Dear V-8 Buick lovers, Sufferin' succotash!! I visited my trusty wagon at Orinda Motors on Friday and got a homework assignment! :rant::laugh: Actually, I got to take home the instrument assemblies to clean-up and give a little "TLC" to while the heavy work continues on the engine swap. Greg at Orinda Motors suggested that I replace the 194 instrument bulbs while I've got easy access to them. Well it is just as easy to replace these bulbs with LEDs as anything else. So I do my research thing and come up with these three threads on V-8 Buick: LED's for Dash Lights? - http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?234806-LED-s-for-Dash-Lights Any methods to change dash light bulb on a `67? - http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?193467-Any-methods-to-change-dash-light-bulb-on-a-67&p=1548898#post1548898 LEDs in dash! - http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?141443-LEDs-in-dash! As far as I can tell, people are a bit skeptical, but they do seem to work as advertised, they do appear to install without any modifications to the wiring, and they do seem to dim correctly. The lighting does not appear to be as uniform, but does appear to be brighter. They should run cooler, that an LED has to do. there is some dispute about whether they would last longer or not. On the negative side, they are much more expensive than regular bulbs and some didn't like the color or appearance of their dash with LEDs. Obviously, it is real easy to just buy a few packs of 194 incandescent bulbs and get on with it. In my experience, those bulbs do last a long time and I was happy with the illumination of my dashboard at night. So what do you leading-edgers have to say? Would I be making a mistake to stick to the old wisdom of: "If it ain't broke don't fix it?" Cheers, Edouard :beer
http://autolumination.com/194.htm A whole bunch of led options, different lenses styles etc... Down near the bottom is a xenon bulb as well.. I think that might be nice...
I've replaced everything I can without removing the cluster, again. I love the look of the LED's in the places I've installed then thus far. In my console under the shifter it always got hot in that area and at night was hard to read the letters PRND21. Now they are BRIGHT and cool to the touch. When I have an excuse to pull the dash apart again I will most deff do all of them at that time. Also did all the courtesy lights in the car with great results.
Additional opinions? (Re: Latest experiences with LED dashboard bulbs?) Dear 1drwgn, Briz, and high-tech interior decorators, Okay, you've got me interested!! I'm always biased toward LEDs because the reduced heat should prolong the life of plastics in car's like ours. So when possible I think it is always a good idea to switch to something that doesn't cook the housings. Any other opinions? Cheers, Edouard :beer
LED bulbs don't last as long as they claim. Take out the lifespan of the bulb argument since I've pulled 168/194 bulbs out of dashes which still worked after 20 years. I've had led bulbs go bad after a matter of months. The light output is brighter in an LED, but it's very directional. If you use it behind an old single bulb gauge expect the outermost range of the gauge to not be lit up. That means a speedo that shows 25-55 at night time. Above or below that speed is just a guess. For useful LED lighting you need to have the right bulb placement and wide angle bulbs. If you search around you can find the wide angle LED bulbs, but expect to spend about $4 per bulb. Also expect to do some clearancing since the multiled bulbs are slightly bigger than the original bulbs. Here's the bulb source to go to if you want to give it a try. http://www.superbrightleds.com/cat/miniature-wedge-base/filter/Cross_Reference_Number,WLED,21,201:
Went old school on this one. (Re: Latest experiences with LED dashboard bulbs?) Hi Bammax and V-8 Buick lovers, Thanks for reaffirming what finally made up my mind. Those tough inclandesant bulbs last for decades. Given that the instrument cluster was designed for them, you'l get the best overall illuminination with the bulbs that were intended for it. This morning I ran over to one of the old-timer auto-parts stores that my Dad used to go and bought myself 10 194 bulbs for 6 bucks. The bulbs were manufactured by one of those "high-tech" companies though: General Electric!! :grin: Cheers, Edouard :beer Well in 1900, General Electric was about as high-tech as it got!! :laugh:
I get a bad rep for steering people away from LEDS all the time. I think they're great for flashlights and work lights thanks to the high powered directional beam pattern (I actually use LED lights all the time outside), but when doing a retrofit they usually end up being a let down on anything but a show car or full custom. You should see how many people do LED taillights and then have issues with them not working right during the cold winter months.
