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MG MGB Technical - LED bulbs

Has anyone converted to led bulbs ?
They are said to be brighter and use less current.
ba bailey

Have used them for instrument illumination, by-passing the reostat, and they are great. I have used them for the reversing lights and front side lights with similar success. Indicators need an electronic flasher unit and coloured bulbs. (the led's bleach out the colour in the lens, as they do with the red rear units).
There has been some discussion that these might not be strictly legal for indicators, markers and brake lights, as legality is defined by Wattage and not light output. But since they are used extensively on modern cars am not sure about this.
Allan Reeling

I converted all the dial lights to them. Plus rear and marker lights. I found Moss to be expensive but good for rear lights, although I used SuperBright website for the markers.

NOTE: You will need a new digital flasher unit as the originals will not flash the turn signals. Moss had this as well.

Need to do the fronts. Tried some other companies including Sylvania. Didn't work. Moss is quite expensive and the concern was more with the rear and people seeing the car lights.
Max71

A pal tried two sets of stop/tail bulbs but both were affected by other circuits switching on and off and failed the MOT. His front parking lights were not affected. I tried both of his types on one side of my roadster and the results were significantly poorer, as well as getting the flickering. More info here http://www.mgb-stuff.org.uk/electricstext2.htm#ledpark

Gauge lights are definitely an improvement as in the attached. If you have the small screw-in bulbs search for 'E10 5 5050 SMD LED'. More info here
http://www.mgb-stuff.org.uk/electricstext2.htm#uprate



paulh4

I have gotten flickering on reverse lights but never on the stop/tail bulbs. I think Moss went the distance and although expensive they work as long as you get a modern digital flasher.
Max71

Lots of modern cars have LED lights and the peculiar thing I have noticed is that on my Nextbase in-car dash cam, these types of lights always appear to be flashing when you watch a recording. Why is that?
Mike Howlett

Mike, it's the bit rate of the camera compared to the LED which causes this phenonmenum. It's because LED lights are not "always on". Instead, they pulse on and off, faster than the human eye can recognize (12 frames per second - 24fps ). However, camera refresh rates can catch the flicker.

I've fitted LED light all round on my car and found the best source to be Moss for side, turn and stop/tail lights. Not the cheapest, but the best fitting. Ebay has been fine for instruments, interior and reversing lights.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/LED-Bulbs-for-Classic-Cars/

Andy

Andy Robinson

Incidentally if you fit LED indicators and a matching flasher unit you will almost certainly lose the 'bulb failure' warning feature that is inherent in both the original thermal and the later electronic flasher units for incandescent bulbs. It will be ticking away, and the dash tell-tale will be flashing on and off, but that 10 ton truck bearing down on you doesn't know you are slowing for a turn. Disconnect one and see what happens.
paulh4

The conversion to LEDs made my gauges readable at night again. Also change the bulbs behind the green indicator arrows and install an electronic flasher. The indicator arrows are bright, like the when the car was new.
Glenn Mallory

Moss lists two LED dash bulbs that can replace OEM.
Any reason NOT to choose the less expensive option170-972 $5.99
LED Bulb - Dash (can replace 171-000 incandescent bulb)
170-971 $9.99
LED Bulb - Dash - Short Profile (can replace 171-000 incandescent bulb)

Dan


Dan Hiltz

Size matters! Some can be too long for the speedo or the temp gauge and foul the innards unless they are spaced back.

On that Moss page the 170-976 shows the larger LED elements that the ones from eBay sources use i.e. five of them, which give a very good light. I'd be doubtful that the eight small elements of the 170-971 would give the same light. The twenty of the 170-972 probably would, but they look even longer than the eBay ones.

At £2/$2.6 for the eBay ones (search 'E10 5 5050 SMD LED') it's worth making a spacer. E10 is the screw-in, there are also wedge and bayonet versions. LED compared with original incandescent (in the same photo i.e. ignoring any effects of camera and reproduction) attached.




paulh4

If you use LED lights in the dash, why do you have to bypass the rheostat. I sometimes at night time while driving I want to dim the lights. I guess my main question is, will LED lights work with a rheostat.
Thanks
Jeff Becker
61 MGA
JEFF BECKER

They will work however, until things change many LED's cannot be dimmed. So you will have to keep the rheostat at full or no attenuation. That's how I have it. Getting dimming back would be nice.
Max71

"why do you have to bypass the rheostat"

Bypassing the rheostat hasn't been mentioned in this thread, but is used as a way of checking the the rheostat itself isn't contributing to dim incandescent panel lights, which they can do when they go faulty.

The rheostat does still have an effect with LEDs, but it depends on what other lights you have on the circuit. For example I have a clock on one car I haven't changed, and the cigar lighter on both cars. This means that the gauge lights do still dim to some extent, but I've never found it necessary. Unlike a hire car where they were so bright on an unlit motorway, and I couldn't find a dimmer, that I had to prop something in front of the whole display.

But back to the MGB, you do NOT need to "have the rheostat at full or no attenuation" with LEDs as it is having relatively little effect anyway, unless you turn it fully off, which both mine can do.
paulh4

This thread was discussed between 04/07/2017 and 26/07/2017

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