Need tips/help replacing all interior bulbs

[Suareezay]

I want to replace all my interior lights with with blue lights like HvyChevyZ71:
http://images.cardomain.com/member_img_a/328000-328999/328364_57_full.jpg http://images.cardomain.com/member_img_a/328000-328999/328364_55_full.jpg http://images.cardomain.com/member_img_a/328000-328999/328364_61_full.jpg

1. About how many LEDs will I need to replace every light on the inside of my 2door Tahoe?

2. Will I need any other colors? (like maybe some red LEDs for the heater part of the temperature gauge")

3. Where can I get blue LED bulbs...can you get them at rice rocket shops? AutoZone? Walmart? Also, how much am I going to end up spending....are LEDS more expensive than regular bulbs?

[RedZ71]

my red bulbs for the floor lights and dome light came from autozone. i actually had no idea that LEDs were available to replace those little peanut lights?? is that what i am to understand?

the dome light, i bought a red replacement, but it took about a week for the red to wear off, and it was pretty much gay pink. i happened to stumble across this little red rubber tube that is supposd to fit over a white light to color it red, and that works great. im sure those tubes are available in other colors too, just dont buy a painted bulb for your dome. they run hot and im sure other colors have the same problems.

[Badassilverado]

Whatever you do, use LED's. The colored bulbs and even the gel covers RedZ is talking about burn up quickly and discolor.

http://www.superbrightleds.com is where you can buy everything you need. Wait for Stabbin97Tahoe to post here, I think he just did his entire 2dr Tahoe...

[Suareezay]

Originally posted by Badassilverado
Whatever you do, use LED's. The colored bulbs and even the gel covers RedZ is talking about burn up quickly and discolor.

http://www.superbrightleds.com is where you can buy everything you need. Wait for Stabbin97Tahoe to post here, I think he just did his entire 2dr Tahoe...

Yea I went to superbrightleds.com and looked around for a second, but there are like 1,000,000,000,000 different sizes :think:...can anybody tell me exactly what sizes i need, how many i need, etc?

[Stabbin97Tahoe]

Originally posted by Badassilverado
Whatever you do, use LED's. The colored bulbs and even the gel covers RedZ is talking about burn up quickly and discolor.

http://www.superbrightleds.com is where you can buy everything you need. Wait for Stabbin97Tahoe to post here, I think he just did his entire 2dr Tahoe...

I have a 4 door hoe and only did the gauges, and A/C panel. Here is what you need :read: And this is all from www.superbrightleds.com If you have an OBS Tahoe 95-99 then you need 6 of the 4-LED Wedge's for the gauges, and 4 of the 4-LED for the A/C panel. Here is the deal though with the A/C panel. It's not a direct replacement but it is possible. Just file down around the base of the LED and the middle of it to make fit in the base and hole on the back (4 across the top when you pull that unit out). I am not sure what you need for the rest of your ride as far as doors, ceiling lights, etc...? There is a way to do the window, headlight, and 4x4 panels but you need a resistor and a 3mm LED from the Shack. You might want to ask Lalito about this procedure since I have yet to do. And on the A/C panel you don't need to buy a Red LED, it gets its red from the transparent film on the back of it.

Here are some pics of mine...
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid65/p815c853f5e762350cdda76db7c72f056/fbecfef0.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid65/p90cb7f0f1ec21fb19a6476acda8bdef3/fbecfed5.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid65/p6cbfb8742edb33a2b01029bca9373357/fbecfe9a.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid65/pc74ac3688365b86a2746eeb12a45ff7c/fbecfe60.jpg

[Suareezay]

ok, thanks

But what size LEDs am i going to need for everything? Will they all be the same size? I need to know EXACTLY which LEDs to get because at suprbrightleds.com there are like a million different sizes.

Also whered you get the blue needles?

[Stabbin97Tahoe]

Originally posted by 2drTAHOEz71
ok, thanks

But what size LEDs am i going to need for everything? Will they all be the same size? I need to know EXACTLY which LEDs to get because at suprbrightleds.com there are like a million different sizes.

Also whered you get the blue needles?

As far as the guage and A/C they are all the 4-LED Wedge, if you want blue it will be this one...WLED-B4 Blue LED bulb
12V Blue 4-LED Wedge Base Bulb
$ 2.59 http://www.superbrightleds.com/store/html/images/T4b_s.jpg

The blue needles I made:read: Just scraped off the orange on the backs of the stock needles to where they are clear. Then I took a blue sharpie to the back and painted over that with white paint. The white paint took some of the blue off but that is fine because it allows more light to come through. Actually, at night they are blue because of the Blue LED's not because of the sharpie. You will see, on the back of the needles at the center is a little spot where the light hits that and gets dispersed through the middle of the needle:read:

[HvyChevyZ71]

hey man, sorry i havent had time to answer your pm but it looks like these guys have shown you what you need to get. I'll give a run down of all the bulbs and positions there used in so you can order by.


guages- 6 194leds either 1 led or 4 led available ( i used single's to avoid "hotspots" but the rest i used 4led)

cargo light switch- i used a 194 4led and had to do alot of nit picky work to get it to fit but i finally got it

under dash and door lights- total of 4 194leds that fit right in to the socket

dome light- 4led "festoon" bulb, you will have to bend the connectors in a little so it will hold the bulb, its just a little to short to fit into the factory position. no biggie

four wheel drive lights- mine is on the floor, yours may not be but mine took 2 194 4leds that fit right in to place

ash tray light- one 194 4led bulb

havent done ac panel yet, its blue b/c of my nu image panel. so far thats all ive had time to do. good luck man, pm if you need any help. remember leds are polarity sensitive so if it doesnt work when you plug it in, pull it out and twist it around and it should.

[Suareezay]

alright thanks you guys, those last two posts of yours were really informative, exactly what I needed.:thumbup:

im sure I will have a question or two more though.:D

[Suareezay]

Ok, I just went outside and took apart my dash and looked at everything and came up with a few more questions.

1. When dealing with locations like the cargo light switch, the bulbs are inside the little black box right?
How do you get that little black box apart?

2. What type of bulbs (1 or 4 led 194s, festoon, etc) do you use for the 2 round map/reading lights in the ceiling near the windshield?

3. How do you access the door lights, just pry the red and clear cover off?

4. What type of LEDs (1 or 4 led 194s, festoon, etc) and how many do you use for the bottom left hand corner of the dashboard where you turn your lights on and off, and adjust the dimmer on the interior lights?

And to anyone with the in dash 4hi 4lo switch (HvyChevy I know yours is on the floor so you probably wont know this) I took apart the little black box where I figured the lights would be, and inside there was a circuit board (like inside a computer, or a windshield wiper relay board, etc) :think: The lights were attached to the circuit board...I take it these arent replacable?

Just to get everything straight...these are the only 3 bulbs I will need for everything, correct?:
http://www.superbrightleds.com/jpgs/w_b_S.jpg http://www.superbrightleds.com/jpgs/T4b_sf.jpg http://www.superbrightleds.com/jpgs/3022b.jpg


Thanks everybody, and sorry for the long post with so many questions....I just know nothing about this at all. :D

And for the festoon LEDs in the ceiling, you said that the 31x10mm festoon LED was too short and you had to bend some stuff to get it to fit, would this festoon LED fit, or would it be too long? It is 42x11mm
http://www.superbrightleds.com/store/html/images/1142.jpg vs 31x10mm http://www.superbrightleds.com/store/html/images/3022.jpg

[Stabbin97Tahoe]

Ok, the only thing I can answer here is that the Headlight, window, and 4x4 control switches takes a smaller bulb than the 194. I took apart the 4x4 switch just like you did and came up with a circuit board with little lights on it. According to Lalito you have to solder on a 3mm LED and a resistor or two from Radio Shack to all of these in order to get them Blue or whatever color you want:read: I would do this but I don't want to risk screwing something up and losing my lights in those

[HvyChevyZ71]

in the cargo light switch there is a little rice bulb inside that shines through a little tunnel and hits a platic light distributor so it lights the "cargo light" i pulled this rice bulb out and filled down the 4led bulb, soldiered into the 2 tiny prongs that send power and ground, kept the resistors that the bulb came with when i did this, then drilled out the tunnel area until it could squeeze through. finally i had to open up the clear platic light reflector so the bigger led could fit. it was a pain in the *** but i was happy when i got it. the door light housings just pop out, do not pry the red off!!!! good luck man

[1998chevy1500]

i did the same thing with red led's

4x4 switch --- i took the old bulbs out (broke them then heated the soider and ripped the old wire out) then i took 2 5mm superbright leds and ground down a flat side on them with a dremmil? tool and super glued the two together to make one led out of two. soiddered a 1/4 watt resistor to the one lead and then while heating the soider i forced the wires into the holes keeping track of + & - when i had changed both pairs i tested it and put it back together

light switch ---- took one 5mm bulb and 1/4 watt resistor. the bulb is similar to the large socket 194 just 1/4 turn and pul them out (on bottom of switch) you then remove the bulb just pull the bulb out and the wires will come with it (watch how they wrap around the base to reinstall) soider a resistor to a led and then drill a hole in one of the two wire holes to feed the resistor through and wrap it around the base. the led will probly require some grinding on the end to make it fit.

window switch ---- very simmilar to the light switch with one twist in bulb per side. but the base of the bulbs wires wrap different but the idea is the same (on the driver side there is also a smaller bulb that lights the door lock switch and i have yet to figure out how to get it to fit , it is the only thing at night that is not red includeing the radio and it bothers me to death)

air bag switch --- this was a caualty in the quest for red illumination. some how when i soidered the led on i broke the soider base off the circut board and now none of it lights up but the switch still works

for the roof i used the big 6 led feston perfect fit for the middle over head light.

i think that i got it all covered any questions email me salers@3rivers.net

by the way i have a 1998 ext cab silverado(pwr all)