LED use in the D's - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

tobybul · #1 10-13-2007, 10:38 AM

I was just wondering (kind of a poll) who is using LEDs in their D's.

What application, how much brighter are they, and where did you buy them.

Has any one tried them on the instrument cluster? Is there a particular light color that works best for the cluster? How about some pics?

I have been considering it in my D's for the intrument cluster, the front/rear turn signals, tail and brake lights.

Chad300tdt · #2 10-13-2007, 01:16 PM

I purchased mine from ledlights.com.

For the Gauge Cluster I got: Two - #45689 - 194 (T10) Wedge SMT Super Flux 5 LED - 1 front firing and 4 side firing LEDs

in the front and rear dome lights: Two #48756 - Festoon SMT Super Flux 9 LED (44mm).

The benefits are cool white light that has a cleaner appearance, and they are much brighter without generating as much heat. They are much longer lasting (10,000 hours minimum).

I think the dome lights are brighter than the stock bulb, but might not be enough of a difference to justify the cost unless you want the white light. I think these LEDs are a better choice than the blue festoon upgrade bulb I've seen. I think those bulbs are higher wattage and would cause too much heat. I am adding w126 reading lights to supplement the cabin lighting.

The cluster bulbs are MUCH brighter and are dimmable. The 194 bulbs are worth the price if you want a brighter gauge cluster.

I think the rest of the dash lights are better suited to the stock 2127 bulbs since there aren't any sources for side and front firing LEDs that small.

neptune · #3 10-14-2007, 04:16 AM

We have various #74 LED replacement bulbs from superbrightleds.com in the 77 240D. Mostly in the climate control panel knobs and the lighting for it. One in the inoperative light for the Becker, I think one in the glovebox light, some in the idiot lights, and then both city lights in the ecodes. I may have put a couple in the tiny light sidelight on the outside of the taillights, I can't recall.
The primary purpose of the switch to LED's was to try to save the brittle plastic of the heater control panel which has been cooked to death by the little tiny 1.5watt bulbs that were in there for 30 years. The difference is massive, the old bulbs made the heater knobs hot to the touch, the leds of course produce negligible heat. A side benefit is that they reduce the current load on the old wiring enough to significantly brighten the instrument cluster bulbs (which are still old incandescents).

muleears · #4 10-14-2007, 06:56 AM

I used them for the instrument cluster lights in my 124. Got them from autolumination.com, pretty good prices.

bikpedlr · #5 03-22-2010, 04:39 PM

LED's for exterior lighting, brake, turn, back up, flashers etc. ? ? ? ? I've seen LED's in cluster format mounted on 7506 7528 bulb fixture. I've heard mixed reports about them being lower watage but drawing higher voltage and burning MB wiring? Anyone had any experience? I don't feel the need to mess with interior lighting, but IF led's would up my visibility in urban traffic ( Houston Tx ) that would be a big plus in my books.

okyoureabeast · #6 03-22-2010, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chad300tdt

I am adding w126 reading lights to supplement the cabin lighting.

Enlighten me with your new project Master Chad

I also threw a pair of LEDs into the cluster panel. Well worth the upgrade.

On a side note, I saw a 1976 6.9 w123. I didn't even know that type of car existed. The car had these nifty rear reading lights.

tbomachines · #7 03-22-2010, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by okyoureabeast

On a side note, I saw a 1976 6.9 w123.

Holy crap that thing must be a rocket. IIRC I don't think a w123 ever came from the factory with a 6.9, just the 116 so my guess would be a retrofit. Honestly I'm surprised it even fits under the hood. Do you have any pictures or link or anything?

Chad300tdt · #8 03-22-2010, 05:05 PM

I never ended up finding a set of the w126 reading lights. I ended up getting a w126 instead.

I posted links to the brake light LEDs from http://www.ledlight.com/ somewhere here. I know they'll fit the wagon tail lights, but I'm not sure of the sedan or coupe. The site has all the measurements of the bulbs so you can check before you order.

I don't know of anyone who has used them yet, but I will eventually get around to doing it myself. Things are going slow with this kind of stuff right now since I have 4 cars that all need some kind of repair and one of them is on jack stands in my garage.

snookwhaler · #9 03-22-2010, 05:15 PM

If you do a search there are quite few pics of folks that have switched to LED's for the cluster. Some have also played with the interior lighting with good results. I was going to do it, but figured it would be too difficult to make the "color temperature" of all the bulbs in the car match. After some good advice from members here on the forum (thank you!), I just installed new bulbs, cleaned the prism's and put foil tape around the prism's. This along with painting the gauge needles made a pretty dramatic difference. I can actually see gauges at night!

scottmcphee · #10 03-22-2010, 06:19 PM

I tried both LED and incandescent bulbs to boost the cluster lighting.

What ended up being most effective and appealing in a factory OEM yet better kinda way was to cut away the forward part of the clear prism channeling system on top of the cluster (once it's removed) and dropping 4 red panel bulb assemblies, rated at 12v, which have incandescent bulbs in them. These are about as big as 1" length of pencil. Locate them at the outer most points of the prism slot up there, drop them in so they're flush with the cluster top, and duct tape to cover the slot (anti-dust measure). So you end up with four fairly evenly spaced sources of light.

Bright LED's tend to "hot spot" some areas of the cluster, and nothing feels as warm as a bulb. These cast a nice glow over the whole surface of the gauges.

However, if you're trying to channel light through the prism system, then high efficiency LEDs are probably the best "bright for buck" you can get with low heat emissions. People using higher watt bulbs in the normal sockets tend to burn the cluster up, melt prisms, fry contacts, etc..

I use red LED's extensively throughout the dash replacing all those little bulbs, half of them were burned out. I have tiny LED that fit inside all the switches... everything is red now.

I've seen a "blue" theme car. It's ricey compared to red. If you're a purist, you'll probably use white LEDs to do similar to try and emulate tiny bulbs... but I find red in many new vehicles and think it's easier on the eyes (less distracting) than white.

Also good to know is LEDs don't respond as well (broad range) to the dimmer switch in the car. Bulbs have a good range of brightness from off to full. LEDs range tends to be from about "half" to "full" bright, they just don't get as dim as bulbs can. Sure you can put bigger resistors with the LEDs and this caps the upper end. But usually people are sick of dim and trying to get bright. Just beware if you're using a mix of bulbs and LEDs it can be an uneven blend of brightnesses.

okyoureabeast · #11 03-22-2010, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbomachines

Holy crap that thing must be a rocket. IIRC I don't think a w123 ever came from the factory with a 6.9, just the 116 so my guess would be a retrofit. Honestly I'm surprised it even fits under the hood. Do you have any pictures or link or anything?

It wasn't a retrofit. From what I understood the old Czech gent who had it said there were only 1000 units shipped to the US. Take that info with a grain of salt.

The car is sitting in Dryden NY. I wish I snapped some pictures. Go to google streetview. You can see it from the street.

The car itself didn't have exterior rust, but it has been sitting a long time so anything is possible. The interior was wet from a leak in the windshield. I almost wanted to buy it for 300$ and turn it into a project.

pawoSD · #12 03-22-2010, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chad300tdt

I never ended up finding a set of the w126 reading lights. I ended up getting a w126 instead.

I posted links to the brake light LEDs from http://www.ledlight.com/ somewhere here. I know they'll fit the wagon tail lights, but I'm not sure of the sedan or coupe. The site has all the measurements of the bulbs so you can check before you order.

I don't know of anyone who has used them yet, but I will eventually get around to doing it myself. Things are going slow with this kind of stuff right now since I have 4 cars that all need some kind of repair and one of them is on jack stands in my garage.

I have several W126 reading lights available if you are looking for some.

TnBob · #13 03-22-2010, 06:57 PM

LED's are a favorite item of mine.

They are available in about any shade of the color spectrum.

They always run very cool is setup properly.

They are dimmable.

The issue with auto's is that LED's are both voltage and current sensitive.
Our voltage in the system varies from >12V to <14v which is ~20%.
Being to the circuit a semi resistive load.. the current can vary greatly with
that V swing.

Even ones that use only 20MA or .020 Amps can be very bright and the 500ma ones can be literally blinding up close.

One very confusing factor for many is the View Angle of LED's. We are use to 360 degree lights and LED's are not. They come with view angles from about 6 degrees to around 180 degrees.

I do intend to be playing a bit with some in my metallic blue 300D.

babymog · #14 03-22-2010, 07:27 PM

The main problem I see with white LEDs, besides not having an omnidirectional output, is the phosphor burning and diminishing the light output over a fairly short time (the phosphor is what makes the blue LED into a white one, as it burns the LED's output becomes dimmer and more blue).

TnBob · #15 03-22-2010, 09:57 PM

LED's are rated at 100,000 hours.
Even if they only last 50,000 hours thats 2000 full days.