Wanting to use LED lights in the taillights.

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gwittman

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I have used LED taillights from Super Brite LEDs in another vintage car and would like to do the same in my 2800 CS. I have run into some difficulties with bulb numbers. Super Brite LEDS lists 5007 for the taillights and 7528 for the parking lights. They have no listing for the brake lights.

I looked at the bulbs in my car and they are all made in Germany and the only four number codes I could find were taillight K5610, turn signal K5814 and brake light 7506. There were also some high digit numbers. Taillight 12821 and turn signal 12498.

I have found that 7506 may be the same thing as 1156 but I don't know for sure.

Does anyone have any confirmed bulb part number that I can use?
 
gwittman said:
I have used LED taillights from Super Brite LEDs in another vintage car and would like to do the same in my 2800 CS. I have run into some difficulties with bulb numbers. Super Brite LEDS lists 5007 for the taillights and 7528 for the parking lights. They have no listing for the brake lights.
I looked at the bulbs in my car and they are all made in Germany and the only four number codes I could find were taillight K5610, turn signal K5814 and brake light 7506. There were also some high digit numbers. Taillight 12821 and turn signal 12498.

I have found that 7506 may be the same thing as 1156 but I don't know for sure.

Does anyone have any confirmed bulb part number that I can use?
Click to expand...


Good if you prefer leds,
IMHO LEDS look odd in a vintage car

If you prefer brighter you can also use Honda tail lights, instead of 21 they produce 23watt
 
Chris, all of my bulbs are single filament. I know 1157 dual filament serves as both taillight and brake light. I use those in my Fairlane Cobra. I also understand you can use a dual filament bulb in a single filament application. Is there an advantage of doing that? My taillight is a smaller bulb than the brake light and turn signal (which are two separate bulbs).

It seems that I could use the 1156 for my brake light as well as the turn signal. The 5007 may be better for the taillight because it is smaller and is probably not as bright which is the way the original taillights were designed, making it easier to see when the brake lights or turn signals are operating.

I don't drive at night very often, but I want to make sure the lights are seen well in daylight as well as at night, especially the brake and turn signal lights. I plan to use the red version on all the lights in the rear (my turn signals are red). I don't see a big benefit of using LEDs for the backup and license plate lights.
 
Just buy the 1156, they will be very bright. To use in a turn signal you need the electronic flasher mod, the EL 13? I haven’t done that yet, the 1156 LED running and brake lights are the most important. BTW, though being bright no one will know they are LEDs regardless of the naysayers.
 
When I used the 1157 LED for the combination taillight, turn signal and brake light, I had no change in the flash frequency of the turn signal. I did not use LED for the front turn signal and that may have helped with not needing the electronic flasher mod. There is also a resistor kit that can be attached to the turn signal wires to eliminate the fast flash problem.

Thank you for the advice for this upgrade in my Coupe.
 
I ended up using Super Bright LED bulbs. The 1156 with BA155 base worked perfectly for the brake lights. The 67LED bulb -12 LED tower worked perfectly for the taillights. I like that it has a glass bulb over the LEDs.

The standard 1156 LED bulb did not work for the turn signals. The base fit fine, but the diameter of the bulb was too large and would not allow the locking tabs to reach. I contacted Super Brite LED, and they advised the 1156-X51 should work because it has the same base with a smaller diameter bulb. I have decided to stay with the incandescent bulb for the turn signal for now. It is bright enough.

The brake and taillight LEDs are exactly what I wanted, bright but not overbright. I used the red LEDs.
 
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gwittman said:
I also understand you can use a dual filament bulb in a single filament application. Is there an advantage of doing that?
Click to expand...

No, you can't put an 1157 -type bulb into an 1156 socket. The 1157's have their two locking nubs offset, so that the bulb can only be inserted one way (see below). This ensures that the two, different wattage filaments (brighter for turnsignal / brake, dimmer for tail) get connected to the correct circuits.

shopping


gwittman said:
My taillight is a smaller bulb than the brake light and turn signal (which are two separate bulbs).
Click to expand...
Yes, your tail light bulbs are probably lower wattage than the brake & turn bulbs, and so the tail light bulbs are physically different from an 1156. But this is a detail; a single-circuit LED bulb will work great for all of these applications in an e9.
 
jmackro said:
No, you can't put an 1157 -type bulb into an 1156 socket. The 1157's have their two locking nubs offset, so that the bulb can only be inserted one way (see below). This ensures that the two, different wattage filaments (brighter for turnsignal / brake, dimmer for tail) get connected to the correct circuits.

shopping



Yes, your tail light bulbs are probably lower wattage than the brake & turn bulbs, and so the tail light bulbs are physically different from an 1156. But this is a detail; a single-circuit LED bulb will work great for all of these applications in an e9.
Click to expand...
That is a good point about the 1157 bulb. I knew the 1157 nubs were offset to prevent it from being installed incorrectly. I saw somewhere that 1157 could be used in a 1156 application and overlooked that important fact.

You are right about the taillights being lower wattage which result in being lower lumens. While 1156 bulbs could be used as taillights it would not be a good idea because it would have the same brightness as the brake lights making it less obvious when the brake lights come on.

I installed LED lights for a friend that has a 64 Falcon Sprint. It has the 1157 bulbs for the taillights, brake light and turn signals. I installed the 1157 LED on one side and tested it first to make sure it worked correctly and to see the brightness difference. All functions worked as they should and were much brighter. After installing the LED on the other side, I noticed the taillights seemed too bright. I had my friend step on the brakes and there was almost no change in brightness. Using the turn signal with the taillights on showed it worked properly on the flashing side, but the other side stayed bright. The brake light worked normally with the taillights off. I suspected it had something to do with the resistance needed for LEDs. I contacted Super Bright LEDs and was informed it was a resistance problem. I could resolve it by installing an electronic flasher or a resistor kit.

I installed 1157 LEDs on my Fairlane Cobra many years ago and it works fine without any other modifications. So, I was quite surprised it didn't work as well on the Falcon Sprint.
 
Chris recommended them to me, and I absolutely love them! You’d never guess they’re LED, and they give great peace of mind knowing you’ll be clearly seen when you brake
 
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