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LED Bulb Details, Page Updated July 27, 2008

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Go to the bottom to see the bare LEDs I use for my projects.

On this page I give you all some advice about almost every drop in LED bulb out there, so you might want to read if you plan on purchasing them, or you might want to read about all the trouble I have gone through! Remember that this is just my advice, and that I do not represent any sellers or distributers of LEDs, so take my advice as what you will.

In December 2005, I decided to convert all of my lights to LEDs. It has been a long road, never ending....

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Before you read on, here is what I generally recommend:

-- Do not use 1156 LED bulbs in constant on applications, only in applications when the bulb is off most of the time (like the normal turn signal or backup light). This will make your LED bulbs last long. Having LED bulbs on for extended times on full brightness causes them to overheat and fail.

-- All LED bulbs will work in dimming applications (ie 1157). Since the LEDs are dim most of the time (like with the parking light), they will last a long time. So LED bulbs are good for brake lights.

-- 194 bulbs (or equivalent) are good, in general.

-- Only use red LEDs behind a red lens and orange LEDs behind an orange lens. White LEDs are to be used ONLY behind CLEAR lenses!!!

-- If your LED bulbs start flickering, it is because they were not designed correctly. After a lot of testing (done by me, of course) I have determined that the bulbs flicker because they are overheated.

-- LEDs are not to be used near sources of heat (like in head lights close to the projector or muffler tips). LEDs used here will probably fail quickly.

-- Do not buy orange/yellow/amber LEDs drop-in bulbs because none of them are bright enough.

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DO BUY FROM THIS LIST

(1156, 1157, etc) 3 1 watt LEDs out the front, 24 3 mm LEDs out the sides. These bulbs are from Ebay and V-Leds.com They good if you want a bluish white. They aren't very bright out the front, but they are nice and even and light up the reflectors well.

(1156, 1157, etc) 18 5 mm LEDs out the front, 14 3 mm LEDs out the sides. These bulbs are from autolumination.com They are very white, less blue than the ones above. These are the brightest LED bulbs I have seen in the forward direction. Do not buy the types with less LEDs (like 6) out the side.

(194, 168, 921, etc) 1 super flux LED out the front, 4 3 mm LEDs out the sides. These bulbs are very common. They are a nice, bluish color, and they work very well.

(921, a little big for 194) 1 super flux LED out the front, 8 super flux LEDs out the sides. These are the best 194 bulbs I have. They are much brighter than the ones right above these, but they might not fit in all 194 sockets. I had to drill out the holes to make them bigger, so now the bulbs fit.

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DO NOT BUY FROM THIS LIST

DO NOT BUY ANY ORANGE LEDS BECAUSE NONE ARE BRIGHT ENOUGH! I BOUGHT 4 OF THE BEST PAIRS AND THEY ARE ALL DIM.

(1156, 1157, etc) These bulbs are not very bright.

(1156, 1157, etc) No LEDs out the side.

(1156, 1157, etc) Not bright enough.

(1156, 1157, etc) No sideways LEDs.

(1156, 1157, etc) Don't buy amber drop-in bulbs, but I'm not sure if the white or red versions of these are good or not.

(1156, 1157, etc) Same

(1156, 1157, etc) Same

(194, 168, 921, etc) Not bright at all.

(194, 168, 921, etc) No sideways LEDs, very short life because of overheating.

(1156, 1157, etc) 48 3 mm LEDs out the sides. No forward LEDs, and not bright enough.

(1156, 1157, etc) 19 5 mm LEDs out the front, 16 3 mm LEDs out the sides. Not bright enough.

The list goes on...

I understand that there are newer types of LED bulbs, but I have not bought any of them, since all of my lights have permanent LEDs in them now! Buy at your own risk!!!

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Good LED bulb stores:

autolumination.com
superbrightleds.com
v-leds.com
besthongkong.com

Go to ledcalc.com to calculate the resistance you need for your LEDs!

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Here is a pic showing how pathetic the LED bulbs can be (compared to my old LED 3rd brake light).

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Here are the panels of LEDs I bought from superbrightleds.com that I used for my first bumper light LED retrofit and for my brake lights.

The white ones I got were wide viewing angle, and they were not that bright. They were also dark purplish white. The red ones were narrow viewing angle, and they are incredibly bright. These panels measure 1.5 inches by 1.5 inches, but they can be cut in half, due to symmetry on the PC board. Definitely good for projects.

Here are some pictures of the panels I used in projects.

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Here are the cheap super flux LEDs I used to get for my projects. This is a link to their super flux LED store, but they also sell all types of LEDs.

I bought these in blue, red, and white, and they are great! They are bright, and the viewing angle is really wide. They are easy to work with, since they each have two positive wires and two grounds, and they each come with a free resistor! Plus they are cheap. I definitely recommend these for any project!

BUT if you need really bright light or you don't want to use as many LEDs, read on.

Those cheap super flux LEDs use 20 mA or current. However, some new super flux LEDs have been developed that have more than one LED chip in one LED. It is like having 4 or 5 LEDs in one. So, these new LEDs use 100 mA of current and are 5 times brighter!!

I got them from this Ebay seller. They come with free resistors, but they don't run the LEDs at full brightness, so I had to get some more.

Here is a comparison picture. The new LED is on the left, and the older style is on the right. The newer ones are whiter, too. These bright LEDs come in cool white, warm white, and blue.

Also, check out these two pages from besthongkong.com:
Super bright super flux LEDs in more colors
Super bright 5-mm LEDs in more colors

These are the really bright LEDs that I am using in my current front turn signals (15 LEDs each side) and mirrors (12 + 6 LEDs each side).

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I got this power wave modulator from Azdave of HIDplanet.com from Ebay. This cool device properly powers and dims LEDs. I am using this for my tail lights, mirrors and front turn signals. This device limits the output to 12 volts no matter what, and it protects from backwards current with diodes. The way it properly dims the lights is not with resistors, but by flickering the lights, like you see on cars with stock LEDs in the tail lights. In short, my LEDs won't keep burning out anymore! This device is great for my application and any other you can think of. Unfortunately, Azdave stopped making them due to low demand.

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These are a cool alternative to neon lights. They are flexible LED strips available on Ebay. They are very nice, and you can cut them to almost any length and have them still light up. I put these everywhere with no complaints. You can do anything with these! Pictures:

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Don't forget that if you have any help, advice, comments, criticisms, or questions about my car and future mods, please sign my Guest book!

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Table of Contents

My Corolla Today
Page 1: Current Exterior
Page 2: Current Interior
Page 3: Current Engine
Page 4: Current Audio

Corolla Time Lines
Page 5: Phase Time Line
Page 6: Detailed Time Line

Other Stuff
Page 7: Photoshop
Page 8: Look at this page before you buy replacement LED bulbs
Page 9: Details on my current and future mods
Page 10: For Sale!

DIYs and Project Write-ups
Page 11: Bumper light LED retrofit 1
Page 12: Third Brake light LED retrofit
Page 13: Diablo Mirror LED replacement
Page 14: Taillight LED Retrofit 1
Page 15: High Beam DRL Mod
Page 16: Bumper Light LED Retrofit 2, PLUS detailed description of how I do LED mods
Page 17: Painting preparation (details on my fenders, grille, trunk, and Bondo)
Page 18: Side marker LED retrofit and installation
Page 19: HID fog lights and headlights
Page 20: Interior painting, modifications, and exterior trim painting
Page 21: Installing Halo/LED/Projector headlights
Page 22: Mirror cover LED replacement
Page 23: Installing a new stereo and speakers
Page 24: Body kit installation, front end conversion, and other body work for round 2
Page 25: Retrofitting LEDs into my third mirrors and front turn signals
Page 26: Putting interior LEDs behind the dash and in all the buttons and all over the interior
Page 27: LED tail light retrofit 2 and baking your lights in the oven to remove the lens