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Re: LED bulbs in '60's - '80's Saabs ? ? ? Posted by Justin VanAbrahams [Email] (#32) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Justin VanAbrahams) on Thu, 12 Mar 2015 16:13:45 In Reply to: Re: LED bulbs in '60's - '80's Saabs ? ? ?, BobD, Wed, 11 Mar 2015 10:02:57 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Brighter is probably not a problem, but a lot depends on the orientation of the bulbs. Since incandescent bulbs throw light everywhere, the relationship of socket to lens isn't really critical. For example, whereas a c900 has the bulbs inserted directly into the lamp housing, my motorhome's sockets are at 90 degree angle - you insert the bulbs up. LEDs are totally directional, so ideally you want to make a list of what direction the light goes versus the socket angle and shop accordingly. Of course, most LED replacement bulbs incorporate multiple LEDs, but the more LEDs you can get facing the correct direction the brighter the light will be. Related, there are generally only a couple different bulb base sizes in a car - most are BA15 sockets, but there are others like wedge sockets and smaller BA9 sockets. Things like 1156 single filament bulbs and 1157 dual filament bulbs are all BA15 sockets. You need a list of those, too. For any given socket, there are multiple options - quantity, quality, and style of LEDs - so you also need to know what your clearance is like. For example, because on motorhome's taillights have a 90 degree socket angle, I have effectively infinite height for a bulb, whereas on the c900 I am limited by the depth of the socket. You gotta know this, too.
So:
o Direction the light needs to go
o Socket type
o Socket clearance
I bought nearly all my bulbs from seller yitamotor on ebay and have been happy with the results. Fast shipping, the parts seem reasonably well made (for $2 led bulbs!), and the one defective one I received was replaced immediately without question. Check out item #201057443481 for a very directional BA15 socket bulb that I think will work great for c900 tail lights. I'm actually putting them in the reverse lights for my Suburban this weekend. I used #251370457861 for most of the general purpose 1156 replacements. I used #201086212273 on the motorhome for the reverse lights (and all the interior lights) as space was not a problem - this light or its round version might work well in a Sonett. There are also projector-style LEDs which might work out well for directional light, but they're expensive and what I've got has kept me busy so far.
FWIW, I have not replaced any turn signal bulbs. Although they have LEDs with big resistors to make turn signals behave themselves I just don't want to mess with them. Too much work for too little reward. I may get to it eventually, but at the moment it's not worth the hassle for me.
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