Door sill light

[DeanM45]

For those that always wondered....
I picked up an extra door sill for some destructive testing.
After removing the "INFINITI" cover plate (plastic) which shattered into a million pieces you'll see this:


That is a "diffuser" panel, remove it and you see the source of the light:


Two little, VERY yellow SMD lights on each end of the housing:


You could grind away the edges to remove the cover (the diffuser and light boards just pop out) and then replace the SMD lights if you so desire.

Not really that hard -- curiosity just got the better of me today.

[TXT]

I would change the LED, but then it would be off from the rest of the car. Even though I sometimes get tired of seeing a sea of orange, I'm sure that's better than a mixture of two colors. Maybe a UV LED light might look cool tho!

[Larz]

Very interesting, Dean !
The center multi-switch (A/C, NAV) also uses those SMDs. I'm betting the spedometer uses them as well. I once considered changing those out to match the rest of the interior LEDs or maybe a white-ish blue hue. But after weighing out my desire to change them Vs the depth of trouble I could get myself into (no experience), I decided not to do anything.
Good to know that it CAN be done, though! Thanks!

[DeanM45]

Yep, speedo does use them with diffusers for the surround ring and the the numbers themselves. The info panel and odometer are the only things that could not be changed with just leds. Dunno how the amber would look with different color numbers and surround ring (halo) One thing to remember though is that the numbers on the "cover plate" (silk screened) are also colored a bit. There are options to change out the color but you'd be better off getting an 08+ speedo and then just changing the leds on everything else. The clock would be difficult and you can probably pick up a white/blue one pretty cheap.

Get to modding!

[wingFeather]

Orange is my favorite color, so no changes for me! But it's nice to know how it works.

[svard75]

Just wondering if black lights would work with this. I mean what if you paint all these SMD's with the black paint then put a white clear cover over top of it. Would it look like white LEDs? I don't understand the black light technology and have only ever seen it done with fluorescent bulbs.

[cruzad3r]

Dean, what's going on here - i like this look. can you elaborate on the cost and labor? Thanks

[DeanM45]

Dean, what's going on here - i like this look. can you elaborate on the cost and labor? Thanks

Labor was free as I did it myself. That pic is of the temporary brackets to mock it up. Once they were formed (mounted the light and moved it around to where I wanted) I cut some 1/16" thick aluminum, matched the bends and drilled the holes so that the lights have rigid mounts. The halos where part of the "kit". Got the kit on eBay for about $40. Eventually I upgraded the light to HID and they work perfect (the big box is the HID ballast).

[DeanM45]

Just wondering if black lights would work with this. I mean what if you paint all these SMD's with the black paint then put a white clear cover over top of it. Would it look like white LEDs? I don't understand the black light technology and have only ever seen it done with fluorescent bulbs.

I highly doubt it. There is not enough candlepower to light through paint.