Hello. Has anyone replaced their stock turn and stop/tail light bulbs with LED? What kind did you buy? Do they fit perfectly?
Thanks in advance.
Thanks in advance.
LED Turn Signal and Stop/Tail Light Bulb Replacement
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I think it can be done but maybe not plug and play (running light & turn sig). The running light and flasher is one filament and is evidently controlled using pulse width modulation.
Others here (brillot) have looked into it fairly deep. You can search the forum and others will probably chime in.
http://www.nt-owners.org/forums/showthread.php?11557-Turn-Signal-Module-How-Does-It-Work
Brad
Others here (brillot) have looked into it fairly deep. You can search the forum and others will probably chime in.
http://www.nt-owners.org/forums/showthread.php?11557-Turn-Signal-Module-How-Does-It-Work
Brad
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I have not tried replacing the turn signal globes but I did try replacing the tail/stop lamp globes with LEDs.
I did not like the look of the lamp when illuminated so I took them out again straight away.
From behind, the lamp looked patchy, uneven and not as bright as with the standard globes.
Macka
I did not like the look of the lamp when illuminated so I took them out again straight away.
From behind, the lamp looked patchy, uneven and not as bright as with the standard globes.
Macka
I have converted my entire bike to LEDs. Here's the thread that I started that covers both the turn signals and taillight. Turn Signal Module - How Does It Work??? - Brillot2000
I also have some pictures in my albums too. Brillot2000's Albums
Let me know if you have additional questions regarding what is all involved to make these conversions.
Replaced the brake/tail light with an led. The tail light was much brighter than stock.....too bright, and there wasn't much change in brightness with the brakes applied.....so changed it back to stock. This was at least 5 years ago, so maybe LEDs are better now.
I wonder if they accidentally shipped you a pair of 1156 bulbs? Our bikes take an 1157 and the two bulbs look and fit identically. The difference is that the filaments are reversed so if you put an 1156 into our taillight, the brighter brake light filament will be lit instead of the dimmer taillight filament. When you hit the brakes, the dimmer taillight filament will light and will not appear to make much of a difference.
It is a really easy mistake to make and you see it on cars regularly. Bright tail lights and dim brake lights.
The taillight uses 2 1157 bulbs. The turn signals, on the other hand, use the European version of 1156, which is known as BAU15S. In the turn signals LEDs will require the installation of load stabilizing resistors across each LED Bulb.
I had to take out LED Bulbs out of the back of my bike last night, one was on not work correctly. The bulb sockets used are made very cheaply and only have small tab making contact to the bulb surfaces. Poorly made and flimsy, this totally surprised me that Honda would use these and are not Stanley's as Honda used on all their other bikes. I had to bend the tabs to get more spring tension to ensure a better contact and has to add bulb dielectric grease to the bulb bases.
After all this exercise, this morning I found out that one of the bulbs has a problem is not full intensity and will need to be replaced. I have any set of the ones that I used on the front standing by.
One of these gave me the troubles, LUYED Super Bright 7507 1156PY BAU15S
One did not even last a year on the bike.
I am going to replace them with these, BAU15S Extremely Bright Amber/Yellow Non-Polarity LED Light 9-30V-DC
I use these on the front signals without any issues.
After all this exercise, this morning I found out that one of the bulbs has a problem is not full intensity and will need to be replaced. I have any set of the ones that I used on the front standing by.
One of these gave me the troubles, LUYED Super Bright 7507 1156PY BAU15S
One did not even last a year on the bike.
I am going to replace them with these, BAU15S Extremely Bright Amber/Yellow Non-Polarity LED Light 9-30V-DC
I use these on the front signals without any issues.
These are the LED Bulbs that I am using in the taillight in red, Philips Ultinon LED Bulbs
I highly recommend them.
I highly recommend them.
I question why you would bother replacing the standard globes with LEDs at those prices when a standard globe costs 10-20% of that and will last for years.
Even the more expensive LED globes have yet to be proven anywhere near as long lasting as they claim.
In 10 years and 92,oookm I have only ever needed to replace 1 stop lamp globe, no indicator globes or pilot globes.
Headlamp globes (low beam), on the other hand, I need to replace on average every 2 years.
I carry a spare in the LH glove box all the time.
That, and a couple of extra fuses are the ONLY spare parts that I carry.
The alternator output has plenty of headroom to cover a few accessories without the need to try to save a few watts that are only used intermittantly and for short periods.
Macka
Even the more expensive LED globes have yet to be proven anywhere near as long lasting as they claim.
In 10 years and 92,oookm I have only ever needed to replace 1 stop lamp globe, no indicator globes or pilot globes.
Headlamp globes (low beam), on the other hand, I need to replace on average every 2 years.
I carry a spare in the LH glove box all the time.
That, and a couple of extra fuses are the ONLY spare parts that I carry.
The alternator output has plenty of headroom to cover a few accessories without the need to try to save a few watts that are only used intermittantly and for short periods.
Macka
It's a matter of preference in many cases. Power saving is just one of the best-known benefits.
I designed and manufactured custom LED Boards for British Bikes for nearly 15 years. LEDs are far superior to an incandescent bulb as they are not affected by vibration, have a long life, bright light output when the LED color used matches the lens color, and turn on and off instantly. The instant on/off characteristics is an attention getter in my opinion.
Most modern vehicles come standard with many LED Lighting products from the manufacturer now. That should be an indicator that where everything is headed nowadays.
Yes, I agree with most of what you say, including that the modern trend is to go LED as original equipment.
That is OK if the lens and reflector is designed to suit the LEDs.
Often, fitting an LED globe to an existing lamp will give an unsatisfactory light pattern.
As a professional motor mechanic for nearly 50 years I can tell you that my customers would rather pay $2-$3 for a globe every three or four years than several hundred Dollars when an LED lamp fails.
For example, in OZ, a high level brake lamp in the rear window of a Nissan Maxima is nearly $500 plus fitting and requires the removal of the rear seats, rear quarter trims and rear parcel shelf to remove the lamp.
They fail often and it takes more than two hours to replace the lamp.
The small high level lamp on the tailgate of a Toyota Hi-Ace van costs more than $200 and is installed from the inside.
It is not an easy job either.
LED lamps are usually sealed units and generally they cannot be repaired.
More often than not I replace minor globes FOC for my regular customers as good will.
It is usually the LEDs that fail one at a time or a circuit board fault causing a total failure.
A 20% loss of LEDs or loss of intensity is a fail.
I have replaced several LED lamps, including the examples above, at great expense on various model cars as in most cases it is necessary to keep the car roadworthy.
As for upgrading an existing incandescent bulb, it is trendy but in most cases I don't believe that it is necessary and is often not legal.
The instant on-off of an LED turn signal lamp is uncomfortable on the eye if it is bright or you are close.
The gradual on-off of an incandescent is much gentler on the eye.
Cheap and easy is far better than trendy and outrageously expensive.
LED lamps is one of the major reasons that vehicle insurance premiums are rising so rapidly on modern cars.
It used to be only the prestige cars that had high priced insurance but modest vehicles now cost much more to insure than they used to.
Wait until you have to replace the windsreen on a car with forward radar or such-like.
They can be thousands of dollars as they are special glass.
Likewise the side mirror with LED turn lamps included and "lane guidance or blind spot" warning systems.
They are often $1000-$2000.
Another ridiculous situation is the price of the special battery needed for a vehicle with "Start-Stop" technology.
They are 2-3 times the price of a good standard "Starting" battery.
Technology is great when it is needed but it is expensive and unnecessary to upgrade an older vehicle that works perfectly well as it is.
I am definitely not against the improvements in technology but I am against the enforced use of it to drive up the price.
Macka
I think the NT has very good rear lighting with standard bulbs. Now the headlight I would like it brighter, and added LED to be seen and see better. I think the headlight is a bit yellow, not as bright in the daylight hours to be seen from a distance.
TMI Dude... :smile_popcorn:
All I can say relating to my engineering background if it takes more than 5 minutes to swap out a bulb, then it is a poor design and the design engineer is to blame.
Fortunately, the light housings used are the NT are suitable for LEDs and the light patterns are not different than incandescent bulbs. Most LED replacement bulbs sold by well-known manufacturers such as Philips or Sylvania are DOT APPROVED for On-Highway Use here in the States.
I shot this video this morning just before sunrise. The taillight bulbs are Philips Ultinon LED Bulbs in red sold as a set for about $20 USD. The bulbs used in the turn signals were purchased off of Amazon with no manufacturer's information.
[video=youtube;mkBeSimafzI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkBeSimafzI[/video]
I also have LED Highlight bulbs installed and auxiliary LED Driving lights turned on in this video illuminating the garage's interior.
Just to clarify, Bruce, the two examples that I quoted are both LED lamps that must be replaced when they fail.
My point was that it would have been much cheaper and easier to replace a globe in a conventional lamp.
The reason that they are difficult to remove is that the vehicle manufacturer erroneously believes that the lamps will last for the life of the car.
Strangely, they have replacement lamps readily available for applications are are most unlikely to be damaged in an accident.
Curious, isn't it?
Macka
My point was that it would have been much cheaper and easier to replace a globe in a conventional lamp.
The reason that they are difficult to remove is that the vehicle manufacturer erroneously believes that the lamps will last for the life of the car.
Strangely, they have replacement lamps readily available for applications are are most unlikely to be damaged in an accident.
Curious, isn't it?
Macka
Design priority is given to ease of initial assembly, not repair. Failure rates are lower, so it doesn't matter much if the entire vehicle has to be disassembled every few years. You can't fix it yourself anyway, so pay an experienced technician for his acquired speed.
From experience, I can tell you that the design engineer is operating the LED at the high edge of the power curve, which overdrives the LED and leads to premature failures in a short amount of time. They are overdriving them to get the most intensity out of them. Also, there are usually several LEDs in series and a failed LED takes out that whole string of them.
The fact is that LEDs are the future and the incandescent bulb is becoming obsolete and will be eventually be phased completely out like the rotary telephone. People can either accept or fear the future.
OP
OP
I have successfully replaced my stock rear turn signal bulbs and my stop/tail light bulbs with LED without modification, after a little research. The LEDs were much brighter than the stock filament bulbs! I was surprised that the turn LED flashes at the same rate as when the original bulbs were in. I was going to look at the possibility of replacing the front turn signals as well but I don't think I will do it because I think there's so much to remove to get to the bulbs up front!
I bought the LED bulbs from Amazon with the links below. I have attached (I hope I can attach) a picture of the stop light with the LED bulb on the left and still with the original bulb on the right. As you can see, the LED bulb really shines bright.
Stop/Tail Light LED replacement: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DGM2JKX/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Rear Turn Signal LED replacement: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075MXQM7X/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Attachments
Whilst I agree that the LED lamp will make you more visible from the rear, if I was to do a Roadworthiness Certificate Test on your bike I would have to fail the LED tail lamp as it is too bright.
Light output must be "approximately equivalent" to a 5 watt conventional bulb, not noticeably more.
I also feel that US$40 (AU$55) is a very high price to pay for two indicator globes.
Macka
OP
OP
I don't think there is such a test in the U.S. of A.