How to install LED kit in tail lights(finally got my project done)

[EddNog]

Edd. You can take it out pretty easy by splitting the tail light. I've done it a few times on my mitsubishi galant and audi a4. But you will need red bulbs for stop light and red or amber for turn signals. I used white led bulbs on my turn signals in the back and was pulled over once by a cop but judge dismissed it . Its not that hard and if you worry too much about that your tail light will fog after that you can seal it with silicone all around. That's all.

All the LED bulbs I used for the rear light up in red, so I'm already set as far as that's concerned. By splitting the tail light, that's what I mean. You have to bake it to heat it up and then remove the red cover--I've opened a few sets of Scion tC headlamps this exact same way to do CCFL ring installs. With the red cover removed, the bulbs are exposed to open air.

Or are you saying that behind the red cover is another lens/cover that is clear?

-Ed

[Leo2005]

Yes. You got it. Actually the clear one on top on the exterior and the red one inside.

[Leo2005]

I couldnt find pics of tail lights from my cars but here the guy shows how he removes yellow turn cover from his headlight on maxima. tail light has the same type of cover.http://www.cardomain.com/ride/695690/5
Modified by Leo2005 at 8:12 PM 7/3/2008

[EddNog]

I couldnt find pics of tail lights from my cars but here the guy shows how he removes yellow turn cover from his headlight on maxima. tail light has the same type of cover.http://www.cardomain.com/ride/695690/5

Leo, take a closer look at the lamp. The outside is red, not the inside (like the orange lens in the linked thread).

What you're talking about is more like the orange reflector inside the Rogue's headlamp; that can be removed by baking open the lamps. The red portion of the tail lamps is not on the inside, it is the outside face/lens. It's a different construction.

Btw, thank you very much for this thread. Your directions worked perfectly for the brake/driving lamp out back. I was amazed to see that LEDs can vary intensity. I thought the bulb would vary overall brightness by lighting half the LEDs when driving lamp is on and then lighting all LEDs when braking, but I found out during testing today that it lights all LEDs to partial brightness when driving lamp is on, and then full brightness when brake is applied. Amazing!

-Ed

[Leo2005]

cool. about tail light ill do my own led board as soon as i finish my q45 project in headlights and will take a look inside but on my audi a4 i had no problems to remove it as well as on....well....aftermarket tail lights on 03 galant.

[EddNog]

cool. about tail light ill do my own led board as soon as i finish my q45 project in headlights and will take a look inside but on my audi a4 i had no problems to remove it as well as on....well....aftermarket tail lights on 03 galant.

Can't wait to see the retrofit Q45 projector; that's gonna' be sweet as hell!!!

-Ed

[Pescakl1]

For now, I just did the back up lights are the others I ordered are not strong enough (less output because they don't use the reflectors of the light assemblies).

For the back up light, I used white 12 LEDs bulbs as I don't need them to flash too much. Here is a comparison between LEDs light (driver) vs Halogen light (passenger):

Here how it was for the brake lights (put it back the halogen bulb since):

As for the turn light, it is weak too but I let it for now as I put the load resistor:

I installed the load resistor on the metal sheet after I bent it a bit and secure it with two tie wraps. Still have to find a spot for the front ones:

I have just ordered more powerful ones (which send part of their output at the reflector) from vleds.com, we will see how it goes.

[Leo2005]

That is a really crappy setup. Get the biggest amount of led and then compare. Mine brake light almost the same as halogen but it acts faster and turn signal/reverse light is a lot brighter. Especially reverse light.

[EddNog]

Having ordered bulbs from other places on my previous cars that were not bright enough, when I found out about V-LEDs, I just had to get their stuff for the Rogue--you won't regret it, it's WAY brighter than the stuff from SuperBrightLEDs! There's no comparison. My reverse lamps are brighter than stock, and my rear driving/brake and signal lamps are all just as bright as stock. I could never imagine this level of brightness with the bulbs from SuperBrightLEDs.com!

-Ed

[Pescakl1]

I just did the same last night, ordered from VLEDs.com.

I was really disappointed by superbrightleds.com, as the light pattern is too focused to be enough bright in a light assembly. Just hope that they will reimburse me the ones I don't use (emailed them but didn't hear from them yet).

I ordered 48 SMT LEDs for the brake lights and 27 SMT LEDs for the turn signals from VLEDS, I should see a difference .The output seems less focused and a big part of the light should go on the reflectors, therefore giving and brighter output.

A question for you too: Did you put LEDs on the front turn signal? If yes, where did you install the load resistors?

[EddNog]

I just did the same last night, ordered from VLEDs.com.

I was really disappointed by superbrightleds.com, as the light pattern is too focused to be enough bright in a light assembly. Just hope that they will reimburse me the ones I don't use (emailed them but didn't hear from them yet).

I ordered 48 SMT LEDs for the brake lights and 27 SMT LEDs for the turn signals from VLEDS, I should see a difference .The output seems less focused and a big part of the light should go on the reflectors, therefore giving and brighter output.

A question for you too: Did you put LEDs on the front turn signal? If yes, where did you install the load resistors?

Yes, I installed their special super white parking/amber signal bulbs for the front. If you look at the harness for the left and right sides, you'll see that the colors do no match, but there are markings on the three wires, one of the outside lines has a single hash (1), the center wire has a double hash (2) and the other outside line has a double hash (2) also. You need to run the resistor from the one hash wire to the two hash wire coming out from the center of the harness. The outside two hash line is not for signal, but for parking lamp. Let me know if you need photos or diagrams. I can also shoot a video of the bulbs in action if you want to make a decision before buying them (expensive bulbs). The are brighter than stock when the white parking lamp is lit, and not quite as bright as stock when signaling, but the sharper blinking action (also, the alternating white/amber action at night) is quite the attention getter!

-Ed

[Pescakl1]

Thanks for the information, EddNog.

I already ordered my new front turn signal lights. In fact, I had already some regular 24 LEDs bulbs which were not that bad in the car, thanks to the 6 radial LEDs. So I ordered their new 18 LEDs bulbs with more radial LEDs (15) and see how it will go (the 60 M-SMT LEDs were way too expensive for me). I will choose between the two and put the others in my wife's car (In my defense, the 24 LEDs worked quite nicely in her car when I tried them).

For the load resistors, I have just checked the passenger side for now, and from what I remenber, there is a gray, a black, and a gray with silver mark wires.

I guessed the black was the ground and checked the FSM to find the turn signal wire: It seems to be the #3 wire, therefore the one on the left when you look at the connector by behind.From the FSM, on the driver side, it should NOT be the red wire, I will check later.

Did you have to remove the protetcion plastic of the wires (load resistors wires and car wires) to make the load resistors work?I had to do it at the rear as I was still having hyperflashing even with the load resistor installed. It works now.

And where did you install the load resistors in the car at the front? any suggestion?

Thanks for your help, I will let you know if I need more info.

[EddNog]

I looked all about the darn FSM and could not find that information so I had to try various wires before getting it right; I've got a mess of extra taps just attached on on the lines from the harness now.

No, I did not need to pre-strip any insulation from any of the wires, front or back, with the taps that I got from V-LEDs or the spare taps I wound up buying from The Home Depot. I used cable ties to secure the resistors to the black sub frame up front. I didn't use double-sided tape as I wanted to ensure there was metal-to-metal contact so as to shed as much heat as as possible into the frame (although I did not resort to spreading out any thermal transfer material between the sinks and the frame, as I figured such a messy affair is not really necessary). I also did not want to tap screw threads or drill holes into the frame. Being that the load resistors are so small and light, the zip ties will hold just fine.

-Ed

[orijin]

im having difficulties removing the back up light casing how u do push all 3 screws i seem to be having problems -_-

[EddNog]

im having difficulties removing the back up light casing how u do push all 3 screws i seem to be having problems -_-

Hey there you have the same, "problem," that I did--there's a gasket that helps seal the lamp to the hatch/prevent moisture from leaking in, and it sticks the reverse lamp casing to the hatch quite tight; once you undo the nuts from those three mount points, you just need to pry/pull very hard on the edges of the lamp to get it off. Just be careful not to scratch the paint when you do it. If you still can't do it, let me know and perhaps I can stop by some time, being that I'm in the NY Metro area too.

-Ed

[Pescakl1]

Advice: Do it early in the morning, when the car is the coldest.I did one side in the afternoon and the other one the next morning, it was much easier. I knew what was the problem for sure, but the gasket was less sticky.

Just do it slowly, put a cloth between the car and the screwdriver, lift it a little bit and look for spots where the gasket sticks to the lamp assembly. With another screwdriver or sharp tool, detach the gasket off the lamp assembly inch by inch.

Try not to destroy the gasket or you will have to buy another one, it is important for the integrity of the car, against water and noise.

[orijin]

did anyone find where the led flasher might be at in the nissan rogue? Want to try to avoid using the load resistors since they're more of a hassle to install and etc.

[Pescakl1]

Leo and Eddnog, I already asked Orijin but he couldn't answer as he changed his radio set and probably remove the wiring dimming the radio at the same time.

But maybe, you can help me on this:

Quote »- During daytime, do you have your radio dimmed so much that you cannot see the clock any more when you brake?[/quote]The radio is not dimmed during braking if the lights are on. I don't know if it is like this since I changed for LEDs as I have just noticed it. Just wondering if it is because of the move to LEDs or if it comes from something else.

Do you know which wiring, if any, should I disconnect from the radio to avoid that (it is more annoying than anything else)?

I have to look in the FSM and its wiring diagrams to see if I can find something but it is a hassle navigating in this document so I was wondering if you already found the solution before I do the search this weekend.

Thanks.

[Leo2005]

Well. During the daytime if your lights are not on then you have the brightest mode on radio. If you disconnect the dimmer wire from radio you will not be able to see a radio at night when you turn on the lights. Try to turn on headlamps and play with the dimmer so turn to a brightest side.

[Pescakl1]

My belief is that is two wires, here why:

In daytime, when I turn the headlights on, the radio is dimmed but I can still see the clock (and the radio frequency if it is on). When I brake, I can still see the clock.In daytime with the headlights off, when I brake, the clock almost disappears (you really have to search for it to see that it is barely lit).

At night, with the headlights on, the radio is dimmed and when I brake I can still see the clock.

The clock is dimmed way more than when I put the lights on, that is why I think there is a dedicated wire for that.

The part I don't understand is why the radio is not dimmed further when the headlights are on.

I still have to ply with the dashboard dimmer to try to understand further what is the logic behind it.

I was just wondering if you had the same problem as you put LEDs in your taillights too and I wanted to know if it is related or not.

[Leo2005]

Don't have that problem but if you beleive that happened after you installed leds in tail lights then why don't you install back original lights and see if the problem will disappear? If the problem will not go away then I would check with service dept.

[Pescakl1]

I am not sure as I don't remember seen that before.Yes, I will do the swap for the troubleshooting to see what happen.

My wife will be so happy to see me another weekend playing with the car

[ncc1701]

Pescakl1, how do you like the LED tail lights and turn signals? Did the brighter ones make the difference?

I'd like to do this with My wife's Rogue and my Altima coupe, but I am concerned about brightness.
Modified by ncc1701 at 12:03 PM 10/9/2008

[EddNog]

Pescakl1, how do you like the LED tail lights and turn signals? Did the brighter ones make the difference?

I'd like to do this with My wife's Rogue and my Altima coupe, but I am concerned about brightness.

Modified by ncc1701 at 12:03 PM 10/9/2008

Leo and I don't have brightness issues at all with out setups.

-Ed

[ncc1701]

Leo and I don't have brightness issues at all with out setups.

-Ed

Did you say that you had a video of the bulbs in action? Do you mind if you send that over?

[EddNog]

Did you say that you had a video of the bulbs in action? Do you mind if you send that over?

I need to shoot the video; I meant to, just never got around to it. I won't have the car back until Tuesday night next week; as soon as I get it back, I will try to shoot the videos for you. I left my car with a friend who does bodywork for some pre-winter conditioning (get all the paint chips, as well as the two oil stains fixed), and he won't drop the car off with me until Tuesday night. Since I have Wednesday off, I will have plenty of time Tuesday night to shoot the vids; what I will do is set the camera up on my tripod, start recording, jump in the car and start flippin' switches!

-Ed

[ncc1701]

I will have plenty of time Tuesday night to shoot the vids; what I will do is set the camera up on my tripod, start recording, jump in the car and start flippin' switches!

-Ed

Awesome! I look forward to it. Thanks!

[Leo2005]

I bought one tail light from ebay and already baked it. Making the measurement of the board that can fit in there and will start soldering leds this weekend. Will post pics next week. Planning to put as much leds as possible. For the turn signal it will be either 'Rogue' in leds or arrows < > didn't decide yet.

[ncc1701]

EddNog, you did the front turn signals too, right? If you did, can you grab a shot of the front as well?

Thanks!

[Pescakl1]

Pescakl1, how do you like the LED tail lights and turn signals? Did the brighter ones make the difference?

I'd like to do this with My wife's Rogue and my Altima coupe, but I am concerned about brightness.

Not yet, but it seems that is because I am picky

At night, it is good, but during daylight, if the sun hits directly the lights (you are driving with the sun in your back), you cannot see them a lot.

That is what I have been told.

In fact, I am quite happy with my turn signals, front and back, but not yet with the brake lights.

Important thing that I learned on another forum: For the tail lights, turn signal and brake lights, buy RED leds, not white ones.If you know a little bit in optics, you know that a red lens will filter all wavelengths except the red one, that is why you see it red. If you buy a white LED, it will emit all wavelengths and the lens will eliminate almost all of them except the red one, therefore decreasing the output.As contrary as halogen lights, LEDs can be made to emit only one wavelength (for example, red). Red LED going through a red lens won't lose its output and will be brighter than the white equivalent one.Believe me, it works, I figured it out as soon as I started my brain (was a long time ago).

Now, from my own experiment I notice that when the lens is clear, the better results come with high output LEDs, better than with SMT LEDs.When you have a diffractor on the lens (for example the brake light), SMT will give better results.

Yesterday, I received and put 63 High Output LEDs Amber light at the front. A little more orange than amber but I will survive: Done.

Rear turn signal, I don't remember what they are right now (changed them too much) but I will check. They are white and don't know if I want to change them again, seems to be ok.

I ordered red 30 SMD LEDs (way cheaper than the 48 SMTs) for the brake lights. Still waiting for them, should arrive soon.Depending of my courage and how it will go, I may move them to the turn lights if the difference is important and order red 48 SMT LEDs for the brake (but I will have to see if they want to take them back and reimburse me).

Don't forget, buy RED LEDs for the rear.