What was good for the front is good for the back - I'm talking LEDs!

 My last post was all about upgrading visibility up front in the headlights.  I figured, why not check out the back? 👀 But seriously, why have I waited 6 years to do this!?  Out back there are 4 lights per side.

Reverse LED: AUXITO LED, 2600 Lumens, 6000K White, Back Up Lamp, Pack of 2 ~$15

Turn Signal LED: AUXITO 3157 LED Bulb Amber, Pack of 2 ~$20

Stop LED: AUXITO 3157 LED Bulbs Red for Brake Lights, Pack of 2 ~$20

Side Marker LED  CanBus Error Free 194 Amber LED for Side Marker $11 

**note these are polarity sensitive so double check them

Getting the rear lenses out is really simple, pull out the lower carpet block, and untwist the plastic nut, there is also a 2nd one up and back from that one - amazing how 2 screwnuts hold this in place - there is another stabby part that is pressure fit toward the front of the light, just used a screwdriver to pop it out

if you haven't seen behind these lights, it's DIRTY back there! all the water drainage, leaves, etc. are in there - clean it out!

one simple plug in back, push the tab and it comes right out 👏

here's a comparison of the old bulbs vs the LEDs

needless to say, even in daylight you can see which side is the LED and which is OEM

LED reverse light left and OEM on right... it's a no brainer!!! Even in daytime!!

and here's everything done out back, not the brake lights are not on, just as running lights

needless to say - even in daylight, these new LEDs are PHENOMENAL!!

Two big thumbs up!!  👍👍

Headlight upgrades across the board - worth it!

After my last post, and a few weeks of driving, while I liked the LEDs they just didn't have a long-term benefit that I was hoping for.  I opted to return them and went for an insane update.  With all the rain in NorCal, the nights have felt darker than usual, maybe it's just my old eyes 😆

Here's the upgrade list that I used to update ALL bulbs in the headlight, believe it or not there are 4 modifiable light sources in there.  

Left to Right: Amber Turn Signal, Green Turning Light,
Red Headlight, Amber Marker Light

PSA: the links are through Amazon, helps me pay for blogging, hosting, etc.  Please turn off your adblock to see the parts that are used.

Auxito seems to have the best list of all lights that can be upgraded, I did a mix of lights, some due to cost, but it's a great list!  
I'll breakdown the replacements, and let's start with the easy ones - the side marker lights!
These are a pretty common 194 LED replacement.  The implementation in the headlight is interesting as the bulb holder aligns with contacts in the actual headlamp, so you can just swap bulbs and snap the holder back in place.

this squigly thing is the side marker bulb holder

you can see the 194 bulb and the contacts on the holder

quick comparison of 194 vs LED size

swapped in the LED

standard incandescent bulb

new LED bulb, much brighter!

Next up, let's go for broke with the Headlights.  Yes these are expensive, but the OSRAM XENARC Night Breaker Laser D3S LEDs are insanely bright! 

very pricey, but extremely bright HIDs from OSRAM

crazy bright, even at dusk!

up next - the PSX24W bulb is really deep in there!

The next light was the most challenging of the bunch, the turning/directional lights are a size I've never worked with previously.  This makes it part of the challenge.  The PSX24W LED socket has two tabs that you push in and the socket is removed.  The big problem with the headlights is that you cannot get your hands in there, at least I couldn't fit my hands.  I opted to use some curved pliers for a while, but ended up snaping off the tabs which let me remove the socket - at least I could swap the bulbs now!

check out that bulb compared to the LED - HUGE difference!

Lastly, let's swap out the turn signal bulbs.  These are sometimes touchy due to a fast flash issue where resistors may be needed.  In this case, I bought the AUXITO CANBUS anti-flash LEDs, and they work perfectly!  On initial startup they'll fast flash for about 3-5 blinks, but then settle in to a regular flash time sequence.

All in, it's not a cheap upgrade at around $225, but dang the light output is PHENOMENAL!!! and still cheaper than aftermarket headlights.  Two big thumbs up!

Upgraded to LED headlights

One of the HID bulbs I used back in 2019 burned out, so with newer LED technology I upgraded to a new set of D3S LEDs.  OPP ULITE D3S Led Headlight Bulbs, 3RD-Gen 100% Plug & Play, Canbus Error Free, 6000K White 70W 8600LM Headlights Bulb, Replace OEM Xenon Bulb

The process to remove the headlights is really simple, 2 screws with I believe T-25 bits.  Then tug on the housing and it comes forward.  

You can see the old HID bulb on the right, and the replacement LED on the left

Remove the collar from the HID and position it correctly on the new LED bulb

Just align the square hole with the square spot on the LED and it slides right in place

Plug the LED into the HID harness

Simply tuck the extra wire/connector inside the headlight

The results are pretty awesome!  The 6000k offers a blue-white light and these are much brighter than the HID setup!

Highly recommended!!!

Upgraded to Diode Dynamics SLF LED Fog Lights

The guys at Diode Dynamics are awesome - not only do they have great products, they stand behind them!  We recently had one of our older LED bulbs die out, so we did an RMA and since they no longer produced those lights, they sent us the latest SLF model LED - and wow are they great!

 

 

here's one of the new LEDs - excellent packaging and plugs right into the fog light socket!

Here's the simple removal/install process... I used to think you had to pull the bumper off these cars, but if you carefully use a flat screwdriver - it pops the fog light fascia off the bumper and all you need is a Torx-30 screwdriver to remove 3 screws!

 

Old LED on top, new setup on the bottom - very slick setup!

the trick to the front section coming off was to put a thin screwdriver in between the bumper and the fascia section for the foglight, you have to check a few locations but once you press down and pop the clips, pull toward the front of the car and it will pop out.

carefully popping off the fascia exposes the lens and 3 screws

3 simple screws and the lens comes right out 

just unplug the old bulb, and add the new LED - and screw/snap it all back together

Light output is excellent and now we have fogs again!  Highly recommended! 

Let there be light! (in my hatch)

Some of the simplest (dumbest) things that we take for granted is lighting, sure everyone thinks of headlights - but what about the interior?  You know, you just got back from the store and you pop the trunk/hatch and you can barely see...

A simple, inexpensive mod is to upgrade to lights with brighter lumens and longer life - so you do this ONCE, not many times...

Diode Dynamics has a great reputation, we love their driving lights Mountune MP275 FMIC Installed so I opted for some 194 HP5 Cool White LEDs from DD.

Diode Dynamics

Super simple install, I'll let the pics do the talking...

OEM 194 bulbs (incandescent) about 4300K  - under cover (normal) on left and exposed right

NEW HP5 LED installed (exposed) these are 6000K

this is the HP5 installed behind the lens

left is OEM incandescent - right is the HP5 LED

and the final result with both HP5 installed!

as you can see - it's a much brighter, whiter light and visibility is increased at probably 1/4 of the power draw and should last the lifetime of the vehicle!  

Definitely Two-Thumbs Up! 

👍👍