The DEFINITIVE interior/dash lighting Q & A forum!

Good god this mod was really hard. Your actually going to be replacing a light bulb. in the rear defroster. I acidentally burned the holder with the soldering gun. When i blew resitors and Leds i just decided the easiet thing was to wire a small 3 mm led using the power wire from the bulk wires that lead to the rear defrosterinto the hole without the holder. I have a 99 where the rear defroster is next to the clock and Hazard button . Heres a pic.

Man LEDS sure have come in handy.

Ohh remember to shave off the tip to get more even light so you dont get any hot spots. Also never underestimate the power of electricity i got a terrible shock when i accidently touched neg and pos wires.

Led in shifter is easykinda. just remove the main half of the center console/arm rest. then lift the flap on the driver side and touch around for a small black wire with aknob. Just wire a pos. and neg wire to that, I clipped off the bulb holder. Cig lighter just take off the climate control (H) and the bulb is also a twist holder. more pics

The DEFINITIVE interior/dash lighting Q & A forum!

Let's try to keep subject matter relating to this field in one thread.

I have adequate knowledge relating to this subject, as well as some questions myself! I did the reverse indiglo gauge install very sucessfully on my car (2000) as well as swapping out the bulbs in my gauges and center console area (climate control lights). If you have ANY questions or want help in this area, ask away, I had a ton of questions myself and feel I can very adequately address any issues, especially relating to the gauge install.


Now I have some questions myself...
I need help identifying this part. It is the bulb from my rear defroster, and I would like to change it to blue. It is my belief it is a 3mm LED bulb. It looks like the wire/leads from the "bulb" simply wrap around the plastic base. I would assume I can change this bulb out with a similar one, without any soldering. I also assume I would not need to use a resistor for these LEDs (a LED replacing a LED would mean there is already a resistor in place, right?) Any ideas on what type of bulb/LED this is, or how to replace it? Also, how do I get at the bulb under my shifter, around the cig lighter and the ignition, more LEDs?



Plastic base is about 1/4" across, bulb about the size of the tip of a large ball point pen.

All the lights in an Oem Corolla to my knowlege are Standard bulbs, 194,74,etc. No Leds. The shifter is a tiny little bulb. You can find it at Advanced or any other auto parts store. I reccomend LEDS b.c they are brighter, have fuller colors, and last hella long. unfortunatly 194 leds are the only ones available, and they are not always that great at giving off even light. I would suggest building you own LEDS and shaving off the rounded tips. It is really easy once you get the hang of it. Positive and negative wires control all the Climate controls, cig lighter, and shifter. Just cut the two wires and wire them to the correct charge. then add some electric tape or another form of protective cover and you should be set. Now as for the (H) that the center outline that holds the cig lighter. to get the (H) out you need to remove the ash tray, remove the center ac vent and then slowly pull at both sides of the (H), start from the top with a flat head but be careful you dont want an unsightly dent. then just remove the (H) and then follow the above Wiring explanation using an led and you should be in LED Heaven. Good luck I will try to get some pics up soon.

led in shifter? i thought there was a bulb?


or are u talking about in the actual knob, like in a manual?


cuz in the auto, it says "P,R,N,D,2,L" next to it, and the bulb for those in the 93 is burned out. it's been out for a year, and we still haven't figured out how to change it

74 LED's available

I've snagged some size 74 LED's from the aforementioned www.autolumination.com - they come in the main basic colors (blue, red, green, yellow, clear... I think). They also carry LED's for the 194, but I haven't tried those yet.

I Have a 2001 Rolla CE, and one of my dashboard lights got burned out now i cant see the fuel/heat of my car at night (I have no tach still... planning on getting the whole cluster as soon as i get cash) I figured that if im going change the burnt out one might as well change the whole scheme, but my CE model doesnt have a tilt steering wheel i still havent tried to pull the cluster out but is it possible to do so?

Also could i get some specs on what bulbs or leds I should use to change my cluster lights ?

i need to replace a bulb in the center controls for heat and a/c, half of it is out, but ive never been able to get the panel out, ive had my entire interior out of my car, and when i tried to get it out it still didnt wanna come out? any thoughts

Corollinout; in answer to your question, it is easy to replace those bulbs (I did that last weekend).

There is a square piece of trim around your radio, clock and middle vents. On the bottom of it there are two slots, perfect for flathead screwdriver. The whole trim piece pulls out of your dash. BE CAREFUL, the trim is actually attached to your vents, so it's not just a thin piece of plastic, there is stuff attached (don't want to surprise you.) Once that is off you'll need to pull out your stereo (mine has 4 screws, one on each corner). Then "look down" there are two bulbs, one on each side, they need a half turn to twist out, the part number is #74. If you want colored bulbs try http://www.autolumination.com/
that is where I got mine! Hope this helps, feel free to PM me if you have any Q's. I'd suggest using LEDs and NOT regular bulbs, too dim.

So the bulb in the rear defroster switch is a bulb and not a LED?

What about the bulb behind the cig lighter, this is just a standard bulb? How the heck do I get at the cig bulb? I don't quite understand your directions, the pics look excellent though, I want mine to look that sweet now. Also, liking your carbon dash trim, thanks!

My hope is not to just change the bulbs of: corners,tails,stop light, but to add a PCB, which will be expensive but have a great outcome.
Just like you see on the new 2004 models Prius, Rx300, bmws



This is what im doing
Heres a PCB for the corners:


PCB for tails and stop:


Tails


The only downside is this shit a pricy mod. $42 for the LED and PCB$24 for just the blank PCB



Worth it? maybe

Hey are you the guy from B2k? Um the fuse is the fuse that says tails in the fuse box. If that was the case your odometer lights, tail lights, climate lights would all be out, its probably just your shifter. Difference between
Ve and the other two models is that the Ve is the one with least options
i.e roll down windows, black side moldings, no power locks, less attractive interior, not that much difference between the Ce, Le is the more attractive, sometimes witha sunroof, cd player, color matched side miorrors and moldings, nicer attractive interior.

www.superbrightleds.com a very good source for LED's

Looking at the picture you provided, it appears to be a bulb, not an LED since I don't see the anode or cathode inside the bulb.


http://www.cardomain.com/memberpage/593870

I have a corolla 99 VE
The light in my shifter indicator went out. Is there a fuse I can check before to see is that's the problem. If I need to change the bulb what the number for it.
Also what's the difference between the 99 corollas LE/VE/CE models.

What happen to the board, it was down for a long time, I had to register again.

Oh cool after all that work of increasing the size of the holes in the climate control they come out with those. Oh well.

So I was able to get my cig lights, kinda. Anyone know the bulb number for the light bulb that lights around the actual cig lighter? What about the ash tray bulb, I was able to get the molding off and everything, but I can't seem to seperate the bulb and socket from the top of the tray. Someone said the socket and wiring just pulls straight out (not half-turn twisting). The bulb for the cig lighter looks like a #74, or is it just a tiny bulb? I hate pulling on stuff, just to find out it's actually attached! I was thinking if the cig lighter bulb isn't a 74, I could just remove the whole socket and use a 74 socket and LED bulb.

Also, anyone able to replace the bulb for the ignition yet? That would be nice if I could change it to ice blue!

So, if you want to get at the bulbs for the cig lighter and ash tray, I found it was easiest to remove the ashtray, then feel under the piece that goes around it, there are two notches at the bottom, stick a finger in each and YANK! Again though, I can't get the socket to seperate from the ash tray, any ideas? The one for the cig lighter just half-twists out, not sure what I will use to replace it.

sdang42;

I checked out your car on your cardomain webpage. For your 74 LEDs, did you shave the tips? Any "hotspot" light probs with them?

you know the Guy from the Band B2k? Nevermind i was just being dumb. The ash tray light just pulled out for me. Those bulbs are not 74 they are way tiny.

That sucks, I'm not skilled with the soldering iron or resistors and what not, we'll see what I can do though! I will use some more force on the ash tray light, looks like someone fussed with it before I bought car.

The ash tray bulb on my 98 is a #74 - I get it out by basically pulling it straight out... I thought it was just a half-twist socket that was worn down, but maybe that's the way it's supposed to be .

The one for the cig lighter is way small, I have not idea was size/type it is.

The bulb for the ignition is also #74. I switched it out with a blue LED and it looks wicked - it's way bright too . To get to that one you'll need to take the top and bottom cover of the steering column off, you'll also need to take out a screw around the ignition once you get the covers off (I just dont remember exactly where that screw is).

Any tips on how to take the steering column covers off? Looks like the bottom has two screws behind the steering wheel. I just bought a few LEDs with resistors wired in, going to use those for my cig lighter and rear defroster, should look wicked when I'm done (if I start). THen I'll tackle my power window button light!

Did you use a bulb #74 LED, or just a hard wired LED?

Oh crap sorry if i said that the ash tray wasnt a 74, i thought it was way smaller.

No biggy, I would have figured er out at some point. My ashtray has a cool "mod" already. I filled it with blue potpourri stones (see your local mall, usually sold in glass vases or trays, when you heat them they smell). These stones are basically crushed blue stained glass, they glow at night under any color light, kinda cool, cheap easy mod. And they smell for years, literally, much better than an air fresher tree or vent thingy.

I have the same LEDs for $1 a piece. Blue, purple, white, red ,green. Here's one of my eBay listings.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...RK%3AMESSE%3AIT

Do they come with the wedges for installing straight into the sockets (ie #74's)? If not, can I get them through you too? I'm looking at buying or building some 194's at some point in the future... just gathering together my options for now.

Miguel what b2k??? I knew I got the low corolla when I got the VE. I'll check on the light tomorrow. Do you happen to know what size is the bulb. Miguel Send a personal reply about the b2k thing???

Ok, so I was able to get at all the bulbs in my car I want to replace, the ignition light, cig lighter, ash tray, rear defroster bulb and climate knobs. Still can't figure out the A/C or shift lights. I ordered up a huge pile of LEDs off eBay and websites, should be cruising in style by this time next week!

Also, want to see my car?



Ok, so it's been fixed since then, just thought I'd share.

Anyone ever have any difficulty with the +/- of LED bulbs? I need to replace many bulbs with LEDs this week and was wondering if the 194 bulbs have actual +/- it's hard with my gauges because I have to change the bulbs during the day, but you can only see them at night.

None of the bulbs have polarity, If you have a volt meter that would help to determine polarity for the LED wiring. And dont forget the flat side on the LED's. CW