sunny5280 Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 I'm thinking of replacing the standard brake / tail light bulbs with LED equivalents. These appear to be LED's in the same packaging as a regular bulb. They look to be plug and play. Does anyone have experience with these types of replacements? I've heard LEDs don't burn out like traditional bulbs do. Is that understanding correct? Any disadvantages? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utc_pyro Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 Anything short of the VLED V3 tritons will be dimmer than the stock incandescent bulbs and thus a safety issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunny5280 Posted June 21, 2017 Author Share Posted June 21, 2017 Anything short of the VLED V3 tritons will be dimmer than the stock incandescent bulbs and thus a safety issue. That's good to know. I was under the impression LED lights were brighter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacemanspif Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 They can be but when they are put into a reflector design that was built for an incandescent bulb you loose the output advantage. Do these cars hyperblink when you add LED turn signal bulbs without the resistor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 Running the mid-tier Diode Dynamics in the tail-light & turn-signal and they are noticeably brighter than the stock incandescent bulbs. The mid-tier turn signals are about as annoyingly bright as modern LED turn signals. Time will tell to their longevity. Every off-brand LED I've purchased does not get 1% of the rated life and end up flickering wildly & embarrassingly. For 60$ a pair I'm hopeful the quality and life is good with the DD LEDs. https://www.diodedynamics.com/store/led-bulbs/listed-by-vehicle/subaru/legacy/2003-2013-subaru-legacy-tail-light-leds-pair Edit: spacemanspif - you need a 10$ turn signal module with the DD turn-signal LEDs. It is simple to swap out. For 60$ you can get a programmable one that offers many different blinking functions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StkmltS Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 I have LED's in my tail lights and turn signals and they're definitely brighter than stock. I bought "bulbs" that have LED's facing in all directions (not just rearwards) and they look great when lit (dim or bright). As long as you use bulbs with LED's pointing outwards the reflectors inside the taillights still work as designed. Turn signals: LED's do need a diode to prevent ignorant ricer hyperflash. The cheap-o LED's I bought came with diodes. Tail lights: LED's don't need a diode, regardless of what you have as turn signals. My DiySB rebuild Got Misfires? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted June 22, 2017 Share Posted June 22, 2017 Notice that some LED bulbs only have a resistor between brake and position light input so you should have diode on the position light to avoid all position lights to go on with all the side-effects of that each time you press the brake pedal. If you have a combined brake/turn light then it's a different electrical solution, but you might still need a diode or two to make sure you don't get back-currents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunny5280 Posted June 22, 2017 Author Share Posted June 22, 2017 Some really great information here. Does anyone have any recommendations on manufacturer / model? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 22, 2017 Share Posted June 22, 2017 If money's no object, then utc_pyro's suggestion of the VLED Triton's are the way to go - they are bright AF. Diode Dynamic's website has a great visual aid tailored to your car for each application. Their mid-tier model fire straight back and to the sides and I've been pleased with them so far. Also, they are a vendor here and offer a code on this forum for free shipping - just PM them. To clarify, the one 10$ module to prevent hyperblinking is the only thing you'd need to get. It replaces the "clicking" module under your steering wheel. This way you don't need a resistor for each turn-signal LED. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunny5280 Posted June 22, 2017 Author Share Posted June 22, 2017 If money's no object, then utc_pyro's suggestion of the VLED Triton's are the way to go - they are bright AF. Diode Dynamic's website has a great visual aid tailored to your car for each application. Their mid-tier model fire straight back and to the sides and I've been pleased with them so far. Also, they are a vendor here and offer a code on this forum for free shipping - just PM them. To clarify, the one 10$ module to prevent hyperblinking is the only thing you'd need to get. It replaces the "clicking" module under your steering wheel. This way you don't need a resistor for each turn-signal LED. Thanks, I'll look into them as I don't mind paying extra for a good quality product. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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