Exterior LED lighting upgrade

Last edited:
Gerald Morris said:
Looks plenty bright, for sure! Is it DOT approved, FWIW?
Click to expand...
Not sure if it is DOT approved.
Check the link I provided.
Besides nobody bothers the old cars at least up here anyways.
DOT approved lights on 2022 models are brutally harsh compared to the switchbacks IMHO
 
cbarge said:
Not sure if it is DOT approved.
Check the link I provided.
Besides nobody bothers the old cars at least up here anyways.
DOT approved lights on 2022 models are brutally harsh compared to the switchbacks IMHO
Click to expand...

It is. I looked. I want the DOT to TURN THE LUMINOSITY DOWN on the damned headlights. Not likely, given the american penchant for "more, more! MORE!" I stuck with 50 yr old incandescents for my headlights, which do very well with good wiring and SSRs. I originally wanted to find low power lamps, but those are rare. I finally found some H10 bulbs which one could use with Hella adapter reflectors and lenses, but opted to just use the Old School lamps instead. Got NOS Union Carbide 4000 low beams for $20 for a case of a dozen, then a couple GE 4001s for $10 ea. Nice old red shifted white light from all those!
 
Gerald Morris said:
Looks plenty bright, for sure! I checked and YES, these are DOT approved too. These rate 192 lm. When I want new amber lights, I'm going for these:1157 LED Bulb - Dual Function 27 SMD LED Tower - BAY15D Bulb | Super Bright LEDs

330 lm! Also LED approved. I LIKE amber lights for the front. Good in FOG.
Click to expand...
Don't be surprised if those amber bulbs cause your turn signals to not work properly. See my note in this previous comment: Exterior LED lighting upgrade

I believe that the problem is that the same amber LED elements are fed through both power contacts, through a resistor to dim them for parking light function and bypassing the resistor for the brighter turn signal function. This ties together the parking light and turn signal circuits through the internal resistor. This power backfeed causes the turn signals to malfunction.

The "switchback" LED bulbs use different LED elements for the parking light and turn signal functions, so the 2 circuits remain separate as they were originally.
 
Mike66Chryslers said:
Don't be surprised if those amber bulbs cause your turn signals to not work properly. See my note in this previous comment: Exterior LED lighting upgrade
Click to expand...

I don’t seem to be having this issue on my ‘68. These are working in all functions. When the parking lights are on, the bulbs go between dim (parking light) and bright (turn signal). When the headlights are on, the parking lights go out (this seems to be their design) but the turn signals still work. I have been extremely happy with this switch over to LEDs so far. Especially on the tail end. The tail lights and especially the brake lights. They have never been this bright and reactive.
 
Mike66Chryslers said:
Don't be surprised if those amber bulbs cause your turn signals to not work properly. See my note in this previous comment: Exterior LED lighting upgrade

I believe that the problem is that the same amber LED elements are fed through both power contacts, through a resistor to dim them for parking light function and bypassing the resistor for the brighter turn signal function. This ties together the parking light and turn signal circuits through the internal resistor. This power backfeed causes the turn signals to malfunction.

The "switchback" LED bulbs use different LED elements for the parking light and turn signal functions, so the 2 circuits remain separate as they were originally.
Click to expand...

Since I currently run Phillips Ultinon amber bulbs for the front without issue, I would call this irrelevant FUD in my case and that of anyone using state of the art LED 1034/1157 replacements. Such problems arose 5 yrs ago with 1st generation sino-crap stuff, which yet abounds in many warehouses, but if one purchases modern stuff, one shouldn't worry.

Ultinon actually represents Philips state of the art for 2019, and that works well for my Newport now. Ecce!
front-turn-signal.jpg

Not too bad for a "malfunctioing" LED turn signal.

I'm sure better stuff awaits those willing to experiment a bit.
 
cbarge said:
I shoulda taken before pics but the results speak for themselves..
I did cool white reverse lights so Maggie can see when parking the car at night.
View attachment 406313
Click to expand...
Do the reverse lights/parking lights/and all other “non-flashing” lights need and relays? I would think not but need to ask to confirm. Thanks!
 
DDR2467 said:
Do the reverse lights/parking lights/and all other “non-flashing” lights need and relays? I would think not but need to ask to confirm. Thanks!
Click to expand...

NONE of the low wattage stuff needs to be fed by a relay! The whole purpose of using relays close to the battery lies in minimizing the distance to the current source, thus reducing the need for large conductors. In abysmally low voltage systems like our old rods' 12VDC, conductor resistivity quickly piles up with distance, thus needing high conductance, FAT wires to compensate for the relatively large percentage of loss from voltage DROP.

LED bulbs eliminate MUCH worry about "VD"* simply with their far greater efficiency, drawing an order of magnitude or more less current from the aged, originally undersized (corporate penny-pinching!) conductors in our old sleds.

In truth, with intelligent lamp selection, you even can avoid needing relays for the headlights, if you're content with simply equivalent luminescence for FAR lower power, rather than obscene, blinding blue-white light from modern LED arrays fed the SAME POWER the 50 yr old incandescent lamps normally used!

I kept my old incandescent headlamps, but fed them with nice fat 10 gauge wire from 40 amp solid state Tycho-Bosch relays near the battery and protected w 30 A breakers. (I originally used 30A 1.25"x/25" glass fuses, but replaced those w the breakers for ease of reset.)

Anyway, you can use the old fuseblock for the LED equipped circuits. Nice that.
 
I have been continuing my LED conversion journey. As I continued to look at my wiring diagram I thought to myself “self, I wonder if my license plate light works?” Sure enough, no light. Got into it today, and sure enough, the bulb is blown. Ordered a Type 67 LED replacement which will be here tomorrow.

in the meantime, I need to glue the clear plastic housing back together. Both of the tabs on where the screws hold the housing in place broke:BangHead:. But some gorilla glue seemed to do the trick. I had a working type 67 filament bulb lying around so I plugged that in and viola! I have a license plate light. Embarking on this LED project has really taught me a lot about this car.
 
Last edited:
SPF Required said:
I have been continuing my LED conversation journey. As I continued to look at my wiring diagram I thought to myself “self, I wonder if my license plate light works?” Sure enough, no light. Got into it today, and sure enough, the bulb is blown. Ordered a Type 67 LED replacement which will be here tomorrow.

in the meantime, I need to glue the clear plastic housing back together. Both of the tabs on where the screws hold the housing in place broke:BangHead:. But some gorilla glue seemed to do the trick. I had a working type 67 filament bulb lying around so I plugged that in and viola! I have a license plate light. Embarking on this LED project has really taught me a lot about this car.
Click to expand...
Good news is the housing is available in repop since Mopar used the same one for many cars of the same vintage.
1966-78 License Plate Light Lens, (See Details for Fitment)-Repro
 
cbarge said:
Good news is the housing is available in repop since Mopar used the same one for many cars of the same vintage.
1966-78 License Plate Light Lens, (See Details for Fitment)-Repro
Click to expand...

thanks for that link @cbarge that is the most affordable one yet. I figured I’d give my repair job a try first. With the way the housing gets sandwiched into the adapter, and with installing an LED bulb in the socket, it’s doubtful I’ll ever need to replace it again. So as long as those tabs hold up for reassembly, I am optimistic it will last pretty much forever. (Fingers crossed).
 
SPF Required said:
I have been continuing my LED conversion journey. As I continued to look at my wiring diagram I thought to myself “self, I wonder if my license plate light works?” Sure enough, no light. Got into it today, and sure enough, the bulb is blown. Ordered a Type 67 LED replacement which will be here tomorrow.

in the meantime, I need to glue the clear plastic housing back together. Both of the tabs on where the screws hold the housing in place broke:BangHead:. But some gorilla glue seemed to do the trick. I had a working type 67 filament bulb lying around so I plugged that in and viola! I have a license plate light. Embarking on this LED project has really taught me a lot about this car.
Click to expand...
This style of LED license plate light fits the hole spacing of the original bracket perfectly. I picked up a couple when they were on sale. You need to cut the 1-wire connector off your original and attach it to one of the wire pigtails, and ground the other wire. It's not factory-correct, but who's going to notice? :)
images
 
My superglue job on the license plate lens did the trick. Got the #67 LED equivalent today so decided to do the reinstall.
3A064533-67F0-4370-8409-1AE626C08794.jpeg


Wish I would have done a before pic, but I am thrilled with the brightness of the tail lights and now have a lit up license plate too. Love it!
E0176DCB-7265-485E-A529-08EF7D2BBB60.jpeg


working on the reverse lights next. Stay tuned!
 
Last edited:
So I know this thread is technically about exterior led lights, but this process has completely captured my interest and I am all in. Been making my way around the exterior, but also through the interior now. Not only have I replaced bulbs that haven’t worked in the 25+ years I have owned the car, I am discovering new bulbs I didn’t even know were there.

A couple of weeks ago, I replaced the map light just above the radio. The bulb came in a two pack, so I looked to see if there were any other spots that used the same bulb. That’s when I remembered about the interior courtesy lights at the base of the armrests in the back seat (discovered these when I changed out the lift cylinders for the top earlier this year). Plugged in the new LED, and viola, more light! Ordered another set from Amazon and sure enough, the other side works too. Very happy with the results….

AE9E582C-F7A2-4967-99F7-50F8508D5D1B.jpeg


The next challenge is going to be the light around the ignition switch. Time delay relay for that one will be here tomorrow. I will take any advice you have to offer on that one
 
Last edited:
SPF Required said:
So I know this thread is technically about exterior led lights, but this process has completely captured my interest and I am all in. Been making my way around the exterior, but also through the interior now. Not only have I replaced bulbs that haven’t worked in the 25+ years I have owned the car, I am discovering new bulbs I didn’t even know were there.

A couple of weeks ago, I replaced the map light just above the radio. The bulb came in a two pack, so I looked to see if there were any other spots that used the same bulb. That’s when I remembered about the interior courtesy lights at the base of the armrests in the back seat (discovered these when I changed out the lift cylinders for the top earlier this year). Plugged in the new LED, and viola, more light! Ordered another set from Amazon and sure enough, the other side works too. Very happy with the results….

View attachment 489195

The next challenge is going to be the light around the ignition switch. Time delay relay for that one will be here tomorrow. I will take any advice you have to offer on that one
Click to expand...
You can remove the ignition key cylinder/switch and access the bulb that way.
Or be a monkey and weasel working around it lol!
 
cbarge said:
You can remove the ignition key cylinder/switch and access the bulb that way.
Or be a monkey and weasel working around it lol!
Click to expand...

well… I tried the monkey weasel method. Was able to get to the socket and replace the very burned filament bulb with an led. Plugged in the timer delay relay. Grounded the bulb socket and sure enough IT WORKED! But now I can’t quite get the socket back into the hole next to the ignition cylinder securely…. How would one go about getting better access to that part of the dash?
D60AB9F1-2200-43FC-A31C-555DB2F1F433.jpeg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

cbarge
Plug n play headlight harness upgrade
2 3
Replies
59
Views
12K
cbarge
cbarge
Back
Top