REPLACE / UPGRADE FRONT TURN SIGNALS M35

Forum for Infiniti M35 and M45, and Nissan Fuga owners.
Larz
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This is based on a 2007 M35. Your vehicle may be slightly different. Some people have done this without removing anything by wriggling their hands inside deep enough to reach the bulb sockets. However, I'm a 6'3" 200 pound rugby player so that method doesn't apply to my hand or arm size. This method removes everything needed to provide complete freedom of movement and takes only a few minutes.

To replace front turn signals, you will need a socket to remove a few bolts, a screwdriver, and a pair of lint-free or latex gloves while handling the actual bulbs.

Begin by removing the right and left side engine covers:

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Next, remove the bolts holding the washer fluid tank and the coolant tank. Both of these will remain attached at the bottom. The washer tank simply slides back out of your way and the coolant tank can be lifted out of it's holder and also slides away from the work area:

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Next remove the center air intake piece and set it aside with the left and right engine covers:

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Now remove the air box by un-plugging the MAF sensor and loosening the air hose to remove it from the back of the air box. After you do this, remove the air filter and grab the air box from the inside - pull up sharply and it pops out of its holder. Set it aside with the rest of the engine covers. Now you have plenty of space to reach both passenger and driver side turn signal sockets.

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Always wear latex or other lint-free gloves when you handle any auto bulbs - LED or not. Oils from your skin will decrease the lifespan and you don't want dirt and grease on your new bulbs.

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To use LEDs for turn signals you will need a decoder OR a resistor for each bulb to prevent errors on your dash and rapid flashing of the bulbs. I purchased decoders on Ebay for less than $20 - they are plug-N-play so no need to cut into existing wiring. (resistors are much cheaper but you will need to cut into wiring and I wanted a cleaner install). Simply place one end of the decoder into the existing car socket, and place the bulb in the other end of the decoder (like an extention set). Decoders are available for any size LED bulbs except the Vled brand "V3Triton bulbs" which require an old school resistor, or the decoder sold from Vled. When I upgraded my fender turn signals to LEDS, I also used decoders.

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Pasenger side bulb installed:

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Driver side bulb installed:

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Remember! After you install your new bulbs and BEFORE you re-install everything else: TEST the bulbs. Lots of LEDs are 'polar' and you may need to remove and reverse them in their socket to get them to light up.
Also, remove and replace bulbs VERY slowly to prevent loosening them and having them fall out of the socket and into the bulb housing - avoid letting the bulb scrape against the housing while removing and installing as well.
This is another reason why I went to the trouble to remove items that were in my way. If you are twisting your arm and hand to reach the sockets, you increase risks of losing a bulb, or scratching / damaging it.

Once you have verified the bulbs work properly, re-install the air box FIRST by mashing it back into its holder, then slide the intake hose back onto the rear of the air box and tighten the clamp. Re-intsall the MAF plug into the air intake Then re-install the center air intake piece. Then re-install the coolant tank into its holder, and slide the washer tank back into place. Tighten the bolts to secure them.

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Now your headlamp housing will have no amber colouring in it when the turn signals are off (using LEDs) but they will light amber when activated.

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Hope this helps. My LEDs have been running since last year with no issues. I recommend Vled brand bulbs for all LEDs. You can find their website here:
http://www.vleds.com/
You can find bulbs cheaper if you like, but I only wanted to do this once so I went with what I feel is the best value and highest quality. As long as you don't go for the V3 Triton series of bulbs, the Vled bulbs aren't very expensive at all.
LEDs should last near the life of your vehicle, draw less power, and are usually brighter than reg bulbs.
They also have crisp, instant on-off firing which makes your turn signals stand out.
Last edited by Larz on Tue May 07, 2013 11:08 pm, edited 2 times in total.


06M4.5
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Great job!! :dblthumb:

All these new DIY should be sticky's for new member to see.

Someone is working hard on the M :bigthumb:

Larz
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Thanks Freddie with the sexy front fenders!
I am going to post the rear turn signals soon. Actually I did all this ages ago, but finally found time to put this stuff together into a DIY.

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TXT
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Nice and thorough write up.

Would you say the the light output on these bulbs are bright enough for sunny day time use?

Also, if you could, provide a link via PM or in this thread for the bulbs you used in the front of the car as well as the rear of the vehicle for the turn signal. Include the ebay listing as well for the PnP resistor.

Thanks for the write ups you've been doing lately. You are contributing to this community in a very positive way!

Larz
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Good point TXT.
Some LEDs look super bright in the advert, but are worthless in daylight or direct sunlight. I installed 3 sets of rear turn signals before I found a set bright enough in direct sunlight. If you go to the Vled website, they rate their bulbs for brightness. My rears are V3 Tritons and are rated #5 out of 5 for brightness - they work fabulous but are pricey. The main reason I got them was that I had previously removesd all that trunk trim twice to install bulbs that were barely noticeable in bright daylight. I figured if I was going to do all that work a THIRD time, the heck with the price LOL. If you stay at #4 or above, their bulbs will not disappoint and except for the "V3 Tritons", their other bulbs are very reasonably priced for the quality you get.
I will search back through my purchases and find the links to the bulbs I used for the fronts and the fenders as well as the decoders - I will post them here in case anyone else is curious.

Larz
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Per request:



FRONT TURN SIGNAL BULBS:
http://www.vleds.com/bulb/7443-7440-led ... -pair.html

The bulbs below are one of the failures from my attempt at rear turn bulbs - but as the font reflector housing is smaller they also can be used in the front and DO show up nicely in daylight.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2X-7440-AMBER-6 ... 570wt_1152

LED decoders - 7440:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/A-Pair-of-7440- ... 810wt_1152
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FENDER TURN SINALS:
http://www.vleds.com/amber-3-chip-5-led ... -pair.html
*** you can use white OR amber as our reflctor housing is already tinted amber - white may be even brighter ***

LED decoders - 194:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2Pcs-T10-Error- ... 655wt_1076

*** the bulb-end of these decoders is NOT a direct match for our housing - I used monster tape to hold the bulb in place and it is holding up just fine since last year. It's not like the assmbly gets jossled about, it just sits in the fender so I see no risk of it ever coming loose.
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REAR TURN SIGNALS:
http://www.vleds.com/v3-triton/bulb-system/v3-a.html
*** you also need to purchase the Vled adapter #7440/7443 for an additional $4.99 ***

Resistors for Vled V3 Tritons:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2X-6ohm-50W-LED ... 99&vxp=mtr

You can also purchase the decoder from Vled but any 6ohm/50W resistors work just fine for a fraction of the price.
If you want to pay less for the bulbs, I have no recommendation for reg LEDs as I tried a couple sets up to 68 SMDs and they still could not fill our huge reflector housing in direct sunlight. At night they are perfect, but I wanted VERY bright in daylight too. Perhaps a 127 SMD (maybe $30) would work in daylight? Maybe others in here have found success for the rear turn signals without spending $100. It's not like me to spend that much for one set of LEDs, but by that time I had taken the trunk apart twice and re-installed it all twice so I was frustrated and ready to pay anything just to be done with it, LOL.
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Last edited by Larz on Tue Apr 23, 2013 3:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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TXT
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Wow your right the rear lights are pricey...ouch. I'm guessing I would have to strip the positive leg of one of the wires and run that ebay resistor through it for the V3Triton rear LEDs? I'm going to order the front LED's and Decoder.

06M4.5
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Larz your good at this and fast too.

I'm computer duummmmm :frown:

I should be in the area of Ft Lauderdale, Florida at the end of May for about 4 days.

Looking for a good affordable hotel by the beach, I need a good tan for my new surgery scares :chuckle:

Larz
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TXT:

Yes, in the upcoming tutroial on the rear lamps I will be sure to show detail of how to splice the resistors onto the factory wires, but if you don't buy the V3 Tritons, and use another LED bulb, you can use a set of decoders - same decoder as the front signals.

Freddie:

Sorry to hear you had surgery and I hope you're on the mend and doing well. As for hotels, the month of May (I think) is our off-season so rates should be reasonable.

Not that you even asked, but Fetucini (my g/f nick name) says NO MORE house guests as her mum is STILL here since early March (ARGHHH!) and we are both near-knackered over it. Love her mum, but who puts an entire coffee maker in the dishwasher !?!?! Our housekeeper nearly birthed a cow that day LOL. She also has this 'thing' about switching off lights as she leaves a room that gets me riled when i go into that same room 2 minutes later, but thats a whole other rant.

Seriously, Bahia Cabana is not real fancy but it's across the road from the beach at its widest point, near the fishing charter fleet and the beach-side bars and it's very reasonable. We put out-of-town rugby players there. Its located at Seabreeze Blvd and A1A and I believe it's part of the Days Inn chain.

06M4.5
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Thanks Larz

I'll check Bahia Cabana later tonight. I might just Take a package deal with air, hotel & car.

I live with wife & 2 girls and they drive me crazy, even the parrot is female.

I took the tail light out to do the rear turn signal.

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donnieb83
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Awesome write up and great review!! :bigthumb:

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Twizz
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Question..... Wouldn't it be easier to take the tires off and go under the wheel well ? I ask because the place that installs all my crap, does it that way. Seems like a much quicker way than removing all those things.

DoN_BLaZe34
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I only removed the washer fluid tank to install my led turns... I was able to reach the socket on the driver side without removing anything.

Very nice write up btw

Larz
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Reading the DIY, it would seem that removing these pieces is a very long way around the option of removing the front wheels.
But actually, think how long it takes to remove a few bolts and slide the intake hose off the air box. It took me maybe 20 minutes to do the complete install and I didn't have to chock the real wheels, loosen the lugs by hand, jack up the front of the car, remove the wheel, remove the wheel well, re-install the wheel well, re-install the wheel, lower the car, and then repeat all those steps on the passenger side (if needed). This just seemed easier and much faster with less tools.
The Infiniti dealr also does it by removing the wheels, but they have the ability to raise the car on a lift and use air tools to remove the wheels, etc.
Of course, Like Don, if you are able to reach the sockets without removing the air box, your save even more time. Also if you have the cold air set up with the cone-shaped filter exposed to air ... you won't have to remove anything on the driver side as the giant OEM air box is no longer in your way.

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Ilya
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Adding to the FAQ.

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40belowceo
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Larz,

I read that you only have to add the front resistor/decoders or the back only and all the bulbs will work normally. Any truth to that? Just trying to see if I need to purchase just 1 pair or two.

Thanks,

Larz
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You must use a resistor on EVERY bulb you change to LED if it is going to blink. They are individually wired and need their own resistor to make them blink at the proper rate. Some like the fast blinking, but to me it looks like something is wrong with the bulb.

I used "Vled Triton" bulbs for the rear turn signals and those adapters didn't work. I had to do it old school with the metal resistors and splice them.
If you're using ANY other brand LED bulb except the Vled Triton (all non-Triton Vled bulbs will work fine with adapters too), the adapters should work fine on the front and the rear. Also, if you're going to change the fender turn signals to LED (and they look really great) use a bright white colour instead of amber and I recommend using the metal resistors so you can still use the OEM bulb end - it won't need to be modified to fit back into the lens. The adapters they sell for the fender bulbs don't have the standard twist and lock bulb end - its just rubber and it falls back out of the lens.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-x-50W-6ohm-Lo ... 70&vxp=mtr

I bought the set of 4 above to do the fender LED bulbs and my rear Vled Tritons. I didn't use the little splicing gizmos that come with them because they loosen up over time and you have to go back in and re-squeeze. I spliced them manually and covered them in electrical tape and heat shrink wrap.

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40belowceo
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Larz wrote:You must use a resistor on EVERY bulb you change to LED if it is going to blink. They are individually wired and need their own resistor to make them blink at the proper rate. Some like the fast blinking, but to me it looks like something is wrong with the bulb.

I used "Vled Triton" bulbs for the rear turn signals and those adapters didn't work. I had to do it old school with the metal resistors and splice them.
If you're using ANY other brand LED bulb except the Vled Triton (all non-Triton Vled bulbs will work fine with adapters too), the adapters should work fine on the front and the rear. Also, if you're going to change the fender turn signals to LED (and they look really great) use a bright white colour instead of amber and I recommend using the metal resistors so you can still use the OEM bulb end - it won't need to be modified to fit back into the lens. The adapters they sell for the fender bulbs don't have the standard twist and lock bulb end - its just rubber and it falls back out of the lens.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-x-50W-6ohm-Lo ... 70&vxp=mtr

I bought the set of 4 above to do the fender LED bulbs and my rear Vled Tritons. I didn't use the little splicing gizmos that come with them because they loosen up over time and you have to go back in and re-squeeze. I spliced them manually and covered them in electrical tape and heat shrink wrap.
I actually used the same bulb on all 4 signals so I guess I can buy two pairs.

Thanks again Larz!!

kevcr2
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hi guys, i have a 07 m45 and i was wondering if there is a write up on how to replace the rear turn signal, i tried to open the liner but can't seem to get to the turn signal light lol

2007infinitim45s
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kevcr2 wrote:
Mon Feb 12, 2018 9:07 pm
hi guys, i have a 07 m45 and i was wondering if there is a write up on how to replace the rear turn signal, i tried to open the liner but can't seem to get to the turn signal light lol
It’s behind the foam type covering


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