Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

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action
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Re: Conversion to LED tail lights(1157) & others

Post by action »

Does the dimmer function still operate with the new bulbs for the lamps in the instrument cluster?

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Re: Conversion to LED tail lights(1157) & others

Post by denizen44 »

Yes it does!
I wanted to mention that but forgot!
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Re: Conversion to LED tail lights(1157) & others

Post by Galaxie65s »

Wow! I love the end result! It's just deLIGHTful! Definitely worth the effort.

Glad to know the dimmer still works too; I'd wondered about that.

Shine on you crazy diamond!
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by LithiumCobalt »

What is the latest on LED tail light bulbs? I am getting tired of my blower motor slowing down when I have the brakes applied and think I want to upgrade. There are so damn many choices it's almost impossible to know what to buy. Trying to find something close to the original light level is preferable as well. I don't want it lit up like a fireball coming down the road. Also, what do I need to do to swap out my original flasher? I see mention of the three wire version. How do I integrate that without hacking up existing wiring?
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by Solid »

LithiumCobalt wrote:What is the latest on LED tail light bulbs? I am getting tired of my blower motor slowing down when I have the brakes applied and think I want to upgrade. There are so damn many choices it's almost impossible to know what to buy. Trying to find something close to the original light level is preferable as well. I don't want it lit up like a fireball coming down the road. Also, what do I need to do to swap out my original flasher? I see mention of the three wire version. How do I integrate that without hacking up existing wiring?
I use the ones from Phillips. At least when I got them they were the only LED conversion bulbs that were actually DOT legal. They work fine.
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by TonyC »

I'll admit, I have thought about that retrofit a few times myself. What has kept me from doing it is observation from others' applications.

First example, pick-'em-up trucks fitted with light strips below their tail gates: A very good idea on the surface, considering that all pick-'em-ups have very limited usable space for tail/brake/turn lights; the extra strip should give additional rear visibility. In the taillight operation, it does; but if the truck brakes or signals a turn, I hardly notice a difference in brightness coming from the strip. I actually would have to pay extra attention to even notice that the strip is flashing--which it does, but not all that brightly. On a side note, I think that retrofitting one of those strips in the cavity between the trunk lid and rear bumper of the '68 Lincolns would be a good idea; but to ensure that critical signals will be visible to following drivers, I think the taillight circuit would have to be left disconnected--or spliced somehow into the brake/turn circuit.

Second example, our moderator. When Dan Szwarc came through Manhattan a few months ago, I managed to see how his LEDs operated. I noticed that the taillights were significantly brighter than Frankenstein's old-school bulbs; but, when he braked and signaled a turn, I could barely notice a difference in the brightness--maybe about a 10% increase in brightness, whereas Frankenstein's lights double in intensity from the taillights to the brake/turn lights. And this was from a driving perspective, I was driving behind him.

These two observations lead me to conclude that LEDs have an intrinsic flaw in them with regards to brightness, especially in the brake/turn details. I do like the idea of a light bulb that is very visible with a fraction of power being used, but they are not a 100% improvement over incandescent bulbs: They work great as taillights, even in inclement weather conditions; but they are very deficient when signaling critical momentum or directional changes. And that's what has kept me from going there. Now, if LED technology evolves to the point that bulbs can eventually double their brightness in those critical operations, then I'd be game for them.

---Tony
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by denizen44 »

This is why I spent so much time and money trying out so many bulbs, especially red ones:
there's no way from sales literature to accurately predict their behavior and brightness, especially with flashers and headlights.

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In the end, there was pretty much only one model (still using it!)
that had very close lo/hi contrast and brightness, compared to the OEM bulbs.
And it's still available on Ebay, although the price has gone up a bit.
Last edited by denizen44 on Thu Aug 01, 2019 11:09 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by action »

I have followed your research.
Have not pulled the trigger on any LEDs yet because of other projects. But when I do I am coming back here.

Thanks so much for the research you have done!!!!

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2006 Lincoln Navigator Limited 5.4l 3V
1996 Lincoln Mark VIII 2DR Coupe Diamond Anniversary 4.6l DOHC, 4R70W, 3.07
1970 Continental Mark III Triple Black 460 4v, C6, 2.80 (Used for Woodward Dream Cruise or just generally stored in Michigan)
1966 Lincoln Continental 4DR Convertible 462 4v, C6, 3.00
1966 Mercury Park Lane 4DR Breezeway 410 4v, C6, 2.80
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by denizen44 »

Here are some VIDEOS of those winning bulbs, with the HEADLIGHTS ON.
On the driver's side, LEDS. On the passenger's side, incandescent.

Daylight:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/39311243@N05/48427841907

Evening:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/39311243@N05/48427844782

lo/hi contrast is pretty decent?
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by mlj427 »

Do the 70s come with all 3 lights flashing? On my 72 only the outer 2 flash. If you changed it would the new socket fit the housing?
I also wanted to try adding sequential light kit like this from eBay. https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre ... 2866977384
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by denizen44 »

mlj427 wrote:Do the 70s come with all 3 lights flashing?
Yes, 70 and 71 do.
On my 72 only the outer 2 flash.
Yeah I've seen that on youtube videos as well... Does the third light work at all?
I also wanted to try adding sequential light kit like this from eBay. https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre ... 2866977384
Paired with LEDS, some of these kits can look quite nice... https://youtu.be/vwOCZVo8u_g?t=412
Last edited by denizen44 on Thu Aug 01, 2019 10:28 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by LithiumCobalt »

Denizen, will you provide a link to the prize winning bulbs that you used?
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by denizen44 »

Links below.

IMPORTANT NOTES:
*Auction title says "40W". That is only an "equivalence": these bulbs don't actually consume more than 5w.
*I ordered a few more of these about 3 months ago, and they were identical to the ones I tested. However, if/when a new batch of bulbs comes up for sale, there is a small possibility that the newer bulbs will have been tweaked/upgraded by the manufacturer. This happened to me once and I had to return the merchandise.
*I have only tested these bulbs on 1970-1971s. I don't know how they would behave on other years.
*The flashing behavior of the bulbs may depend heavily on the flasher unit you use.
*The dash panel turn signal indicators are amperage-sensitive and thus may no longer react if you change several bulbs on your circuit.
*Since my tests, there are over 50 entirely new bulb models available. New designs pop up like crazy!
*The bulbs used to be available on Amazon, but no longer. Only amber models now!
*The "KATUR" bulbs described at the beginning of this thread also pass every test, they are just around 50-70% BRIGHTER, making the LOW intensity filament seem too bright in the evening. However, the light diffusers(if any) behind your tail light lenses may alleviate this problem.
*I recommend NOT changing every single bulb on your flashing circuit to LEDS because flashing may fail! I kept the OEM incandescent bulbs for the front(amber) turn signals, allowing the circuit to still carry a minimum amount of amperage.
*I recommend ordering a SAMPLE of the bulbs before ordering a whole batch. After testing my samples, I ordered 16 more bulbs, which should last quite a while.
*When testing the bulbs, on-car results may differ from in-house results using a transformer, and single bulb tests may differ from multi-bulb tests. Keep that in mind when ordering samples.
*If/when links expire, seller's name is DT-AUTOTECH


https://www.ebay.com/itm/331944460883

https://www.ebay.com/itm/232052773073
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by LithiumCobalt »

Denizen,

Thank you very much for posting links to both the bulbs and the videos and also all of your research. Extremely valuable. I'm definitely going to pull the trigger on this one.
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Re: Conversion to LED (1157 tail lights & others)

Post by denizen44 »

No problem, had lots of fun doing these tests! :wink:
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