S14 LED Illumination conversion

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float_6969
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Well all I have done right now is the drivers side window switch. The bulb was burned out so I decided to replace it with an LED. What do you guys think?

I think I might have gone a little overboard on brightness. I'm also contemplating doing some sort of illumination in the switch area that will illuminate the area under the other 3 switches so that you can see them at night as well.

Ultimately I will do the whole interior including gauge cluster, HVAC, floor lighting, dome light, etc. The red theme will be carried out through the gauges and HVAC only. It's a black on black S14, so I thought the red accents would look good. I'll be getting a black w/red stitching shift boot and e-brake lever. to tie it all together.


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Dano
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That's awesome, I love it, and can't wait to see you do more.

BUT:

If you do a red dome light, your retarded. Do all your switches and gauges and whatnot in red, do the interior light in WHITE. Practicality as well as aesthetically it's better to do it. I'm serious Ryan, don't do red.

Keep up the good work though, i'm curious to see your 'switch area' illumination. My auto button has never lit up either...

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float_6969
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NO RED DOME LIGHT! I promise. I had no intention. I'd like to add the map lights as I don't have them and then also add the foot well illumination too. Those would all be white. I guess if it gets the Dano seal of approval, then I'll continue with the conversion.

If you want me to, I can fix your light in your switch. I found the regular incandescent bulbs online, or I could do it with a LED. The only potential problem with the LED is that the color MIGHT not match the rest of the interior. Since It's so isolated, I doubt you'd notice.

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Dano
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Wanna do my climate control too? I've been meaning to for some time but having had the time.

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float_6969
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Yea, no problem. I'll probably do mine first, so I know which LED's to use and then I can bring them up there and do it all at once.

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KoukiS14
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Pretty damn cool I'm playing around with something similar, and adding the red ambient lighting that shines down on the center console area. . the Pathfinder / QX4 has a small piece that's ideal for this, and if it doesn't work I won't care.

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Mauibuilt Guy
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I am assuming the 9 volt was for instructional purposes only and that it is going to be wired to your electrical system in the car. Looking good though. Possible write up?

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float_6969
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Yea the 9V was just for testing. It's in the car and working fine now. I'm going to get some other LED's and do the HVAC controls next. I'll do a writeup then.

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i really would like to see pics of this installed...I am kickin around the idea for a black and red scheme

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KoukiS14
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Yeah I want to do this with my interior lights. . on my s14, I changed the gauge lights to red by painting regular 168 bulbs with high-temp red engine paint. . that works well, but I've found some nice red LEDs to use this time around (I'm using one of them as ambient lighting, installed in front of my rearview mirror).

However, that part is easy -- I want to also change the hvac, radio, and anything else I can find.

I wonder how red will look with the mint green LED lighting that's already on the radio. Maybe go with red cluster and blue elsewhere? I could copy VW

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float_6969
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I hope to have it completed in the next month or so. I'm in the middle of a KAT project right now and that is consuming all of my resources. Once I get the car sold, I should have the time and money to move on to the s14.

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KoukiS14
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Awesome. . hey. . what sort of LED are you intending to use to replace the small bulbs in the radio / other places? I'm thinking a 3MM would about fit, but that'd be too easy right?

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I'm not quite sure. The problem is how the light is dispursed on a LED. 2 of the 3 lights in the HVAC controls illuminate from the SIDES of the bulbs. This won't work with LEDS. I'll probably come up with some sort of 90° mount that faces the LED twords the face. The light behind the fan switch faces forward, so that's easy.

As for size, I'll try and use 5mm wherever possible. This is because you usually have a wider viewing angle available with the 5mm vs. the 3mm. I've heard they're now making 360° viewing angle LED's but I haven't heard much about them.

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KoukiS14
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Good call. . . I haven't taken my S14 HVAC apart in awhile. I wonder how different my QX4 one is. Prolly the same.

I'll see if I can't dig up info on 360 deg LEDs.

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float_6969
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Every Nissan I've seen is pretty much the same.

There are too that face straight down behind the temp control slider, and the vent control buttons. The one behind the fan either faces down, or twords the face.

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float_6969
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Here is my favorite place, Plus they're relatively local.

http://superbrightleds.com/leds.htm

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Dano
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They sell the 360* LEDs there, did you see that Ryan?

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float_6969
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LOL, yea, that's why posted it. I'll prob get a few to see what the light output is like.

With the way that LED's work, I doubt they are going to be bright enough for the stock configurations. I hope I'm wrong, as that would make it MUCH more simple!

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Dano
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Well hurry up! I'm anxcious to see more!

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float_6969
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I'll start work on the S14 later this week, or this weekend at worst. I'm ALMOST done with the KA-T project. Once it's done, and it get paid for it, then I'll start back in on the S14.

Oh, I also looked at the HVAC again, and we WON'T need those 360° bulbs. The S13's come in from the top, the S14's are on the board inside the unit and face forward. The only problem now will be finding a wide enough angle lens as they don't appear to be very far away from the board. If they're too close we'll get hot and cold spots (in respect to the light output). We would then have to go back to using the 360° bulbs again.

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Put a tiny blob of whiteout, or other impermiable substance on the tip of the bulb so no light comes strait out. Will that help?

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Dano
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No, not on LEDs... however Ryan, if you need more light dispurtion, you can take some really fine sand paper or scotch brite pad and scuff up the end of the LED...

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float_6969
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I'm hoping to make it more "plug-n-play" than that, but we'll see how it goes when I get started on it.

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Dano
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Because it's so hard to scuff up a light? lol

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KoukiS14
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Dano wrote:Because it's so hard to scuff up a light? lol
It just IS, okay?!

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float_6969
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Dano wrote:Because it's so hard to scuff up a light? lol
This is coming from the white guy with wannabe gang signs in his sig...

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Dano
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I didn't know the horns were gang signs

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Dano wrote:BUT:

If you do a red dome light, your retarded. Do all your switches and gauges and whatnot in red, do the interior light in WHITE. Practicality as well as aesthetically it's better to do it. I'm serious Ryan, don't do red.
I think Red would work well, especially if you like to develope film while driving (or better yet, parked).

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Dano
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Ricky Racer the Ricer Red.

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float_6969
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you guys killed my thread


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