Replaced dome lights with leds.. now dim

[crankyjew]

howdy-

Replaced my interior lights with LEDs from walmart recently. the back dome lights and map lights work mint. the front dome light function works just fine, but the single side map lights barely turn on. where did i go wrong?

 

[bdmaash]

howdy-

Replaced my interior lights with LEDs from walmart recently. the back dome lights and map lights work mint. the front dome light function works just fine, but the single side map lights barely turn on. where did i go wrong?

probably nowhere, I can't remember, but do the bulbs shine backwards into the reflector - if so, the LED light is very directional and won't reflect out.

 

[crankyjew]

yep, they do. that occurred to me, I pulled the lens back off to check, sure enough the led bulb is definitely illuminated, but just barely. when you open the door or turn on the dome light, they are many times brighter- backwards reflector or not.

 

[bdmaash]

yep, they do. that occurred to me, I pulled the lens back off to check, sure enough the led bulb is definitely illuminated, but just barely. when you open the door or turn on the dome light, they are many times brighter- backwards reflector or not.

but reading the first post, only the dome light is bright, but not the map lights. Now the map lights are bright also, but only when the dome light is on, or door is opened - is that a correct statement?


sounds like a wiring/or connection issue, but I doubt you touched any wiring - just a straight bulb replacement. I don't have a wiring diagram but here is a link to what I did for replacement -sort of a hack, and works still (perfectly).

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=259083&highlight=led+dome+light

 

[crankyjew]

thanks for the reply, and sorry for the confusion.

to clarify, when a door is opened, etc, the interior dome lights are very bright.

the map lights, activated by the switches on the overhead console, are very dim.

I agree with it seems like a wiring issue.. but you're correct, I've just done a straight bulb swap.

 

[bdmaash]

new assumption:
The dome light is the map light but turned by other means that the switches by the dome light, so the only issue is when they are turned on by the switches by the light.

wiring to the switch needs to be verified, if the switch is controlling ground, run a temporary wire from a known good ground to the switch, and see if that fixes it.
or if the switch controls power run 12v to the switch from a known good source with a temporary wire.

I guess the other test is put in the original bulbs and verify the system works properly. incandescent bulbs do take more power than the LED replacements, so the problem should also be present with the original bulbs.