Instrument cluster bulbs

[wagonmaster69]

I'm taking the instrument cluster out of my 1999 explorer.
I need to replace a few of the bulbs like the fuel gauge and check engine light.
So might as well replace them all.
Does anyone know what kind and how many I need?
Or do I just pull them and count.
Would like to have them on hand while the process of taking it out is fresh in my head.

 

[Hacra]

Hope this helps.

 

[MAS Tequila]

194's

 

[allmyEXes]

You can buy a box of 10 cheaper than pairs. The little bity bulbs are available if you can find a part number. I only had 1 burned out little bity one and took 1 good 1 out of the 4WD hole. Mine's a 2WD.

 

[koda2000]

You can buy a box of 10 cheaper than pairs. The little bity bulbs are available if you can find a part number. I only had 1 burned out little bity one and took 1 good 1 out of the 4WD hole. Mine's a 2WD.

Just be sure your box of 10 bulbs are #194LL (long life) bulbs and just #194 bulbs or you'll be replacing bulbs again very soon.

 

[Turdle]

You can also buy led replacements with sockets

https://www.superbrightleds.com/

 

[koda2000]

You can also buy led replacements with sockets

https://www.superbrightleds.com/

True, but you have to test each LED bulb to make sure it's installed correctly (+ vs -) or it may not work. Also, you may or may not be able to dim LED bulbs.

 

[MAS Tequila]

My LED's dim down to about 40-50%.

 

[masospaghetti]

From my experience, the quality and longevity of LED replacements varies wildly depending on who made them. Some have lasted less than a week with obvious scorching on the inside (obvious bad design), some continue to work for years. Because of this, I would get regular incandescent 194LL's from a decent brand like Sylvania or Wagner and go with that.

Just be glad Ford made these relatively easy to replace, I had a Camaro where the bulbs and sockets came as an assembly so you had to buy special "PC194" bulbs (much more expensive). Even worse, the Envoy I recently owned had all of the incandescent bulbs soldered onto the board -- what a pain to change them out!

 

[koda2000]

My LED's dim down to about 40-50%.

Yeah, apparently some will dim and some don't from what I've read. SuperbrightLED's sells good quality stuff and are very knowledgeable. If there's any question just give them a call.

 

[wagonmaster69]

Are the 194LL light the check engine light also?

 

[allmyEXes]

Nope. That's one of the little bitty bulbs. Mine was burned out from being on several years, I assume, and I took one from the 4WD hole/socket to swap it out

 

[koda2000]

Are the 194LL light the check engine light also?

No, just the 6 cluster illumination bulbs and the 2 HVAC control panel bulbs.

I had a CEL light bulb out and swapped it with my 4WD bulb (mine was a 2WD). IDK what size the tiny bulbs are.

 

[masospaghetti]

I think the mini bulbs are #37 or T-1 3/4 form factor.

 

[koda2000]

Ford populates every bulb hole in all of it's instrument clusters, even indicators for options your vehicle doesn't have. Therefore you have brand new/unused tiny bulbs available in your cluster. The board on the rear of the cluster has each light socket marked as to that the bulb/socket is used for, so it's easy to find unused bulbs. This is much easier than trying to locate new bulbs (and is free). If you must have new bulbs autoilluminations.com probably has them, but their catalog is tough to navigate.

 

[masospaghetti]

@koda2000
Good point and useful tip. If you do need more bulbs, the local NAPA store carried #37 bulbs and you could get them by the box. This was also the best way to get 194 bulbs (boxes of ten), much cheaper than the blister packs at Autozone.

 

[fast_dave]

SYLVANIA 194 Long Life Miniature Bulb, (Contains 10 Bulbs)

Manufacturer Part Number: 194LL.TP

$9.16 - Free Shipping / No Tax

LINK: SYLVANIA 194 Long Life Miniature Bulb, (Contains 10 Bulbs) | eBay

Hope that helps & Happy New Year!

 

[Scotts96sploder]

Didn’t someone on here have a complete list of bulbs in a thread about an instrument cluster upgrade? I was thinking about buying some leds but they are expensive and I don’t want to order too many.

 

[239]

I’ve been running leds in the dash from superbrightleds since 2016, and they’re still working great. I used part number 194-W-120. They’re cool white but the dash is still green due to the tint on the gauges. The only bulb that I left incandescent is the one directly behind the temperature control button. Since the red heat symbol looked pink with a cool white bulb. They dim just like incandescent bulbs too using the dimmer switch. I found that 194-W-120 is just the right brightness for the dash. It cost me around $10 for all 7 bulbs.

 

[Spudhut]

I ordered a large quantity from Geek.com. Super cheap and works great! Lots of great light types too. I still have my dimming function too. (See LED in photo below)

Here is an idea where all the bulbs are located: