LED dashboard bulbs

[Jhepb1]

I've found the standard bulbs in my 1973 240Z too dim, so bought a set of LED ones from bettercarlighting.co.uk. Much better. See the pic attached (sorry about the quality). I went for white ones though they are available in green if you want to keep the '70s vibe.
Not that cheap at £40+ for a set but worth it, I reckon.

 

[AliK]

That looks very cool!!!

Are you able to dim them too without flicker issues?



Ali K

 

[MaximG]

Which ones did you get?

 

[Rob Gaskin]

Do they dim ok with the rheostat control?

 

[MaximG]

Do they dim ok with the rheostat control?

I think the short answer is no having had a quick read up.

 

[Jhepb1]

They work fine with the dimmer, with a good range of brightness levels possible and no flickering.
The code is 233 for the white bulbs. Check the Better Car Lighting website for other colours if that's what you want.

 

[Russell]

How do you get to the bulbs in the heater controls above the stereo on a 260Z?

I bought some cheap ebay ones last year but could I work out how to get to the bulbs??

 

[MaximG]

They work fine with the dimmer, with a good range of brightness levels possible and no flickering.
The code is 233 for the white bulbs. Check the Better Car Lighting website for other colours if that's what you want.

Guess I shouldn't believe everything I read on the Internet.

 

[AliK]

They work fine with the dimmer, with a good range of brightness levels possible and no flickering.

The code is 233 for the white bulbs. Check the Better Car Lighting website for other colours if that's what you want.

Thanks dude, that is great to know. Really want to do the dash ones just the once!

How do you get to the bulbs in the heater controls above the stereo on ??

I'm sure there's a far more elegant method, but I did mine with the stereo out and centre console moved back.



Ali K

 

[Farmer42]

They work fine with the dimmer, with a good range of brightness levels possible and no flickering.
The code is 233 for the white bulbs. Check the Better Car Lighting website for other colours if that's what you want.

There seems to be a number of different bulbs with the 233 code. Did you get the Multi LED bulbs @ £4.99 each or did you get the Dome bulbs @ £3.99 each (or even something different)? The dome bulbs look to be too long to fit as the glass on the current bulbs is really small.

Also how many did you need. I know there is 1 per gauge on the middle 3 but are there more than that for the speedo and rev counter?

Cheers

Paul

 

[Jhepb1]

Paul,

There will be multiple codes for the 233s because they come in several colours. Check the individual listings before ordering. If in doubt, write to Gil at Better Car Lighting using their "enquiries" email address for advice. Refer to my order if you like (Jim Hepburn) and say you want the same thing. I ordered the wrong bulbs initially and he took them back and sent the correct ones. He even offered to exchange them again if I wanted a different colour. Very good service.

The LED bulbs are bayonet style and look too big for the sockets in comparison to the originals but they fit fine.

You'll need 7 bulbs - one for each of the central gauges and two each for the speedo and tach. Order a set of 8 for a better deal and, of course, you'll then have a spare bulb.

Note also that the brightness of the LEDs will overwhelm the green tinted plastic in the sockets so the instruments will appear white. If you want the original colour, order green 233s.

The upper sockets in the speedo and tach are a sod to get to, especially the speedo. I ended up disconnecting the speedo drive to get access and even then be prepared for scraped hands and some swearing. Watch out you don't end up fitting a bulb in an indicator, parking brake or main beam socket, too.

Good luck.

Jim

 

[andrew muir]

Had a good look at their website, it looks like they sell lots of good stuff, interested in the sidelights and tail/stop lights etc.
Reducing the load on the old harness can only be a good thing.

 

[morbias]

You might find you have some LEDs that won't turn on due to the bulb sockets on the loom being wired 'back to front' so to speak. With incandescent bulbs it doesn't matter but LEDs only allow current to flow in one direction so won't light if this is the case. When I replaced my dash lights with LEDs I had to take apart the LED bulbs and reverse the polarity on a couple. I'm not sure if all dash looms were wired identically or maybe they weren't too bothered about the polarity of the sockets as it wasn't considered an issue at the time, but mine definitely had a couple of reversed sockets on it.