Jeep light install

[Grant Lamontagne]

Rather than buy LED bulbs, which I have had issues with, try buying LED fixtures that are designed to work with (and come with) LED bulbs.  I have had a lot better luck with those and the light coming off those is a lot nicer.

Def

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[MadPlumbarian]

Rather than buy LED bulbs, which I have had issues with, try buying LED fixtures that are designed to work with (and come with) LED bulbs.  I have had a lot better luck with those and the light coming off those is a lot nicer.

Def

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I'm sure that's the case, but I don't feel like changing out all my light fixtures, nor am I going to upgrade the hard wired ones since this is a apt, lol. But I do get where your coming from, I'm sure in due time they'll get what the heck there doing wrong and make them last.. Maybe by then the price of them will go down too, just like the cf ones did.  JR

[Grant Lamontagne]

Not lights, but since this thread seems to have morphed into a Jeep Build thread, here are my new wheels/tires:



This guy wanted to swap his Pro Comp wheels and tires for a stock set, so I jumped at it.



They look great, but boy do they make it ride rough and they are freakin' LOUD!



I think I may try to get another set of factory wheels and tires for this one (maybe the 17" Rubicon ones, pictured below) and put the Pro Comps on my TJ.  I'll need to lift it (which I'd already planned to do) and get some spacer/adaptors (which I also planned to do) since the JK series has a slightly different bolt pattern than the TJ series. 



Anyways, as they are the only wheels/tires I have for the JK now they'll have to do. 

Def

[derekmac]

Those are nice looking!  What pressure are you running in them?  Might be a little too high if they're quite a bit rougher.

[ducttapetech]

Looking good Grant.


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[MadPlumbarian]

Looks good, what's next, a lift? JR

[Grant Lamontagne]

No idea the pressure in them.  I haven't actually checked that yet.  And, there's no TPMS in these ones.

I'm not sure what is next fire this Jeep. I need to concentrate on the TJ for a bit now that it has a plate again.

Def

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[Grant Lamontagne]

Actually I forgot- I have a K&N air filter on the way and a new bug deflector.  Those should be in Monday or so.

Def

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[Cupboard]

I did a quick and dirty calculation a little while back with regards to fitting LED lamps to cars, and reckoned you could probably save in the order of 1/2hp by the time you add up the increased power draw of incandescents and all the inefficiencies you get creating electricity. May not sound like much, but you're probably only using 30hp cruising.

Then there are the other benefits such as not being able to use lighter gauge wire (lighter, cheaper) and not having to build in access to fittings (more flexibility in how you design them, potential space savings). I don't think it would end up being that much more expensive to manufacture and there are definite benefits to all concerned.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Today I installed a new bug deflector to replace the one that flew off last week and I put in a new K&N air filter.  The filter annoyed the crap out of me- usually you just open a few clips, pull the top of the box open, pull out the old filter, drop in a new one, close the lid, snap the clips shut and away you go. Now apparently you have to undo the clips, loosen the clamp on the breather hose, then unbolt the hose from the top of the radiator before you can open the box.

Thanks Dodge, for taking something simple and complicating it.

Def

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[MadPlumbarian]

Today I installed a new bug deflector to replace the one that flew off last week and I put in a new K&N air filter.  The filter annoyed the crap out of me- usually you just open a few clips, pull the top of the box open, pull out the old filter, drop in a new one, close the lid, snap the clips shut and away you go. Now apparently you have to undo the clips, loosen the clamp on the breather hose, then unbolt the hose from the top of the radiator before you can open the box.

Thanks Dodge, for taking something simple and complicating it.

Def

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Well if it's harder for you to take out then that's gotta be good in some way? Must be better for off-roading, harder to fall out and loose, no? JR

[Grant Lamontagne]

If you know what you are doing you can probably swap it in a minute or two, so my guess is it was done like this for one of two reasons.  One, it was probably something that the designers at Dodge just didn't think would be that bad, and/or to make it more difficult for the average, non mechanically inclined person to get adventurous and try something.  Knowing what I know now, I will be sure I have the right tools handy when I install it in my friend's Jeep, and I imagine it will be done in under two minutes.

Def

[Whoey]

Did I mention when my ex-coworker got his (2nd hand) Nissan 4x4, and he complained that it seemed to lack some grunt and had an intermittent check engine light... and the dealership swore they did a complete tune-up/oil/filters etc... he pulled the air filter out and it was full of sand...  new air filter and problem sorted. Of course that was after his truck sat in the dealership parking lot twice for 2 days...

[ducttapetech]

Wow!!

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[Grant Lamontagne]

Nice. I hope he complained loudly to the dealership.

Def

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[Max Archer]

Today I installed a new bug deflector to replace the one that flew off last week and I put in a new K&N air filter.  The filter annoyed the crap out of me- usually you just open a few clips, pull the top of the box open, pull out the old filter, drop in a new one, close the lid, snap the clips shut and away you go. Now apparently you have to undo the clips, loosen the clamp on the breather hose, then unbolt the hose from the top of the radiator before you can open the box.

Thanks Dodge, for taking something simple and complicating it.

Def

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The airbox on my Fiesta ST is even more of a hassle, it's actually bolted shut. I've seen this on BMWs too so maybe it's a Euro thing. (The ST's drivetrain is built in the U.K.)

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[Grant Lamontagne]

I finally got some replacement LED's in from the seller.  Nothing really new here- most of these are going into Jeff's Jeep, but since there were more than enough replacements (bear in mind these guys seem to just grab a handful of whatever is handy and toss it in) I decided to abscond with one and replace the license plate light.  Here's the original one:



Here's what it looked like lit up.



A blurry photo of the replacement:



And lit up:



And lit up with the housing back in place.



I've almost replaced all of the incandescent bulbs inside the Jeep now.  I think the only original bulbs left in it are the ones in the rear view mirror.  There are a couple of small map reading lights there, but I don't know how to even get at them, let along how to replace them.

I have also ordered some exterior replacement bulbs for the clear signals on the front (clear replacement kit came with incandescents).  If they work out ok I will order some white ones (marker light ones had to be amber so the lights still light up orange) to replace the brake and reverse lights and that will pretty well have all the lights converted to LED.

Def

[MadPlumbarian]

Nice job Grant, time to start cracking on those last few things! Oh and you do know your tags up in 2012?? I don't know how they are up there? JR

[derekmac]

Looks good!   Remember though, for the blinkers, you'll need to use resistors or they'll flash really fast.

JR, I'm going to guess that the current sticker is on the other side of the plate, or Grant is really far behind. 

[Grant Lamontagne]

That one is. 

If you look closely at this photo you'll see there's another tag in the upper right corner:



I probably should have put the new one over the old one, but I put it in the opposite corner for the fun of it.  As long as there's a valid tag on it, it doesn't really matter where it is. 

Good spot though!

Def

[derekmac]

Jeep with no doors, one with no lights,    Remind me to never visit there!!! 

[MadPlumbarian]

Jeep with no doors, one with no lights,    Remind me to never visit there!!! 

At least he's got doors unlike the one across the street! JR

[MadPlumbarian]

That one is. 

If you look closely at this photo you'll see there's another tag in the upper right corner:



I probably should have put the new one over the old one, but I put it in the opposite corner for the fun of it.  As long as there's a valid tag on it, it doesn't really matter where it is. 

Good spot though!

Def

I think you meant the upper left corner since the pic before was on the right corner . What about the one over the wheel? JR

[jerseydevil]

That one is. 

If you look closely at this photo you'll see there's another tag in the upper right corner:



I probably should have put the new one over the old one, but I put it in the opposite corner for the fun of it.  As long as there's a valid tag on it, it doesn't really matter where it is. 

Good spot though!

Def

I think you meant the upper left corner since the pic before was on the right corner . What about the one over the wheel? JR

He's Canadian JR, things are reversed up there..... 

[MadPlumbarian]

That one is. 

If you look closely at this photo you'll see there's another tag in the upper right corner:



I probably should have put the new one over the old one, but I put it in the opposite corner for the fun of it.  As long as there's a valid tag on it, it doesn't really matter where it is. 

Good spot though!

Def

I think you meant the upper left corner since the pic before was on the right corner . What about the one over the wheel? JR

He's Canadian JR, things are reversed up there..... 

Yeah huh, duh lol. JR

[derekmac]

That one is. 

If you look closely at this photo you'll see there's another tag in the upper right corner:



I probably should have put the new one over the old one, but I put it in the opposite corner for the fun of it.  As long as there's a valid tag on it, it doesn't really matter where it is. 

Good spot though!

Def

I think you meant the upper left corner since the pic before was on the right corner . What about the one over the wheel? JR

He's Canadian JR, things are reversed up there..... 

Yep, it's true.  Just look at the blurb under my avatar.

[MadPlumbarian]

That one is. 

If you look closely at this photo you'll see there's another tag in the upper right corner:



I probably should have put the new one over the old one, but I put it in the opposite corner for the fun of it.  As long as there's a valid tag on it, it doesn't really matter where it is. 

Good spot though!

Def

I think you meant the upper left corner since the pic before was on the right corner . What about the one over the wheel? JR

He's Canadian JR, things are reversed up there..... 

Yep, it's true.  Just look at the blurb under my avatar.

Lol, wlel dwon hree wree jsut out of odree, yet can siltl udnresnatd! JR

[Grant Lamontagne]

I can't remember if I posted this or not, but this is going to be the next mod I do:



Basically the light on the fender (marker light) doesn't flash with the signal on the grille.  This strikes me as amazingly dumb.  This ten minute mod changes that and allows the marker to mimic the signal, which in my books just makes it safer.  The European guys will be familiar with this as side signals have been common there for years, and I have them on my VW and think they are fantastic.  I have thought of getting a set of light up wing mirrors for the Jeep but at $150/side they can keep them.  This will be just as effective and cost nothing- except the small electrical clamps which I imagine won't stress my Visa too much.

When I get around to doing mine I will also swap out the incandescent bulb and orange lens for the clear lens and LED's that I got a while ago.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I haven't done the signal light mod that I listed above, but I did get some new LEDs in today so I decided to quickly swap them out before the rain hit too badly.

Here is the original signal light:



The replacement LED:



The replacement LED lit up:



And a comparison shot- the LED bulb is on the right, the stock on the left.  As you can see, no appreciable difference in light output.



You can also see Eddie in the house, fascinated by what I was doing...

Going back to this photo for a minute I can show you something I found a bit worrying:



It bothers me that the housing at the base of the bulb looks burnt.  These are fairly new sockets, having been installed when I changed the front lights from orange to clear, and they are all OEM- in fact they are MOPAR and I ordered them right from Dodge, so it bothers me that they look like they were ready to melt or catch fire.

At any rate, the LED's shouldn't burn anywhere near as hot, so I shouldn't have anything to worry about now.

Def

[MadPlumbarian]

Nice job! JR