major improvement.

Steps:

1. Gently remove dome light (four clips total; 2 each on driver and passenger sides). I discovered two of the four clips on the cover of the light were already broken (the map lights were inoperable when I got the car), but I got them working while out. The switches are shot, though.

2. Don’t think to take out the interior light fuse and short it out when disconnecting the dome light wiring (this step is optional).

3. Remove dome light bulb.

4. I couldn’t insert the LED panel from the top, so I pulled off the clear plastic cover by very gently pushing in the four small clips holding it to the beige plastic mount, inserted the LED panel, and reassembled. I thought about using adhesive, but the panel press-fit nicely with no play.

5. Reattach dome light cover.

6. Enjoy the light! Photos don’t show it well, but I’d say the LED throws off at least twice the amount of light and is a vast improvement.

Once I find a good 740/940 in a junkyard with a better dome light and working map light switches, I’ll probably replace mine and upgrade the map lights to LED as well. Photos below.

Festoon panel:


Original dome light interior:


LED panel installed (looking down from top):


LED panel installed (looking up at light)


LED vs regular bulbs:








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    DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

    posted by  eyeroll on  Fri Jan 25 23:32 CST 2013
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    last visit: Thu Oct 23 13:48 CST 2014
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    thank you for the enlightening tip
    i have placed an order for the LED kit via the link you provided

    and thank you brickboard. A very handy source of great information; helping to keep our cars safe and reliable


    1986 240, 1993 940, 1996 850








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    Part Number? 900

    posted by  spasske on  Mon Jan 14 10:53 CST 2013
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    last visit: Thu Oct 23 10:11 CST 2014
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    Do you have a part numbers / link for the panel?
    --
    Paul NW Indiana '89 744 Turbo 160K/ '90 745 turbo 140K








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      Part Number? 900

      posted by  nick 2012 on  Mon Jan 14 18:11 CST 2013
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      last visit: Tue Jul 30 11:15 CST 2013
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      Hi Paul -

      The panel I used is this one sold through Amazon:
      http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005J3BPCK/ref=wms_ohs_product


      It is the "NEEWER® T10 36 SMD LED Light Festoon Dome Bulb Lamp White 12V"








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        Part Number? 900

        posted by  Steve on  Mon Jan 14 21:35 CST 2013
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        last visit: Fri Oct 24 07:16 CST 2014
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        I did this and am happy to report it is a HUGE improvement. I bought them for all four cars. Now: what LED lamps do we buy for the reading lamps at the front of the roof cluster?
        --
        See the 700/900 "FAQ" at the menu bar top screen left side.








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    DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

    posted by  Steve on  Mon Dec 31 07:14 CST 2012
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    last visit: Fri Oct 24 07:16 CST 2014
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    Did you give thought to the type of replacement 6411 bulb with the LEDs mounted right on the shell?
    BTW: we need a thread on good LED replacement bulbs for as many lamps in the car as one can replace.
    --
    See the 700/900 "FAQ" at the menu bar top screen left side.








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      DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

      posted by  nick 2012 on  Mon Dec 31 07:48 CST 2012
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      last visit: Tue Jul 30 11:15 CST 2013
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      "Did you give thought to the type of replacement 6411 bulb with the LEDs mounted right on the shell?

      BTW: we need a thread on good LED replacement bulbs for as many lamps in the car as one can replace."

      - I did think about 6411 replacement LED bulbs with the LEDs built into the bulb itself. Examples of these kinds of bulbs are here: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=6411+led+bulb&hasWorkingJavascript=1

      I wanted maximum output, so I went with the 36 LED panel. Sometimes LEDs will burn out or go dark, and I figured with more LEDs, any one or two dark LEDs out of 36 wouldn't matter.

      The dome light plastic cover has no optics, so the wider footprint of the panel helps increase light spread over a bulb with LEDs built in. These also cost $3-10 more than the panel I used.

      Also, I was unsure of the manufacturing tolerances on replacement LED bulbs and whether they'd fit into the bulb slot. The spring loaded festoon adapter solved that worry.

      Finally, the panel I used had 90+ positive reviews while a number of other 6411 LED replacement bulbs (many with LEDs built-in to the bulb) had no reviews or a few questionable ones.








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        DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

        posted by  Steve on  Mon Dec 31 10:19 CST 2012
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        last visit: Fri Oct 24 07:16 CST 2014
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        Nick: super! This definitely goes into the FAQ.
        Steve








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          DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

          posted by  spook on  Mon Dec 31 12:38 CST 2012
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          last visit: Fri Oct 24 08:06 CST 2014
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          Dear Steve,

          Hope you're well. I concur. I've ordered some of these LED panels, and will report if they fit in the load space light fixture.

          All the Best, for the New Year.

          Yours faithfully,

          Spook








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    DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

    posted by  Steve on  Mon Dec 31 06:58 CST 2012
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    last visit: Fri Oct 24 07:16 CST 2014
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    Nick, I'm not sure what this means:
    "Don’t think to take out the interior light fuse and short it out when disconnecting the dome light wiring (this step is optional)."

    Am trying to edit this for the FAQ...
    --
    See the 700/900 "FAQ" at the menu bar top screen left side.








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      DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

      posted by  nick 2012 on  Mon Dec 31 07:19 CST 2012
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      last visit: Tue Jul 30 11:15 CST 2013
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      Hi Steve -

      I was chiding myself for failing to de-energize the dome lamp circuit before removing it. I thought I'd be able to disconnect it with the dome lamp switch off, but something must have touched and blew fuse #5 when I was working on it. In retrospect, I should have thought it through a little more.

      If you're going to remove the dome light (or do anything electrical), its always best to pull the fuse on the circuit or remove the battery cable prior to doing anything.








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    DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

    posted by  Steve on  Mon Dec 31 06:49 CST 2012
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    last visit: Fri Oct 24 07:16 CST 2014
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    Brilliant! How much heat does it give off? Any risk of melting plastic?
    Steve
    --
    See the 700/900 "FAQ" at the menu bar top screen left side.








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      DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

      posted by  Onkel Udo II on  Mon Dec 31 06:58 CST 2012
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      last visit: Fri Oct 24 08:50 CST 2014
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      LED's do not generate heat (part of the reason they are so efficient). Sometimes the electronics required to step down the voltage do, but in this case it looks like he has enough LED's to run it at line voltage...just a guess.








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        DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

        posted by  Steve on  Mon Dec 31 10:32 CST 2012
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        last visit: Fri Oct 24 07:16 CST 2014
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        Wow, the big Cree LED on the front of my bicycle has the mother of all heat sinks attached. And this is for 3W... I suspect the heat generated is point source which means it has to be drawn away from the LED or it will fry. The panel that Nick used is big enough to serve as its own heat sink and the LEDs are really low power anyway.








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        DIY - LED Dome Light Upgrade 900

        posted by  nick 2012 on  Mon Dec 31 07:25 CST 2012
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        last visit: Tue Jul 30 11:15 CST 2013
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        Some ultra-high power (1-5 watt) LEDs will get hot and require substantial heat sinks. These are cheapo off-brand LEDs that don't draw much, so I'm not too concerned, especially since the incandescent bulb is much hotter. The panel I used has some heft and solid metal connections to the board which also should soak up heat.

        When I saw the panel would have to touch the plastic, I did a bit of googling on this style of LED and searched the amazon reviews for the part. No one commented on excessive heat being a problem. To confirm, I left the installed LED dome light on for about 10 min while doing stuff around the garage and touched the cover with the back of my hand - didn't feel any heat, but the incandescent map lights were quite warm.

        This is the panel I used:
        http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005J3BPCK/ref=wms_ohs_product






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