75ZT Community

I decided to upgrade the interior lights today.. What a difference.


I was looking for something a little brighter than the existing 3w 501 bulbs and while I've tried 5w 501 bulbs I got a little worried about the amount of heat they generated. After a few seconds they were to hot to touch.

I thought I'd give LED (Light Emitting Diode)'s a go.

These are the ones I purchased.


I got them from a eBay seller called econnect4u and they cost £1.50 for 2 delivered from Hong Kong.

Here is what they look like before fitting



It's just a matter of prising off the light covers, removing the old bulbs and slotting in the new ones.
One thing to remember when installing them is they are polarity sensitive so if they don't work one way around try them the other.
I had to bend the little connectors on the bulbs ever so slightly to get a good contact but nothing to worry about.

Here is a side by side comparison






and here is the finished result





The lights look more directional when the cover is off but once the cover is on you get a proper diffused light and it looks fantastic.

Heat was an initial worry with teh standard bulbs.. with the LED ones you can tough them whilst they are on so this will be a problem.

One thing worth noting is you still get to see the fade in and fade out of the lights.

All in all about 5 mins work and well worth the effort

Look really good.

You need 5 in total? Looks a quick, cheap and effective mod to me.

MrB wrote:Look really good.

You need 5 in total? Looks a quick, cheap and effective mod to me.

Yeah 5 are required. 3 for the front and 2 for the rear.

I purchased 8 in total so I'd have some spare for other projects..

They arrived within 5 days..

Linky to the page on ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2X-4-SMD-LED-T10- ... 20b159086a

Martin

Tazman3 wrote:Linky to the page on ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2X-4-SMD-LED-T10- ... 20b159086a

Martin

The reason I dod not put that in is they tend to get outdated quite fast whereas stating the type and seller is normally a better approach for a how to. At least in my opinion.

steven wrote:

Tazman3 wrote:Linky to the page on ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2X-4-SMD-LED-T10- ... 20b159086a

Martin

The reason I dod not put that in is they tend to get outdated quite fast whereas stating the type and seller is normally a better approach for a how to. At least in my opinion.

When I do the pdf conversions I knock out the links for that very reason.

How do you find the lights at night? I did mine a while back and the white light against the blue interior looks a) very cold and b) quite dull. I prefer the warm light of the bulbs but saying that never swapped them back, they're still in my ashtray!

steven wrote:

Tazman3 wrote:Linky to the page on ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2X-4-SMD-LED-T10- ... 20b159086a

Martin

The reason I dod not put that in is they tend to get outdated quite fast whereas stating the type and seller is normally a better approach for a how to. At least in my opinion.

True....

Only trying to help some people less computer savvy who dont know how to search Ebay shops..

Martin

Tazman3 wrote:

steven wrote:

Tazman3 wrote:Linky to the page on ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2X-4-SMD-LED-T10- ... 20b159086a

Martin

The reason I dod not put that in is they tend to get outdated quite fast whereas stating the type and seller is normally a better approach for a how to. At least in my opinion.

True....

Only trying to help some people less computer savvy who dont know how to search Ebay shops..

Martin

I wasn't having a go...

Monk wrote:How do you find the lights at night? I did mine a while back and the white light against the blue interior looks a) very cold and b) quite dull. I prefer the warm light of the bulbs but saying that never swapped them back, they're still in my ashtray!

I find them fine.. Yes they are colder but mine are not blue at all.

I think they look better and are more practical.

MrB wrote:Look really good.

You need 5 in total? Looks a quick, cheap and effective mod to me.

On a Tourer you would need the 5 x 501's as stated plus 3 x festoon one's too. 1 for the load space light, 1 x for the light under the Spare Wheel cover & 1 for the glove box.

Although this could be seen as overkill so I have only done the 1st one myself.

The Blue LED's look very nice to. (must take some photos.)

steven wrote:

Monk wrote:How do you find the lights at night? I did mine a while back and the white light against the blue interior looks a) very cold and b) quite dull. I prefer the warm light of the bulbs but saying that never swapped them back, they're still in my ashtray!

I find them fine.. Yes they are colder but mine are not blue at all.

I think they look better and are more practical.

Just looked, and mine are not as bright as yours. Might try upgrading the brightness see if I can loose the dullness!

steven wrote:

I wasn't having a go...

I realised that steven...

Martin

Sounds like a good practical mod. So what's the correct way to remove the light covers without damaging them.
...

James.uk wrote:Sounds like a good practical mod. So what's the correct way to remove the light covers without damaging them.
...

Hi James, you can't sleep either, eh?

If you don't have a handbook they all come off with the aid of a small flat screwdriver to lever them off. Quite easy really, as long as you take care doing it.

I've ordered some as well, even though I have a brighter set of standard bulbs, which are very bright. It's only a few bob and the pics of these installed look very nice.

I am one of the people who have prblems with E-bay, and computers for that matter. Thankyou for the link, I have just ordered four for my Rover75, thankyou once again. Shy Talk

shy talk wrote:I am one of the people who have prblems with E-bay, and computers for that matter. Thankyou for the link, I have just ordered four for my Rover75, thankyou once again. Shy Talk

Thats ok mate...

Martin

I should never have done this Mod.

Since I've upgraded my lights I've taken a few people around in my car after dark. They have all commented on how nice teh lights are and how easy it is to see with them on.

I've now had to upgrade 2 Ford Focus's A renault Clio and aparently I'll be getting a few other cars to do now that the word is spreading

Lets hope the seller does not start charging more.. I've just ordered another 10 sets.