Red Dash lights, LED

rjspitz · 02-01-2008, 04:45 PM

Thanks to mostertitan's post, I decided to mod my dash and stock radio. Sorry, but the pics are from my phone. I like the look of my S4 dash, red and white, so that's what I went with in the Titan.
LED's source from mouser.com. 6 different types of LEDs.

Rick Guess · 02-01-2008, 05:18 PM

dont own a digital camera?

i cant really see the color

but i will take you word for it...good job

Buildwonder · 02-01-2008, 10:48 PM

Kind of has a German feel to it. It's not my favorite, but I dig it nonetheless. I wouldn't even know where to begin to do that. Good job!

spoonman · 02-01-2008, 10:57 PM

i like the look of the speedo. How hard would you rate the job? Do you have any experience soldering? ive read the how to instructions, but thought id ask another person who has done it how difficult of a job it was.

rjspitz · 02-02-2008, 08:32 AM

Updated the pics.
thanks for the replies. I was an electronic engineer in the Army, a lot of soldering experience. But, it's really easy, just don't put too much heat on the LEDs, and make sure to remember the polarity of the old LED before removing it.

vwdave · 02-02-2008, 04:53 PM

were did you get your carbon fiber dash kit?? do you have anymore pics, and is it just the center around the radio because thats all im loking for. The red lighting looks awsome by the way

rjspitz · 02-02-2008, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vwdave

were did you get your carbon fiber dash kit?? do you have anymore pics, and is it just the center around the radio because thats all im loking for. The red lighting looks awsome by the way

Made the carbon parts myself. The are overlays over the stock bezel and upper tray. Also did the door handle inserts. Here's my post from years ago...

Opinions on custom dash

monstertitan · 02-03-2008, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rjspitz

Thanks to mostertitan's post, I decided to mod my dash and stock radio. Sorry, but the pics are from my phone. I like the look of my S4 dash, red and white, so that's what I went with in the Titan.
LED's source from mouser.com. 6 different types of LEDs.

Hey! Good Job!! Did you replace the LED's behind the ac contols? Mine are still orange? I tried taking the front of plastic piece off but it looked like it had an orange tint to it. Just curious if I changed the LED if you could still see the orange front part of the control.

Thanks and good job.

rjspitz · 02-04-2008, 07:18 AM

The AC controls on my truck are actually bulbs, not LEDs. I just painted them red. Worked for me since the faceplates are tinted orange as you said. Not sure how that will react with blue LEDs.
When you press the circulate and AC buttons, there is another orange LED that can be replaced. But, you have to pretty much dissasemble the AC dials to get to them without melting the controls with the iron. Maybe you can put a blue paint or gel on the light guide from the LED to the "on" light. dunno.

RyBo · 02-11-2008, 10:21 PM

Hey Rj, do you have a list of the 6 different types of LED's you used? I'm thinking of take a stab at this but I'll need to get a little more accustomed to a sodering iron b4 anything...any tips on the install, and for a less-experienced (as in like 2 hours use of) soder-er...how difficult would this be? Feel free to PM me with the response or post back here because I'm sure there's a number of people who are interested like myself...

Thanks, and fantastic job with the mod, looks professional and clean, great work!

-Ryan

rjspitz · 02-14-2008, 12:52 PM

No problem, here's the LED's I used.

RED LEDs for the buttons on the radio, tow button switch, dimmer switch, and bed utility light switch - http://www.mouser.com/Search/Product...yHQStwZw%3d%3d

RED LEDs for the backlight on the radio - http://www.mouser.com/Search/Product...uSU4Sm2Q%3d%3d

RED LEDs for the backlight on the dash mileage display - http://www.mouser.com/Search/Product...sbjQ9flw%3d%3d

WHITE LEDs for the gauge backlights - http://www.mouser.com/Search/Product...SWJt4Qpg%3d%3d

RED LED for the tow button switch and bed utility light switch - Any T1 (3mm) red led over 100mcd, can get it at radioshack or online.

Make sure to use a low-temp soldering iron, under 15Watts. The LEDs shouldn't be heated for over 3 seconds max, and only once. But, if you're careful, you can hold the iron on a bit longer, and more than once.

Remove the old led, just use a pair of needle-nose pliers and twist it off (don't forget to identify the polarity position of the LED before removing it). Then use the iron to remove any residue from the soldering pads on the card, such as broken pins from the old LED. I like to re-tin the soldering pads with a small bit of solder, this way I don't have to add solder when I apply the new LED, just lay the LED on the pads and heat each pin seperately. The solder will wick from the pad to pin on the LED. Plug the card back in and test the lights. If the LED doesn't light, double check the joint and polarity. I got the polarity wrong a couple of times, no worry, just redo it. Oh, make sure you buy more LEDs than you think you'll need. These things are small. If you drop one on the floor, chances are you'll never find it again.

Soldering tips...
Hold the LED with tweezers or a a plastic "needle" with one hand and hold the iron with the other hand. Metal tweezers will act like a heatsink, making it harder to melt the solder, but they'll do. When you remove the iron, hold the LED in place until the solder cures. You'll see the solder go from mirror-like to dull, that's the cure. If the LED moves before the solder cures, it's a "cold" joint and it'll have to be redone. Just hold the LED in place and re-melt the solder. The more you do this, the more heat gets put into the LED, increasing the chance of ruinning the LED.

Have fun...

gksmith · 02-18-2008, 11:26 AM

What about the LED in the overhead console? I drove for more than a month before I spotted mine. I believe it's near the map light rocker switch. It seems to show some minimum light down toward the shifter.

guls · 02-18-2008, 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gksmith

What about the LED in the overhead console? I drove for more than a month before I spotted mine. I believe it's near the map light rocker switch. It seems to show some minimum light down toward the shifter.

I agree you can barely notice it, I think Red LED will do a much better job, the ones in VW's are much brighter.

rjspitz · 02-21-2008, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gksmith

What about the LED in the overhead console? I drove for more than a month before I spotted mine. I believe it's near the map light rocker switch. It seems to show some minimum light down toward the shifter.

Doh, keep forgetting about that one since it's so dim. It's a bulb in my 04, not an LED. I'll have to find the right LED and resistors to replace that one.

sexylurry35 · 02-27-2008, 08:08 PM

VERY NICE mod!! How many LEDS did you buy for each part?