LED Gauge Install

[capricefrk013]

Hey guys Ive got a 95 yukon, I have already finished installing the bulbs in the gauges, door steps, dome lights, and anywhere else you could think of putting an led bulb. I cannot for the life of me figure out how change the HVAC bulbs. Do the bulbs pull out of the socket? I ordered the T1.5-x: 5mm LED Instrument Twist Lock Lamp from super bright leds, and they have the bulb already in the twist lock but I cant figure out how the old twist locks come off! I tried taking some plyers to the bulbs and gently pulling on the bulbs and i broke two of them trying that. If needed I can post a picture sometime tomorrow. This is the last piece of the puzzle and I cant figure it out!! thanks guys!

The bulbs dont come out of the sockets. Your replacing the whole bulb/socket with the new leds.


Just for those wondering about the power mirror controls, they are not as easy as the rest. They use regular bulbs with no sockets. Take a regular raw led in the correct size. Hard to explain. I will post pics of a switch blown apart next week. I had to take one apart because Im working on a 98 topkick and we are putting 07 topkick mirrors on it and I have to hard wire the switch to the mirrors.

 

[borahshadow]

Just for those wondering about the power mirror controls, they are not as easy as the rest. They use regular bulbs with no sockets. Take a regular raw led in the correct size. Hard to explain. I will post pics of a switch blown apart next week. I had to take one apart because Im working on a 98 topkick and we are putting 07 topkick mirrors on it and I have to hard wire the switch to the mirrors.

the cargo lamp switch is the same. I think it's probably a good idea to put a resistor in line with the LED. I don't think the switch has any sort of current limiting built in. off the top of my head I think a 680 ohm should be about right.

 

[yukonbeast350]

ok guys i still cant figure out how these hvac bulbs come apart, does your guys hvac bulbs look like this???

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[jdixon74]

ok guys i still cant figure out how these hvac bulbs come apart, does your guys hvac bulbs look like this???

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No, not at all.. and ill tell ya right now that the T1.5 socketed one's you bought will not work there. I never did my 95 so i can't comment on how to make it work.

 

[thunderstruck]

ok guys i still cant figure out how these hvac bulbs come apart, does your guys hvac bulbs look like this???

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Okay, the sockets are only like that on some of the 1995 HVAC controllers. The bulbs simply pull out of those sockets, but they are extremely tight. If you ordered the T1.5 LEDs, just pull them out of their sockets too.

 

[MIHELA]

Replace those with the 74-x bulbs. They are 74 peanut bulbs, they are tight but will come out.

 

[capricefrk013]

True. I had to replace the ones in my 95 caprice and the parts store had the harness with the bulbs & sockets but once I realized the bulbs came out I just replaced the bulbs. Didnt do LED in that car tho.

 

[capricefrk013]

the cargo lamp switch is the same. I think it's probably a good idea to put a resistor in line with the LED. I don't think the switch has any sort of current limiting built in. off the top of my head I think a 680 ohm should be about right.

Ya you just cut the illumination wire, Brown or gray, and put in either a 470 a 680. You can go higher up in OHMS but that only makes them brighter and they dont last very long. I suggest 470 OHM. I bought a bundle of 1000 470 OHM resistors from ebay for real cheap. I have done a lot of LED jobs in a ton of cars.

 

[capricefrk013]

Here is a linky for the proper resistor size. http://www.oznium.com/resistors

LED calculator http://www.oznium.com/led-resistor-calculator

 

[borahshadow]

Ya you just cut the illumination wire, Brown or gray, and put in either a 470 a 680. You can go higher up in OHMS but that only makes them brighter and they dont last very long. I suggest 470 OHM. I bought a bundle of 1000 470 OHM resistors from ebay for real cheap. I have done a lot of LED jobs in a ton of cars.

Higher Ohms = more resistance=less current=dimmer=longer lasting
You can use that calculator that you posted or just use some simple ohm's law rules. You want about 10-20ma passing through the LED (20ma max for most) and so in a car with 12-14v supply it is a simple Resistance = Voltage/Amperage so R=14/.02 which equals 700 so anything close to that works just fine. You could use a 1k resistor and be just fine.
I'm sure you just typed the wrong thing but I thought I'd correct you just so no one got confused. I thought I'd add some ohm's law education while I was at it as that is very valuable when ever one is working on anything electrical. I hope I didn't sound like a ****** as I wasn't trying to.