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Originally Posted by 240meowth
Also a note on the LEDs, it will not work because LED's light angle is not wide enough. Basically, the bulb lights up around the bulb, and the LED lights up more in one direction. Since the instrument panel is designed for the regualr bulb, when you chuck a LED in there, it'll be complete failer.
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Actually, LEDs work fine as long as you get wide-angle LEDs. The pictures I posted above with the blue lighting are all LEDs, and the color is completely consistent across the IP. The LEDs that I purchased have an inverted cone molded into the top of them, so that the light is scattered all around instead of focused. With the analog cluster, things may be different, due to the different placement of the bulbs, but I doubt that it will be much different. It is also just as bright as stock lighting, though I had been hoping that it would be brighter, since stock is a little dim for my tastes. The brightness that you get also depends on the color you choose. Certain color LEDs, due to the materials used to acheive that color, are inherently dimmer than others. Also, I've noticed that the blue lighting is just hard for my eyes to focus on. It looks cool, but isn't terribly practical. I plan on changing to white LEDs. They are brighter, and it should be easier to read. Because of the blue tinting on the back of the gauges, they will still be a little bluish.
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Originally Posted by crazy9ceguy
hey the lights for the AC control unit and window switch doesnt shine, is there a bulb that makes it shine so i can replace it with the LED bulb?.
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The HVAC controls do have a bulb, actually two bulbs for illumination. However, because of the way it is designed, you can't just replace it with an LED bulb for lighting. The stock lighting system only uses the light that comes out of the sides of the bulbs (perpendicular to the axis of the bulb), so even wide-angle LEDs wouldn't work. Also, the bulbs are
tiny. I have actually converted my HVAC unit to LED lighting, but you have to disassemble it, pull out the stock bulbs and lighting prism, and replace it with a small circuit of LEDs. I have been meaning to post pictures with a how-to for a while, but just haven't gotten around to it yet. I'll try posting it tonight or tomorrow. I have also put LEDs in the buttons around the steering column (headlights up/down, cruise, hazards etc.) Those were difficult to do, but it looks pretty slick to me, and all the bulbs were burned out on my car. I'll post pics of those as well.