Interrior L.E.D. idea!!

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 2:50 am

So, on my quest to think of something cheap to upgrade I thought of a new idea I got this srobe red ring thing out of a quarrter machine and put it in my heater vent. Then I thought it would look awsome to go to Radioshack and buy a bunch of little red L.E.D. lights and put one in each heater vent and one in each door-handle. Since everyone in my car has a hard time finding the door handle at night this would help with that but the main reason is I think it would look awsome...what do you all think?

nismo · Post by **nismo** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 3:12 am

Good idea man. Wanna do this at my crib? lol. Let me know whenever you wanna do this. I think it would a sweet idea. I also assumin u're goin for the red theme inside? If so, it would look pretty bad a$$Inder

ragingfish · Post by **ragingfish** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 3:27 am

Jahntassa put red LEDs at each handle...it's a kickass accent and I'm considering doing it myself!

knoxville2013 · Post by **knoxville2013** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 3:58 am

how do LEDs work, do you have to wire them up with a switch to turn them on?

nismo · Post by **nismo** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:07 am

That is correct there knoxInder

ragingfish · Post by **ragingfish** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:21 am

Quote, originally posted by silverawd26 Â»Did he post pictures of them?No, but I got some when I met up with him in August...

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 5:06 am

Awsome thanks for the pictures. I think I'm going to put the bulb under and behind the handle so it is out of site to an extend...and I think for hte ones in the vents I wil put them in the bottom of the vent since there is a small lip it will be hidden I just need to get some more of those plastic snap in pieces that go in teh area where the hatch button is so I can add another switch. How much would one of those run? You proably have ot buy a whole bag and not just one I bet...

Jahntassa · Post by **Jahntassa** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 5:23 am

Dang Mike, didn't even know you took those...The LEDs I used were StreetGlow accent LEDs that I got from work (Circuit CIty), comes four to a pack in any Streetglow color, I believe. They run off 12v.I wired mine into the window wiring so I wouldn't have to run any new wiring. I need to revise it, because right now the lights will go on/off if you raise/lower the window. However, when normally running, the LEDs will be on anytime the ignition is, and on if you aren't moving the windows.These do stick out a bit, but it shouldn't be hard to find something similar with a more flush-mount kinda thing going on.I know someone did the LEDs in the vent thing a few months ago, but I completely forget who. That's a future idea of mine, in which case I will finally take the top of my dash off.Also, strobelights are fun to play with. I got two sets of headlamp strobes (Streetglow V2 series), and a standalone strobe. All the strobes are white, with the headlight strobes in the fog and reverse lenses, and the standalone mounted to the crashbar, facing my hella horns. I also got the controller for them, so they do different patterns and such. It's a great effect. Unfortunately, it makes me want to do more performance mods to my car so I can show off..

ColonelPanic · Post by **ColonelPanic** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 5:42 am

Uh oh... I think the LED bug has bitten me once again. Jahntassa, that looks pretty sweet!

dsegundo · Post by **dsegundo** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 6:26 am

oo...I'm interested...that would look slick.

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 12:37 pm

Awww, here I thought I was the first with a new idea (removed)...I didn't thnk anyone would have come up with the vent idea. How much did the street glow ones cost? At radioshack each light is $1.50, so 8 lights is like $12 plus the wiring and I already have a switch so maybe $14... I know at autozone they have littel LED's ina three pacj for like $2,058,275,823.98

Jahntassa · Post by **Jahntassa** » Sat Oct 16, 2004 10:21 pm

Here's the things with LEDs. You need to get the ones that have the resistors built-in. The Streetglow LED's were about $12 for the four pack, I think. You need to find LEDs specifically made for 12v use, or pull out an electronics book and get some resistors to make the ratshack off-the-shelf LEDs work. It's a technical thing with the way LEDs work..

satur9 · Post by **satur9** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 2:30 am

the little blank switch panels are like five bucks each.i bought a four pack of 12volt leds from autozone for like five bucks.

GMJAP · Post by **GMJAP** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 7:14 am

If you go for ones from Radio Shack, here's how you'd need to use then:The long lead is the positive side. You'll need to connect a 560 Ohm, 1/4 Watt resistor in series with the LED to 12V. (a separate resistor is needed for each LED)In other words, connect +12v to resistor, connect other side of resistor to longer LED pin, connect shorter LED pin to negative (chassis ground).

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:49 pm

good thing I took physical science or I wouldn't know what the hell you were talking about (removed)...doesn't sound too bad...what if I conected all the LEDs in series. Conected the one end to the positive, then the resistor, then to the LED then to the next LED and so on and then finally grounding it on the last LED?

Jahntassa · Post by **Jahntassa** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 2:23 pm

Quote, originally posted by Merzbow Â»good thing I took physical science or I wouldn't know what the hell you were talking about (removed)...doesn't sound too bad...what if I conected all the LEDs in series. Conected the one end to the positive, then the resistor, then to the LED then to the next LED and so on and then finally grounding it on the last LED?Sure, you could. But where do you want to put them? In the doors, that'd be tough. You'd have to do a daisy chain through the whole car. I don't relish the idea of running new wires into the doors, as it's quite the pain. That's why mine power off the window switch wiring. 12v with no hassle.You still want one resistor per LED. I think. Unless you get a higher resistor. I'm a little off in my electrical science, so someone else can better answer that..

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Sun Oct 17, 2004 10:49 pm

So, if I were to run them off hte window wiring, will they be able to turn on with a new switch, or will my window roll down too?

GMJAP · Post by **GMJAP** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 12:17 am

Quote, originally posted by Merzbow Â»good thing I took physical science or I wouldn't know what the hell you were talking about (removed)...doesn't sound too bad...what if I conected all the LEDs in series. Conected the one end to the positive, then the resistor, then to the LED then to the next LED and so on and then finally grounding it on the last LED?You can do that, but you still need a resistor in series in the chain, just that it's value changes. Also, you shouldn't put more than 4 LEDs in series; otherwise there may not be enough voltage to properly drive them all. When not charging, the battery can drop to less than 12v.Use this to determine how many ohms that resistor should be:(Using 14v because that's what the alternator can take the voltage up to while charging the battery)(14v - (2.5v x # LEDs)) / 0.02 = resistor OhmsSo if you're planning on connecting 4 LEDs in series,((14 - (2.5 * 4)) / 0.02 = (14 - 10) / 0.02 = 4/ 0.02 = 200 Ohmsis the approximate value of the resistor you'd need to include in series.READ BELOW AT YOUR OWN RISK! (I take no responsibility if this only winds up being confusing! )Think of an LED as having its own voltage across it. Incandescent lamps do not behave this way - they just glow brighter the more voltage you put across. However, the LED needs its specific voltage for it to work properly, and can be damaged/destroyed if it is forced to another voltage.This voltage depends on the color and other characteristics of the LED, and usually is within the range of 2.0 to 3.0 Volts. The resistor is needed to "drop" the rest of the voltage (14v minus the LED voltage(s)). The resistor's value is determined by how much current it should let through. Most LEDs are rated at 20mA (usually, more than 25mA will damage them). They won't be as bright with less than 20mA, so the resistor is chosen to let 20mA of current through at the voltage it has to "drop". If you remember from physics, Ohms law says Resistance = Voltage / Current.So we get the voltage for that by taking the total voltage (14v) minus the voltage for each LED. This is what has to be "dropped" across the resistor. We then get Current by saying we want 20mA = 0.02 Amps flowing through the resistor and LEDs. Doing the divide gets us the resistance needed in Ohms.Sorry if I only made your head hurt. If so, I don't think it's the concept, just my attempt to explain it.

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 2:51 am

D*mn, you should have been a science teacher, I only took two years of science, including Biology and physical science, but I understand what you are saying, you did a nice job I'm not entirely sure if the bulbs I was looking at were LED or Incadescent...should probably find that out first! lol, thanks for youe help:) It would probably be easier to just buy the street glow kit, but not as fun, and too easy...never give up, NEVER SURRENDER!!! (removed).

ebslopp · Post by **ebslopp** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 3:43 am

Merzbow- Aren't you the one who has gotten a ticket for every mod you've ever done? You sure you want to pursue this one? J/K

Jahntassa · Post by **Jahntassa** » Mon Oct 18, 2004 5:56 am

Quote, originally posted by Merzbow Â»So, if I were to run them off hte window wiring, will they be able to turn on with a new switch, or will my window roll down too?You'd have to put a switch in each door... Or.. in my case, the lights shut off if I hit the "window lock" button on the driver door..

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Tue Oct 19, 2004 12:51 am

(removed) Ebslopp."I AM the law"that's a clever idea withthe window lock button.

Jahntassa · Post by **Jahntassa** » Tue Oct 19, 2004 6:26 am

Honestly? It was an unexpected, though pleasant side effect of me being too lazy to run new wiring.

zionzr2 · Post by **zionzr2** » Fri Oct 22, 2004 12:02 am

just so you know RadioShack has a 50% off sale on parts drwawer items (where the leds and resisters are)

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Fri Oct 22, 2004 12:44 am

until when?

RcRacer440 · Post by **RcRacer440** » Fri Oct 22, 2004 5:11 am

I put l.e.d.s in the air vents. They came out great. Cant get the pics to work but check out my link to cardomain, they're on page 2.

Merzbow · Post by **Merzbow** » Sat Oct 23, 2004 7:58 am

Yepo, that deffinately looks gorgeous! Lol once I pay off my system that's what I'll be doing...getting al the little things done, like antenna, build my own strut bar, vent LEDs, the works Then comes spring with the big stuff like S-Techs, and hopefully dual exhaust

Interrior L.E.D. idea!!

Interrior L.E.D. idea!!

Re: Interrior L.E.D. idea!! (Merzbow)

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Re: Interrior L.E.D. idea!! (Merzbow)

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Re: Interrior L.E.D. idea!! (Merzbow)

Re: Interrior L.E.D. idea!! (GMJAP)

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