Definitive how to for Led's interior / exterior

[JimC64]

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/jaycam0802/car01.jpg

Hey all, has anyone done a definitive "how to" for replacing the interior lights with leds?
Maybe even one for the exterior......reverse lights, number plate bulbs etc etc.

I'm hoping to find one c/w with full write up including pics if possible and also bulb details.....

Anyone???

Jim

[nobbyuk]

I've replaced the roof lights with blue LEDs. I don't have any sort of how to though.

It's fairly straight forward. The courtesy lights are simple to change, but the map reading lights are a complete bugger to put in if you have large fingers like me.

I'll dig out the bulbs I used for the roof. My footwell lights were already LEDs so I don't know what the factory bulbs are.

As for the exerior, I've not attempted any of those as they will most likely trigger bulb warnings and I can't be bothered to fit resistors.

Cheers

[snapdragon]

Apart from front sidelights and maybe number-plates, forget exterior LEDS, they are crap as the lights need light to shine on the silver reflectors at the right angle and be focused onto the fresnel lenses. I got some from ebay and sent them back with a stiff email. I did one side and compared with the existing ones on the other side and they sucked beyond belief. I have not seen another car on the road with these as believe me you would notice the little ball of dim light in the cluster in daylight and think 'what's up?'.

[JimC64]

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/jaycam0802/car01.jpg


Nobby - thanks for the reply. If you can advise the bulb detail I'd appreciate it as it will help.
I'm considering doing the rear courtesy lights, front interior and map reading lights as well as the rear number plate lights. I really want that crisp sharp bright WHITE look
I'd also consider the reversing lights and possibly the stop / tail lights in bright RED led too....really freshen up the look I think - deffo my next job.
I was really hoping that someone had done a definitive write up detailin gall the bulbs required and a how to for removing the surrounds etc c/w pics.....surely someone must have done it?
If not I guess there's a how to waiting to happen!

Snapdragon - thanks for the advice. I'm thinking of an HID kit for the front at some point and wonder if anyone has done this. Possibly either HID's or LED's for the front fogs too. The yellowish light given off doesn't do it for me I'm afraid. Maybe sumthin I'm gonna have to dig a little deeper into

Thanks for the input guys

Jim

[nobbyuk]

If I get time this weekend I'll put together something for changing the interior lights, unless someone has one already.

I would not recommend an HID kit as we have reflector housings. Unit is not designed for a Xenon bulb so light goes everywhere. There's a few barry's round my way that have had that done and blind everyone coming toward them. I believe they are unable to see so I give them the benefit of my full beams too :D

I noticed on another forum that someone has fitted the headlamp unit from a 2009 A6 into an 2008 S6. Theory is it will also fit an A6. That has bi-xenon and LED running lights. Not cheap though at over £1000.

I'm not sure if the wiring in mine (halogen) will be man enough to run Xenons so I don't think I'll go that route. Considering an S6 front end swap to include the bumper LED running lights.


As I've said before I intend to change the rear lights for the highline version, which has LED brake lights. It's a straight swap and a recode with VCDS.

HTH

[JimC64]

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/jaycam0802/car01.jpg


BUMP>>>>>


Jim

[nobbyuk]

I've put together a sort of how to:

http://wildworldphotography.co.uk/audi/interior_light_replacement.pdf


Hope it helps.

Cheers

[JimC64]

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/jaycam0802/car01.jpg


Hi Nobby, thanks for the write up. The pics were great and should help to make the whole process much easier.
You should try and add this into the " how to " section so that many more people can see this and hopefully benefit from it too........much appreciated:beerchug:


Jim

[JimC64]

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r38/jaycam0802/car01.jpg

Following on from Nobbys great write up c/w pics http://wildworldphotography.co.uk/audi/interior_light_replacement.pdf

I started to have a look today. The how to on removing the console for the map reading lights and rear courtesy lights was bang on....thanks Nobby.
So far figured out I need 2 x 42mm festoon leds for the front along with 2 x BA9 leds for the map reading lights + a further 2 BA9's for the rears.
While I was at it I checked the rear number plate bulbs ( 2 x 38mm festoon leds ) which I hope to do at the same time. This got me onto the front footwell lights and the puddle lights too although I still have to figure out what they are - anyone know and like to share??
I reckon I'll go for the 1W super led 501 (W5W) for the sidelights while I'm at it as well.
This could be enough to start with before I consider whether or not to retrofit some aftermarket HID kits I've seen to improve the headlights and possibly the fogs at the same time too.
When I get round to it I hope to do a complete write up hopefully with pics and all the bulb details / links etc etc.
If there's anyone out there who has done this and would like to post it up - great!!
Anyone thats interested in doing it and wants to chip in with questions and or advice - great too.

Thanks guys

Jim

[Sam]

Jim, the image you include in every post is included in your signature automatically.

There's no need to post it every time ;)

[JimC64]

yeah yeah yeah mycar...take your point, but......have you anything helpful to add to the post other than reprimanding me?

Having said that being a mod on 2 other sites and an Admin on one you'd really think I'd know better:o
Now waiting for your definitive input on all bulbs required + a how to c/w pics to add to nobbys input already received;)

[Sam]

;)

I've replaced a few of my interior bulbs with LEDs.

The Passat isn't too dissimilar to the A6, which bits are you stuck on - which bulbs to use or how to get to them?

[nobbyuk]

my footwell lights are already LEDs. And I don't mean LED bulbs, I mean an actuial LED on a PCB!.

I wanted to change them to blue to match the roof lights, but when I got the holder out there was just a circuit board!

Anyhoo, the puddle lights in the bottom of the door are my next target. As soon as we get a dry spell I'll be under the car. If you haven't had any input by then, I'll let you know what the bulbs are.

Cheers.

[JimC64]

Thanks guys, much appreciated.
I've ordered the following from ultraleds

2 x (264) 42mm 3 WA SMT Leds Festoon 5W output Cool White (U423CW) = £8.78 ( front interior dome lights )

4 x 501/194/T10 Mini Light Tower 9 Leds Xenon White (One Bulb) (U5019W) = £18.40 ( puddle lights / front footwells - I believe, we'll see )

2 x (239) 37mm 6 WA SMT Leds Festoon 1W=11W output Cool White (U376UCW) = £17.60 ( rear licence plate lights )

Ordered these as a start and didn't order the map lights as yet as they don't seem to have wide angle leds for these as far as I can see. I also want to do the vanity mirrors and the sidelights with some super bright 501 leds that they offer......want to see how thse go first, so I'll let you know

Jim

[JimC64]

Hi guys, further info on led replacement

I've replaced the front interior dome lights with 42mm 3 led festoon from ultraleds.co.uk (http://ultraleds.co.uk) . They cost £4.39 each ( pic 1 )
I also replaced the number plate bulbs with 37mm 6leds festoon bulbs from the same place at £8.80 each ( pic 2 )
I've taken a few pics to try and highlight the differences but please bear in mind it was very sunny and hot when taken so not the best time to try and show contrasts in pics.
( pic 3 ) shows the difference between the leds fitted in the dome interior and the std lights in the map reading lights
( pic 4 ) shows the number plate leds in an unbelievably sunny day so gives a good idea how bright they are.
( pic 5 ) also shows the number plate leds - both of them - taken a few secs after in the same conditions.


Jim

[JimC64]

I've recently bought these 9 led tower 194 xenon white bulbs for the front puddle lights and the front footwell lights but have not fitted as yet. They cost £4.60 again from http://ultraleds.co.uk
see pics 1
I tried to fit leds to the map reading lights and what a beeeeacth they are. AAs stated before std leds are no good as they direct the light straight ahead.....you really want the light to be directed downwards which can be a problem to find the correct lights to do the job.
I've looked around and found these 12 universal white led lights that I think will do the job. They come with various attachements for ba9, wedge and festoon so you can adapt them for any aplication. Its basically 12 led lights on a 2.6cm x 2cm pad with foam backed double sided tape. I reckon they'll be the biz and at £3.99 a pair delivered I'm willing to give them a go.
I got them from http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Kittybabies-Auto-Car-Beauty-Shop if anyone wants to check them out. They also come in 15, 24, 36 etc etc so quite adaptable I think.

Thats all for now

Thanks

Jim

[JimC64]

UPDATE - Ok, Here it is. The 12 universal leds with connectors for Ba9's, festoons, and wedge style bulbs arrived today from Hong Kong. Pretty quickly really as I only went for std postage costs.
Spent around 20 mins and fitted them to the front map reading lights and rear courtesy lights and they worked an absolute treat. They give off a really bright white light with a very slight bluish tinge and match almost exactly the ones I put in the front interior.
I'm very pleased with the up to date look that they offer for a very small price and highly recommend anyone to try them.
If using them for the same application, the only advice I'd give is to possibly go for either 9 or maybe even 6 universal leds style. The 12's were great but just slightly too large and they were a bit fiddly to fit into such a small space. The smaller ones will give off just as much usable light probably but will fit in a jiffy:D


Help - Can anyone in the Glasgow area suggest any auto sparks that could help me with my rear number plate leds? I've fitted them and look absolutely stunning ( for about 10 secs ) and then the DIS comes up with bulb warning and off they go - looks like I'll need a resistor putting in - unfortunately its not my thing. Anyone interested I could look to maybe put another bit of work their way!;)

Jim

[JimC64]

Just found out that my exterior bulbs on my 2007 A6 are as follows

2 off H7 Headlight dipped
2 off H1 Headlight mainbeam
2 off W5W / 501 Sidelights
2 off H7 Foglights

Taking some advice as to whether to go and fit the 80w/100w as I did in my Jag X type ( which worked well for over a year with no probs ) or go for the std 55w type that supposedly give off 80% more bright white light.
Prefeably I'd like to go for the look with the uprated bulbs, but I just need to be as sure as I can that the wiring loom / headlight lenses will take it.

Jim

[JimC64]

All the headlight bulbs were just a straight swap for 80W by Sportzblue Ring automotive. mains H1 dipped and foglights H7.
Kudos to toby for help with getting the rear number plate leds to work properly. A 120 ohm resisitor fitted in parallel on each bulb sorted this problem out.
Well chuffed.

[eeyore]

I'm planning to get some LEDs for the number plate lamps on my 2003 Avant.

I've seen some (on ebay) that claim to have built in circuitry to prevent the bulb out warning http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=200358841317

Then there are some that don't mention this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=220375625960

Any advice on which I should go for?

The ones that claim to avoid the bulb warning are more expensive and I dont want to get scammed into paying more for something that ultimately gives me problems anyway :zx11:

[zollaf]

I'm planning to get some LEDs for the number plate lamps on my 2003 Avant.

I've seen some (on ebay) that claim to have built in circuitry to prevent the bulb out warning http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=200358841317

Then there are some that don't mention this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=220375625960

Any advice on which I should go for?

The ones that claim to avoid the bulb warning are more expensive and I dont want to get scammed into paying more for something that ultimately gives me problems anyway :zx11:
looking at the first sellers feedback, i wouldnt. hes in hong kong for a start and most stuff from that part of the world works fine, for 2 minutes. i would get the other ones, then work out what resistor you need and fit that as well.

[JimC64]

Hey there.....
my advice such as it is.......
The interior universal leds were from a hong kong supplier and have worked with zero problems to date. As for the leds in the rear number plate with the in built circuitry.....pass, I really don't know for certain. Thats not to say they won't work as someone somewhere needs to get this sorted out.....AND....they'll probably make a packet doing it too;)
All I know is mine did not have this and I had to have a 120ohm resistor fitted in parrallel and they now work great with no bulb out warnings...

Please let us know how you get on....

Jim

[eeyore]

Thanks for the advice guys, I think I'll go with the cheaper ones and work out the wiring if necessary :confused:

JimC64 - I'm no auto electrician but I do have a multimeter and a soldering iron so I'm prepared for some simple wiring if reqd! How did you work out what size of resistor to fit? Mine's a different model but I guess the same 120ohm resistors would work for me?

I assume that by "in parallel" you mean the resistor is connected into a wire running alongside the bulb from one contact to the other?

Where did you buy the resistors from?

[JimC64]

eeyore....I didn't work out the size of resisitor to fit, I took advice from a few members on another forum who had done the job as well as taking advice from a very knowledgable guy at Maplins (btw Maplins is where I got the resisitors from and they were about 22p each ).
They'v e been in around 5-6 weeks or so now with no problems at all:approve:

As for fitting them? I don't have a soldering iron etc so I asked a friend of mine at Halfords who was happy to do the job....only took 10 moinutes.
The resisitors are very small and have a wire either end. Simply solder one end of the wire to one contact and the other end to the opposite contact on the bulb and you're done. You need to do one for each bulb though as only doing one will still throw off the bulb warning.

Good luck

Jim

[eeyore]

OK, thanks JimC64 - I'll get the bulbs and have my soldering iron at the ready!

Did you go for LED sidelight bulbs in the end (if so which ones) or standard "blue/white" bulbs?

[JimC64]

Hi there...led sidelight bulbs would not fit as the body was too large. I opted for the sdielight bulbs supplied f.o.c on orders over £15 when i got my 80w Ring headlight bulbs rom autobulbs direct.
They give off a nice bluish thinge but not too boy racerish looking

Gotta order some more shortly as I want to do the vanity mirrors, footwell and puddle lights

[eeyore]

OK, well I got into this last weekend and changed my dipped and main beams for Sportzblue 80W bulbs and the rear number plate lights for LEDs.

Very pleased with the white look of the headlamps - just need some proper night driving now to decide whether they are an improvement over the OEM bulbs!

I replaced the rear plate bulbs with 6x LED festoons and wired in a 100ohm ceramic resistor (40p each from Maplins) in parallel to each. Bit of a fiddle as I had to site the resistors "remotely" inside the tailgate so as to be well away from any plastic. The resistors are quite big and there's not enough room in the bulb apertures so the black number plate surround had to come off to allow drilling and routing of the wires to the resistors, which are now clipped inside the metal frame of the tailgate using metal mains earth tags!

The result looks great and no bulb out warnings so far :D

The job should be finished completely when Autobulbs Direct send me the blue/white sidelight bulbs, which were out of stock last week. For the moment I'm running rather yellow std sideys :mad:

Still toying with the idea of some more subtle mods including painting the grey plastic lower parts of the bumpers and adding a subtle tailgate spoiler....

[JimC64]

sounds like a good job well job eeyore:Blush:
You will notice a BIG difference in night time driving I assure you....the look is great, soo much brighter n whiter:Blush::Blush:

I added the bootlid spoiler also if thats what you're on about?
I checked with Audi who wanted £300 approx to supply, paint n fit:(
I got the item from ebay ( Taiwan supplier I think it was ) delivered to my door painted to match my car - as perfect match as you'd get I think:approve: for £50. I fitted myself.....It did take around 15 - 20 mins though.....lol
Looks great and very stock too, so its ALL good

Jim

[eeyore]

Mine's an Avant so the spoiler I'm thinking about fits on the tailgate top. There's a guy on ebay selling (claimed) genuine Audi ones for about £70 including the postage. I'd probably paint it myself - using some proper mixed aerosols I should be able to get a professional finish.

Still deciding whether to shell out the £70 on a purely cosmetic mod though... :(

[nebenhw]

If I get time this weekend I'll put together something for changing the interior lights, unless someone has one already.

I would not recommend an HID kit as we have reflector housings. Unit is not designed for a Xenon bulb so light goes everywhere. There's a few barry's round my way that have had that done and blind everyone coming toward them. I believe they are unable to see so I give them the benefit of my full beams too :D

I noticed on another forum that someone has fitted the headlamp unit from a 2009 A6 into an 2008 S6. Theory is it will also fit an A6. That has bi-xenon and LED running lights. Not cheap though at over £1000.

I'm not sure if the wiring in mine (halogen) will be man enough to run Xenons so I don't think I'll go that route. Considering an S6 front end swap to include the bumper LED running lights.


As I've said before I intend to change the rear lights for the highline version, which has LED brake lights. It's a straight swap and a recode with VCDS.

HTH


Hi - I am a new joiner to Forum having recently purchased A6 Allroad. I've picked up on the thread related to DRLs. I have a 57 plate model with adaptive Xenons (AFS) at the front incl. DRL - albeit halogen. I was wondering if you could confirm or advise whether buying a set of new Xenons with LED DRL could be simply fitted i.e. plug and play or does it take a load of other wiring/kit?

Harry

[bakili]

I am thinking LED number plate lights.
I did buy before just bulbs from ebay, did not last long, this time going to try proper set, costs around £30.

Jim stop giving me ideas to mod :p, my account balance getting low :aargh4:
but who cares :beerchug:

[jessy808]

Hi Jim
just wondering did you ever complete the "how to" on the A6 lights !!! and have you ever changed the head light bulbs on your A6 if so how ??

I would appreciate any info you can give me on A6 lights all of them

Regards

Jessy

Ps i tried to look up that link to the photo site but pics and text is all removed now

[JimC64]

I am thinking LED number plate lights.
I did buy before just bulbs from ebay, did not last long, this time going to try proper set, costs around £30.

Jim stop giving me ideas to mod :p, my account balance getting low :aargh4:
but who cares :beerchug:

Lol...sorry Bakili
Hope to see a write up and loads of pics soon buddy:approve:


Hi Jim
just wondering did you ever complete the "how to" on the A6 lights !!! and have you ever changed the head light bulbs on your A6 if so how ??
Sorry Jessy, not sure by what you mean on complete the how to...please advise?
As for changing the headlight bulbs?.....Man what a palaver, no space and reallll tight.
I just took them to my local autospark....he changed them all for £20 ( beer money ) or Halfords for a £5 for each one!
I'm lazy like that lol and like my hands with the skin attached as it was meant to be:biglaugh:

I would appreciate any info you can give me on A6 lights all of them Unsure if I can help.....please tell me what you're after and if I can I will :beerchug:

Regards

Jessy

Ps i tried to look up that link to the photo site but pics and text is all removed nowThe link you refer to what hosted by Nobby and seems to have been removed for some reason....don't know why?....sorry!