LED Tail Lights...

[VLishes]

Ahh guys. Be careful. The electrics in GM vehicles have always used bulbs as a fusable link.

Check you wiring diagrams before swapping out for LED's.

Also the 3.8 litre Buick motor is a '65 motor.

So the bulbs act like a fuse? the fuses alone are not adequate enough?

 

[ssute57l]

I rang the guy at lazer, yeah he can modify the relay, because he's in a different state I have to purchase a relay, $15 sounds ok, though his led bulbs are expensive, $40 for a pair is pretty steep.

If you compare those LED's to the ones made in china, they are brighter and have a wide angle, i have compared both his and others and his a way brighter (2-3 times), the money is in the cost of LED's.
Is that the price for the flasher unit (not relay) modified and couriered to VIC?
How much were the one from the states?

 

[ssute57l]

Ahh guys. Be careful. The electrics in GM vehicles have always used bulbs as a fusable link.

Check you wiring diagrams before swapping out for LED's.

Also the 3.8 litre Buick motor is a '65 motor.

I thought when you put +ive and -ive (that is a short)on each side of a globe it will glow not blow (well blow eventually) , how could this be a fusable link. Could you supply a copy of the wiring diagram?. Please explain more if you can, i am using LED,s with no probs(have used 2 watt globes as a load to sense earth to shut down parkers and enabled cruise control to work.

 

[VLishes]

If you compare those LED's to the ones made in china, they are brighter and have a wide angle, i have compared both his and others and his a way brighter (2-3 times), the money is in the cost of LED's.
Is that the price for the flasher unit (not relay) modified and couriered to VIC?
How much were the one from the states?

Well, there is a limit, $40 for 2 bulbs is harsh compared to what $3-4 a pair of normal bulbs, $15-20 is acceptable for leds, I mean brightness is good, but it would take you years to make your money back by not buying normal bulbs all the time, you got to start weighing up if it's worth it.

15.00 ea and will work form 100 ma drive and up to 3A max
add 2.00 P&P to VIC, I would assume P&P would be the same to most states.

 

[ssute57l]

Changing to LED's could be benificial in that they use less current and heat that load wires, you could leave your lights on all night and not have a flat batt and going through the hassel of jump starting, also the time you will spend changing globes over years, They could also be changed for that different look. LED's are a way of the future just look at the new eurpean and jap vehicles that are comming out standard. i dont think you could compare LED's and standard globes just based on cost but each to there own.

 

[Snap]

The bulb will only operate within a certain voltage range.

Too little a voltage and it won't light up, too much and it will blow.

A LED has a much larger voltage range. Also a bulb is an inductive device whereas a LED is a diode.

GM, both in Europe and the US, have always used a indicator or head/park light as a fuse to help curb shorts that may lead to excessive current draw. Thus burning out the globe and not the whole wiring harness or attached ancillaries.

This is usally in parrallel to the existing fusable link.

Get a garranty from the manufacturer of these tail lights that it ain't going to cause problems should something fry.

 

[ssute57l]

what you say about running parrallell to the fusible link offers no protection at all against shorts in the wiring loom, i find this highly unlikley that this is the case. Yes LED's are diodes but the current is only flowing in one direction that is from the parker feed to earth. The overvotlage is more likely to blow a standard globe, if voltage goes up current comes down so that is less likley to blow fuse.
Please send me a wiring diagram to prove me wrong as i have never heard any of that.

 

[Snap]

Please send me a wiring diagram to prove me wrong as i have never heard any of that.

Give me some time to find one online and I'll post the link of what I mean.

 

[Sticky]

The bulb will only operate within a certain voltage range.

Too little a voltage and it won't light up, too much and it will blow.

A LED has a much larger voltage range. Also a bulb is an inductive device whereas a LED is a diode.

GM, both in Europe and the US, have always used a indicator or head/park light as a fuse to help curb shorts that may lead to excessive current draw. Thus burning out the globe and not the whole wiring harness or attached ancillaries.

This is usally in parrallel to the existing fusable link.

Get a garranty from the manufacturer of these tail lights that it ain't going to cause problems should something fry.

I don't get that theory. If the globe was in parallel to the fuse, then a short circuit would effectively blow the fuse and then the globe (across the fuse) would light up and just sit there glowing as it would have no more than 12 volts across it and flatten the battery for you.
Since the fuse will blow anyway in the short circuit scenario, why spend extra money as a manufacturer putting a globe across it just to flatten the battery and piss the end-user off?

 

[ssute57l]

If you put a globe in place of a fuse and the load consumes more power than the globe it would just glow and not blow(globe will glow no mater how high the load and not supply enough current to the load.)
Try putting a test light in series from batt terminal to cable terminal and try cranking the engine test light will just glow.
Try the same with a fuse and it will blow.