LED rear lights

[Christine]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-LED-REAR-TAIL-LIGHTS-TRUCK-LORRY-VAN-CARAVAN-TRAILER-TRANSPORTER-SET-OF-2-/281486215954?hash=item4189e2cb12:g:gAAAAOSw~gRVpMc7

 

Are these legal on a horse lorry come MOT time ?  Or rather ..similar ones with fog lights

[lovejoy]

Nay.  Give it some cough mixture and a bag of Hay, that'll sort the MOT  

[Jimmycrackcorn]

Yes I've a very similar pair on my Luton.

[UltraWomble]

Ive seen plenty of HGV's and PSV's with LED lights so I cant see why not - on another note the LED bulbs that you can buy on eBay be shite and quite often dont fit the rear lamp clusters, I bought some stop/tail ones and the pins were the wrong way round.

Shite.

[scaryoldcortina]

Yes, should be fine as long as they work. Type approval and E markings aren't part of a MoT, but you would fail a SVA test if trying to register a new vehicle.

[vulgalour]

LED light units are often great.  Aftermarket LED bulbs are, almost always, stonkingly shit and invisible in bright daylight or from any reasonable distance at night.

[steve_earwig]

I was quite impressed with the LED's I got from enay to replace the reversing light bulbs in the 406, in the dark you can actually see behind it now...

[scaryoldcortina]

Wow, is that the Hyperdrive engaging?

[steve_earwig]

20 pence bit in handbrake mechanism warning light...

[mat_the_cat]

Aftermarket LED bulbs are, almost always, stonkingly shit and invisible in bright daylight or from any reasonable distance at night.

 

Mine were especially poor if you view them at an angle, although recent ones do seem to be improving.

[RoadworkUK]

I love seeing LED sidelight bulbs in certain VAG, MB, BMW products when I know that the driver is constantly staring at a bulb warning on the dash.

[Jimmycrackcorn]

These are the ones I have:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121615470512?ru=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fsch%2Fi.html%3F_from%3DR40%26_sacat%3D0%26_nkw%3D121615470512%26_rdc%3D1

[Richard]

A lot of modern lights, not just LED, have a dreadful viewing angle.

[Pillock]

I reckon it's because of the trend for clear glass and all the pattern bits being built into the reflector. I've noticed a few newer cars waiting to pull into the flow of traffic where I think "My god, that's a brand new car and there's a headlight out" yet as you pass them, two lights on. They seem to bury the bulb deep within the light unit so it can't be seen from the side, and then because the glass is flat and smooth there's nothing to diffuse the light sideways.

 

You don't see bulb warnings if you have LEDs with a ballast. Because they take less current, the bulb checking system can't sense them so assumes they're out - in a car without bulb warnings it will usually result in a fast indicator. By adding the load, it can sense the bulb.

[mat_the_cat]

These are the ones I have:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121615470512?ru=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fsch%2Fi.html%3F_from%3DR40%26_sacat%3D0%26_nkw%3D121615470512%26_rdc%3D1

 

What are they like? I'm building a trailer so choosing lights is one of the fun bits! Tempted by the hamburger style at the moment...

[Sealtainn]

Saw a newish Audi turning in front of me yesterday which had LED rear lights and the as it started to indicate that side rear light went out whilst the indicator was flashing then came back on when the indicator cancelled. Just what the hell is all that about, are they not capable of having all the lights on at the same time like anything that we drive??

[overrun]

I like how number plates now have their own headlights.

[Jimmycrackcorn]

What are they like? I'm building a trailer so choosing lights is one of the fun bits! Tempted by the hamburger style at the moment...

I like them and they work well, I really only bought them the the arrowed indicators.

[Eddie Honda]

Saw a newish Audi turning in front of me yesterday which had LED rear lights and the as it started to indicate that side rear light went out whilst the indicator was flashing then came back on when the indicator cancelled.

Can't remember about the tail light being extinguished, but when I last saw a new Audi, the indicator leds scrolled from inboard to outboard in a shooting arrow stylee. We need gimmicks like that to encourage the fuckers to start using them.

[Justin Case]

Saw a newish Audi turning in front of me yesterday which had LED rear lights and the as it started to indicate that side rear light went out whilst the indicator was flashing then came back on when the indicator cancelled. Just what the hell is all that about, are they not capable of having all the lights on at the same time like anything that we drive??

It probably just fainted at the sight of the indicators being used.

[noseypoke]

If you fit led bulbs make sure you got at least 12 leds to each bulb,then you got "OMNI" angle to see em by.

for those of you'se that find it hard to see LEDs at night ?? you should get yours eyes checked,or you got the wrong (cheap) bulbs inplace

[Pillock]

Saw a newish Audi turning in front of me yesterday which had LED rear lights and the as it started to indicate that side rear light went out whilst the indicator was flashing then came back on when the indicator cancelled. Just what the hell is all that about, are they not capable of having all the lights on at the same time like anything that we drive??

Because six months ago everyone was complaining that the tail lights are so bright they can't see the indicators.

 

Audi seemingly can't win.

[beko1987]

I love seeing LED sidelight bulbs in certain VAG, MB, BMW products when I know that the driver is constantly staring at a bulb warning on the dash.

My friend in his 2010 Octavia fitted cheapy ebay numberplate bulbs. Their damn good, but throws the light on! He has spent the last 8 months occasionally moaning about the light on the dash but excusing it as the bulbs were so good.

 

They are bright, but are a totally different shade of light to the rest of the bulbs, but I havent got the heart to tell him that...

[Pillock]

The problem being the cheapy bit - slightly more quality ones won't throw the warning up as they load the circuit.

[noseypoke]

Saw a newish Audi turning in front of me yesterday which had LED rear lights and the as it started to indicate that side rear light went out whilst the indicator was flashing then came back on when the indicator cancelled. Just what the hell is all that about, are they not capable of having all the lights on at the same time like anything that we drive??

BAD EARTH

[Matt]

They seem to bury the bulb deep within the light unit so it can't be seen from the side

 

And which company resolved that problem on their cars? Volvo, of course. They've got USDM style orange marker lights in the sides of the headlights and red ones in the taillights.

 

The problem being the cheapy bit - slightly more quality ones won't throw the warning up as they load the circuit.

 

That'll be 'canbus error free' ones.

 

 

Has anyone here actually tried LED taillights for themselves? I've been thinking about upgrading my rear light/brake light combo bulbs to LED for the instant brake light illumination.

[twosmoke300]

Quick question . Does a can bus error free led bulb that replaces a 21w bulb still draw the same current ? If it does then surely one of the main reasons for fitting leds ( lower current draw ) is out the window

[Pillock]

Is that the main reason though?

In a house yes, replace all your incandescent bulbs with LEDs for £cashmoney saving.

In a car? What's the benefit of lower current draw, I'm guessing it's just lower alternator load. By how much though and what's the saving on fuel?

 

I would say the benefit of LEDs are longer life and brighter, and for brake lights the faster response times are a nice touch too.

[twosmoke300]

Big advantage on trailers / lorries where you have long cable runs . Thinner cable = cheaper cable . I know not many trailers have can bus it was just a general enquiry

[mat_the_cat]

Vibration resistance a big plus on trailers too, and for commercial stuff 12/24 volt compatibility.