Led Lights

[73sprint]

I have fitted a pair of led side light bulbs to my sprint and the difference is fantastic. Also tried one led in the dash and once again fantastic. I have purchased from the same company a pair of H4 xenon bulbs, I have the Rimmers halogen conversion with one relay on the car at the moment. Any thoughts on these bulbs ? Not cheap but the side lights are like mini driving lights now.

[maximus]

I tried a led panel in the sidelight on an old unit and took some pics. They use about a third less power and are much brighter
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =1&theater

[alolympic]

Sounds like a worthwhile upgrade.
What specific LED did you use?

[Purplebargeken]

Details, cost and supplier would be very helpful.

Thanks

Ken

[Flyfisherman]

Picture taken in the day time



Look even better at night

Can be purchased from these people - make sure they are Xenon white.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2x-5-SMD-LED- ... 43add5901c

Paul

[Purplebargeken]

Thanks Paul, now ordered

Ken

[tamtrucks]

nice one,just order a pair

[73sprint]

better car lighting.co.uk A very nice chap. I purchased 6 for the dash 2 side lights 2 stop tail lights and 2 xenon bulbs £125 all in not cheap but well worth it for winter nighttime trips from Penzance to plymouth

[Toledo Man]

There's an article in a recent edition of Practical Classics saying that under UK rules it is illegal to use LED bulbs in place of filament ones because they're not e marked. However, they won't fail the MoT. It is a minor technicality but something to be aware of. Fortunately, cars registered before 1972 aren't subject to this so it would be 100% legal to fit LED bulbs to such cars. In reality, all the police are bothered about it working, being visible and of the correct colour. I doubt that the typical rank-and-file police officer is aware that most cars require e marked bulbs. I'm all for LED bulbs as the advantages are worth the initial cost. It is one of the things I want to do to my 1850 but other things have to take priority with this car.

[tamtrucks]

just got the led side light bulbs,they are brighter than normal,well worth it

[sprint95m]

It is a minor technicality but something to be aware of. Fortunately, cars registered before 1972 aren't subject to this so it would be 100% legal to fit LED bulbs to such cars.

An interesting point Dave.

I have a different interpretation of the law...
where alternative different parts are fitted they must comply with the current regulations.
That is to say in this instance, if fitted pre '72 cars must have LEDs that comply with the law today because LEDs were not available until after 1972,
so couldn't have been fitted when the car was manufactured.

The same principle is applied to door mirrors, back seat belts, fog lights, etc. These are checked for an MOT even though there is no legal requirement for
these to be fitted to pre '72 cars.


I can well see a time shortly when it becomes wise to fit LED sidelight bulbs for daylight driving, given all the new vehicles so equipped.......



Ian.

[Toledo Man]

What it boils down to is that if the car originally had filament bulbs you have to use filament bulbs. Personally, I find this ridiculous given the recent improvements in LED technology. I'm allowed to use LED bulbs in the house (I've fitted them in the kitchen, bathroom and in the desk lamp by my PC) so why not in cars that didn't originally have them? You can even get LED bulbs that give out a "warm white" which looks similar to a filament blub. Some of the car bulbs have several surface mounted LEDs arranged in such a way that they give out a similar light pattern to a filament bulb and can be used with existing light clusters. I've used such bulbs on the Astra.

[AlanH]

There is an article in September's Triumph Torque (reproduced from the MG Car Club mag) on this very subject.

Any car with European Type Approval, i.e. all modern cars, is not subject to legislation. None of our cars have this.
All other cars first used, I assume that means registered, after 1st April 1986 must use approved lamps which basically means filament lamps.


In a nutshell it seems to boil down to these cut off dates for non approved lamps.

1st April 1986 - Direction indicators, headlamps, front fog lamps, reverse lamps, number plate lamps.

1st February 1974 - brake lamps.

1st January 1974 - rear side lamps.

1st January 1972 - front side lamps.

No cars without type approval can fit rear fog lamps (work that one out!).

It all seems a bit crazy to me.

If anybody has a copy of September's Triumph Torque it may be worth checking that I've got it right.

[Purplebargeken]

Well, legal or not I don't really give a stuff. If they are brighter, get the car seen earlier and improve the potential safety of the car and me, then all is good.

Thanks for the link, much appreciated.

Mine will be fitted soon enough, well one pair anyway.

Ken

[Toledo Man]

Beware of some of the ebay sellers. I bought a pair of sidelight bulbs (501s) for my Astra from a UK-based ebay seller and they only lasted 8 months. I bought some from a more reputable seller and they're still going strong to this day. Also please take a look at the light bulb guide which will help to get the correct type of bulb you need. One other thing to be aware of is that if anybody fits LED indicators, they will flash too quickly with the original type relay. You can either fit load resistors to mimic a filament bulb or to fit an electronic relay that's suitable for LED indicator bulbs.