led tail lights (canbus question)

Euphoria1z

Hi


im thinking of buying LED tail lights , (207 replacement, R5w) however I see this being mentioned...what does it mean?


Due to the reduced resistance in LED bulbs certain cars may


require installation of a pair of load resistors to ensure the bulb works effectively.These bulbs are NOT CANBUS error-free some new vehicles require resistors to prevent flickering and dash board error warnings.



can I get them for my Volvo s40 (53 plate, 1.6)?






Thanks

enfield_freddy

a common problem , a 207 bulb is rated at 5w , whereas an LED is rated at less than 1/8 amp , some newer cars have circits that tell the driver if it does not "sence" 2 x 5w bulbs , you can add a resistor in the circit* to trick the car into thinking the correct wattage is being used. although this works , I cannot see any advantage , as you are using 1/8 anp on the bulb and 4.8.75 amp warming a resistor.


* often used by motorcyclists on indicators http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LED-MOTORCYCLE-QUAD-INDICATOR-FLASHER-RESISTOR-RELAY-wreled04-/221270304679?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts_13&hash=item3384bce7a7

Euphoria1z

shame, I really wanted the led ones.

enfield_freddy

well , buy a pair and see if they work , try removing one bulb and see if a warning light comes on in the car , use a red bulb behind a red lense , do not buy cheap ones on ebay try my friend Peter at http://www.dynamoregulatorconversions.com/stoptail-lamp-bulbs-shop.php

espresso

Euphoria1z wrote: »

can I get them for my Volvo s40 (53 plate, 1.6)?

According to this list here a Volvo S40 53 plate does not have Canbus.

Euphoria1z

enfield_freddy wrote: »

well , buy a pair and see if they work , try removing one bulb and see if a warning light comes on in the car , use a red bulb behind a red lense , do not buy cheap ones on ebay try my friend Peter at http://www.dynamoregulatorconversions.com/stoptail-lamp-bulbs-shop.php

out of curiosity, why does it have to be the red bulb behind the red lense? will a white bulb behind a red lense not be the same?


and whats wrong with the cheap ones?

Euphoria1z

espresso wrote: »

According to this list here a Volvo S40 53 plate does not have Canbus.

kool, thanks for that. I'll buy a pair and see how it goes.

forgotmyname

Red bulb behind a red lens maybe almost invisible.. Unless the lens is very light or the bulb is super bright.

Puzzled why you said a red LED ?

You need to beware some LEDs also. They can be very directional. Unless your standing directly behind the light it might not be visible.

enfield_freddy

ok , A RED LED BEHIND A RED LENSE , fitting a white led will result in a very washed out feeble red colour (pink) because of LED charictaristics


I have told you this , if you wish to try white , then go aread.


cheap ones come from china , work for 5 minutes and you have no comeback.


I am not suggesting you pay Halfords prices either

Quiet_Spark

enfield_freddy wrote: »

a common problem , a 207 bulb is rated at 5w , whereas an LED is rated at less than 1/8 amp , some newer cars have circits that tell the driver if it does not "sence" 2 x 5w bulbs , you can add a resistor in the circit* to trick the car into thinking the correct wattage is being used.

Present a CAN-Bus system with a loading resistor and it will throw a fault, that really only works on ancient equipment.

enfield_freddy wrote: »

cheap ones come from china , work for 5 minutes and you have no comeback.



I am not suggesting you pay Halfords prices either

I can see the excitement rising in you that the cheap chinese crap will last as long as the 5 minutes you claim :rotfl:

Euphoria1z

ok, so just to clarify, I need to use a red LED (for my tail light) behind a red lense. I meant to say red led in my earlier post not bulb. I have normal tail light bulbs at the moment (the yellowish kind) but they don't last very long, so I thought id try the LED ones, and noticed they come in red or white. I'll order 2 red leds and see how long they last.