AndyD Posted August 22, 2014 Share Posted August 22, 2014 I've just upgraded my rear indicator bulbs in my clear lenses from "standard" LED replacements to CREE LED bulbs. Whilst they're still not as bright as a replacement LED light unit, they are a marked improvement and are visible in daylight. Bulbs on ebay here. Picture showing difference here (new bulb on the right). Not cheap at £30 but a marked improvement over regular LED bulbs. Edited by - AndyD on 25 Aug 2014 20:15:51 Edited by - AndyD on 26 Aug 2014 21:05:45 Edited by - AndyD on 26 Aug 2014 21:06:56 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gregs79 Posted August 22, 2014 Share Posted August 22, 2014 Great Share. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted August 22, 2014 Member Share Posted August 22, 2014 Quoting AndyD: Picture showing difference here (new bulb on the right).That's the way to do it. Thanks Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bad Baz Posted August 23, 2014 Share Posted August 23, 2014 I recently upgraded all the bulbs in the camper to "Cree" LEDs (indicators, tail-lights and brakes). Not cheap (spent about £100 all told) but they do make a marked improvement. The indicator bulbs are also little works of art: http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b337/Sciroccology/Sciroccology017/SB2_0303_11762_zps2c8dfaa9.jpg (I doubt they'd be any good for our side-firing rear indicators though.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 23, 2014 Share Posted August 23, 2014 Thanks for sharing. Do you have an inline resistor or some form of relay mod to be able to use these LEDs in the rear? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stationary M25 Traveller Posted August 23, 2014 Share Posted August 23, 2014 I bought an electronic flasher unit for a couple of Pounds on eBay. Will work with LED or filament bulbs, or a mix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyD Posted August 23, 2014 Author Share Posted August 23, 2014 The second recommendation looks good for forwards-facing indicator pods yes. The ones I fitted to the rear have two LEDs on the end and eight down the sides, arranged in twos. With the positioning of the bulb holder on the rear cluster you get two LEDs pointing almost directly backwards with any reflective upgrades you've done behind the bulbs no doubt helping. Mine currently have no reflector upgrades added although I've just ordered some bright ali tape to coat the front of the light block in. I've also upgraded the front indicator units with fully enclosed LED units. Bit of a fiddle to replace all the wiring but they are truly blinding as you get 15-20 LEDs all pointing directly forwards. I'll post pics and ordering details when I have more time. Cheers, Andy Edited by - AndyD on 23 Aug 2014 07:28:28 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyD Posted August 23, 2014 Author Share Posted August 23, 2014 Quoting Grant_7: Do you have an inline resistor or some form of relay mod to be able to use these LEDs in the rear? Good question. I have a replacement indicator relay (from SevenSpeed in my case) that allows the LED bulbs to operate correctly. For those not yet in the know, the low power consumption (resistance) of LED bulbs can make the car think that a bulb has blown which causes the indicators to flash very quickly when used. As well as dealing with this, the one I now have also sounds nicer as it produces a quieter and more modern "plink" as the indicators flash. Andy Edited by - AndyD on 23 Aug 2014 07:34:07 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stationary M25 Traveller Posted August 23, 2014 Share Posted August 23, 2014 That sounds interesting ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted August 23, 2014 Share Posted August 23, 2014 I fitted the SVC Ultrabright 95mm lights to my Westie (they are pretty-much a straight swap - would need new light blocks for the Caterham - Rob Grigsby changed his several years ago though). The indicator units come with/need a chunky resistor to make them function. Chunky as in high power capacity - and bonded to an aluminium plate as both a heat sink and mount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7 wonders of the world Posted August 23, 2014 Share Posted August 23, 2014 The SVC option are decent lights and offer full approval, as I've said before many rear lights and bulb combinations are NOR e marked and this will give any insurance comapny an easy get out should you be 🙆🏻ended as the power, colour and viewing angles do not meet C&U regs........... your risk I know of a guy who this happened too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted August 23, 2014 Member Share Posted August 23, 2014 I tried recently to assemble what we knew about LEDs that might work on a 7: model, e marking, price, comparison with conventional bulbs and opinions. There just weren't enough data to make this useful, but I expect that to change... Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyD Posted August 25, 2014 Author Share Posted August 25, 2014 Replacement LED front indicator units As well as the rear LED bulb upgrade to Cree LEDs, I've also replaced the front indicator units with sealed LED units. They are made by WIPAC and are E-marked and DOT-marked so should be compliant in many countries, including the UK. If anyone wants to know exactly what markings are on them just ask and I will post them all and take a picture. Plenty of info on the websites selling them too - see below. Fitting These are 73mm outer diameter, which is the same as the originals that they replace. They are mounted on the original pod but you need to drill two new holes as the mount holes are different. I bought some M4x40mm pan head machine screws and nyloc nuts in stainless steel to mount them through the pods. The wires were supplied with an AMP-style connector and a wire length of about six inches, which is not long enough for a Caterham. So, I bought a couple of sets of AMP Superseal connectors, which are waterproof, and snipped the wires at the back of the old indicator units and crimped the connectors onto the original wiring so that they are hidden under the indicator pod and cable-tied into place to keep it neat. Saved having to push new wires through the headlight mounting tubes etc, but you do need to sacrifice your old units by cutting the wires. Happy to post pics if anyone is interested. Performance I've done a side-by-side comparison with my old indicator units with clear lenses and "standard" amber LED bulbs that have three LEDs pointing forwards, the rest around the sides. The new unit is on the left in the photos, shown both illuminated and off so you can see how they look. The peripheral performance is limited (i.e. viewing from an angle other then straight ahead), but owing to the fact that there are 16 LEDs all pointing forwards, when you are in front of them they are almost blinding! Pictures Comparison photo Close-up photo Cost These are being sold to both Land Rover Defender and Harley Davidson owners on lots of websites. I bought mine from here and paid about £35 including postage for the pair. A search for wipac led clear indicator should give plenty of options. A bag of 5 sets of Superseal connectors is about £7 on ebay and a crimping tool can be had for about £15 if you don't have one. I bought a cheapie and butchered it to get it to work - fine for a few pins like this. This is by far the best lighting upgrade I've done to my Caterham and will hopefully give me a chance of actually informing other road users what I'm about to do Apologies if someone else has already covered these units but I couldn't find reference. Cheers, Andy Edited by - AndyD on 25 Aug 2014 21:08:38 Edited by - AndyD on 25 Aug 2014 21:09:18 Edited by - AndyD on 25 Aug 2014 21:11:01 Edited by - AndyD on 25 Aug 2014 21:11:41 Edited by - AndyD on 25 Aug 2014 21:34:57 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted August 25, 2014 Member Share Posted August 25, 2014 I think you need a OneDrive account to see those photos. (There's also something about a single-use licence.) Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyD Posted August 25, 2014 Author Share Posted August 25, 2014 Hi Jonathan, I'll check tomorrow but my understanding is that you don't need to be signed in ti view the pictures. I may need to get the URL in a different way. You might be able be able to use one of the links in the original post and scroll to the others in the album. Cheers, Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted August 25, 2014 Member Share Posted August 25, 2014 Thanks. Yes, the second link in the first post is public... but I can only get to one photo. Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyD Posted August 25, 2014 Author Share Posted August 25, 2014 Quoting Jonathan Kay: Thanks. Yes, the second link in the first post is public... but I can only get to one photo. Jonathan Sorry, hopefully resolved with new links in the post above but copied here too: Comparison photo Close-up photo Thanks, Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted August 25, 2014 Member Share Posted August 25, 2014 I can see those. Thanks Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Lynch Posted August 26, 2014 Share Posted August 26, 2014 I have the Wipac units up front like AndyD used in conjunction with the small side repeaters in the Headlight Bowls. Take care that suplier does not supply Rear units. Mine did and Wipac were good enough to send me the CE type approval documents to show me the difference was nominal (Fronts are slightly brighter but a rear unit is still well above the EU requirement for a front). Saved me a return hassle. What is poor about them is lack of any side projection. The Type approval test bears that out as they are only required to be tested to +/- 20° up/down and side to side IIRC and light fall off is significant. Certainly wouldn't use then without side repeaters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted August 26, 2014 Member Share Posted August 26, 2014 Quoting David Lynch: Certainly wouldn't use then without side repeaters.Just what I was going to ask. Thanks Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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