Drop-in LED instrument cluster lighting for 5.5 owners. Finally found one that works!
yes, they're smaller than 194 bulbs. Hence this thread
Now resize your sig
Not saying they're not different, you'd knwo better than I would, but I've never had a problem with them.
Some T5's will work well for instance PCB one like the superbrightleds are a perfect tit but if you try to use 74 incandescent bulbs or some T5 wedges it will be a little loose. Not to say it won't work it is just the T6.5 will be the ideal snug fit and the T5 will be a little loose in comparision. I actually had a T5 74 incandescent fall out of the twistlocks in my car once that kind of how I found about about the perfect size for my car twistlocks. Since then I've seen more 5th and 5.5 Gen clusters than I care to count that why I know there is a difference.
Yeah that's why I send most guys who ask me LED questions or to have shyt done your way.
Thanks for the info, that's good to know. It was the Superbright LED's I put in and they fit well.
Thanks for the info, that's good to know. It was the Superbright LED's I put in and they fit well.
74-xHP3: Wedge Base LED bulb
74-WWHP3: Warm White
This bulb DOES work in 2000 Non SE clusters, however they might be a loose fit.
So what I carefully done was, I "adjusted" the metal contacts in the bulb sockets
with an eyeglass flathead screw driver to "bend" the contacts out ever so slightly so the
LEDs will have a nice tight fit. Its been a while now and so far so good. 5 bulbs are required though, mabey even 6 if you want to cover the odometer/trip
74-WWHP3: Warm White
This bulb DOES work in 2000 Non SE clusters, however they might be a loose fit.
So what I carefully done was, I "adjusted" the metal contacts in the bulb sockets
with an eyeglass flathead screw driver to "bend" the contacts out ever so slightly so the
LEDs will have a nice tight fit. Its been a while now and so far so good. 5 bulbs are required though, mabey even 6 if you want to cover the odometer/trip
If you have this issue a safer/more permanent fix would be to add just a little bit of solder to the contact points on the xHP3 'bulb' unit. Both work but that will last longer and give a better fit..
lol, not my thread, but that impression seems to be common.
And dude, you know more about this stuff by now than I it seems. Either way thanks, I like to think i do more good than harm.
Hey, have you seen some of the RBG toying I've been up to lately? If you care:
http://g35driver.com/forums/lighting...pic-heavy.html
And dude, you know more about this stuff by now than I it seems. Either way thanks, I like to think i do more good than harm.
Hey, have you seen some of the RBG toying I've been up to lately? If you care:
http://g35driver.com/forums/lighting...pic-heavy.html
It's not that they "scrape", they actually lock in place as expected, it's just that the contacts do not touch lol
Appreciate it! Let me pop by the local junkyard first and see if that 5.5 is still there. I'll let you know if otherwise. Thanks!
Yeah well the bulbs are really STUCK in there, so I tried to bush the bulb out with a really thin flat-head, which resulted in slight shift of the contacts. I didn't notice and plugged the socket with LED back in cluster, turned - it wouldn't lock, so I turned some more
Mhm.. Next thing - socket breaks in pieces. Smart me.
Anyway, here is the pic. On the left - my socket, on the right - whatever dealership sold me according to my VIN.
As you can see, the bases are completely different. Mine is flat, the wrong one has a "curve". The "middle rings" are completely different as well. The locking mechanisms are different too. The contacts position is different. And to top it off, they are different in sizes ))))))
Appreciate it! Let me pop by the local junkyard first and see if that 5.5 is still there. I'll let you know if otherwise. Thanks!
Yeah well the bulbs are really STUCK in there, so I tried to bush the bulb out with a really thin flat-head, which resulted in slight shift of the contacts. I didn't notice and plugged the socket with LED back in cluster, turned - it wouldn't lock, so I turned some more
Mhm.. Next thing - socket breaks in pieces. Smart me.Anyway, here is the pic. On the left - my socket, on the right - whatever dealership sold me according to my VIN.
As you can see, the bases are completely different. Mine is flat, the wrong one has a "curve". The "middle rings" are completely different as well. The locking mechanisms are different too. The contacts position is different. And to top it off, they are different in sizes ))))))
I was in the same boat. I needed the ones with the contacts on the inside. Went to the dealer and they gave me the wrong bulb. Luckily the parts guy did sone research and found me the correct bulb. Downside is that it cost twice as much...$15. But im not complaining. The the part # is 24860-C9900
lol, not my thread, but that impression seems to be common.
And dude, you know more about this stuff by now than I it seems. Either way thanks, I like to think i do more good than harm.
Hey, have you seen some of the RBG toying I've been up to lately? If you care:
http://g35driver.com/forums/lighting...pic-heavy.html
And dude, you know more about this stuff by now than I it seems. Either way thanks, I like to think i do more good than harm.
Hey, have you seen some of the RBG toying I've been up to lately? If you care:
http://g35driver.com/forums/lighting...pic-heavy.html
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 2,177
From: NM
Great Post and Write up....thanks!!! I've been wondering about my Cluster since I don't like it looked like it was fading or the bulb was slowly dying, til I read this post, it made sense why it looked like that. I didn't know there were replaceable bulbs i thought they were soldiered into the board. I'm going to get into that to pop open my cluster and change out the bulbs. Thanks!
Junior Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 64
From: Toronto
I was in the same boat. I needed the ones with the contacts on the inside. Went to the dealer and they gave me the wrong bulb. Luckily the parts guy did sone research and found me the correct bulb. Downside is that it cost twice as much...$15. But im not complaining. The the part # is 24860-C9900
I just completed this task and the lighting looks soo much better than stock.. Thanks to everyone that put time into this mod. The only problem I had was getting the copper to conduct on the board, I had to push each copper piece down several times and adjust it just right until it had good contact. Trial and error until the lights lit up and bam.
Now I just need to find a (5th gen) write up on LED climate control / radio / glow ring/ ect...
Now I just need to find a (5th gen) write up on LED climate control / radio / glow ring/ ect...
Last edited by MaxinO2; Sep 19, 2012 at 10:29 PM.
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 19
From: usa
wow i had to read through every page and i thank everyone of you for all this great info. my caz bought lex 460 ls l and my sisters son bought 350 z and i still have my max for 7 years now. its time to upgrade, my internal lights off course. I love my maxima. Again i thank everyone of you for this long thread, but full of good info.
I got me a 8 leds 4 w/cool, 2 w/warm and 2 red.
just got them in mail, will update.
I got me a 8 leds 4 w/cool, 2 w/warm and 2 red.
just got them in mail, will update.
Member
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 109
Holy **** the incan bulbs are in there good. I ended up breaking the bulbs so I didn't risk breaking the socket. I had a whole pile of precision tools out trying to extract them but they would not budge.
And somehow I got the polarity correct the first try for all four!
Thanks for the thread it was a big help. Now to wait for night to check 'em out.
And somehow I got the polarity correct the first try for all four!
Thanks for the thread it was a big help. Now to wait for night to check 'em out.
Easy way to remove the bulbs is wrap some clear packing tape around the bulb and leave a tale on the tape hold the tail and pull works everytime just make sure there is no grease on the bulb
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 85
From: Camden,NJ
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 242
From: SoCal
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 564
From: Prince Georges, MD
I'll probably get drilled for not using the search bar for finding this, but I did research to no avail. What type of led lights do i get for my 2001 nissan maxima se (non ae)? All i see are the ones for 2002-03..
http://www.ebay.com/itm/10x-Bright-Blue-T5-Wedge-3-SMD-Instrument-Gauge-Cluster-LED-Light-Bulb-for-Niss-/111326872510?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&fits=Model%3AMaxima%7CYear%3A2001%7CMake%3ANissan&hash=item19eb9943be&vxp=mtr Would this work?
Thanks in advance! : )
http://www.ebay.com/itm/10x-Bright-Blue-T5-Wedge-3-SMD-Instrument-Gauge-Cluster-LED-Light-Bulb-for-Niss-/111326872510?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&fits=Model%3AMaxima%7CYear%3A2001%7CMake%3ANissan&hash=item19eb9943be&vxp=mtr Would this work?
Thanks in advance! : )
Last edited by Itz Shak; Apr 16, 2014 at 01:02 PM.
iirc the same ones will work for you (74 base)
I have done it plenty of times
https://www.facebook.com/groups/LedSwaps/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/LedSwaps/
Junior Member
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 48
From: QC (canada)
I have done it plenty of times
https://www.facebook.com/groups/LedSwaps/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/LedSwaps/
Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 20
I know this thread is old but my 03 maxima is new to me so I’m 14 years behind on mods lol.
I just did this mod on my 03 SE cluster and the results are amazing.
I did manage to break two of the bulb holders so for now no lights on odometer and the other info screen.
Thank goodness for this this thread because my max has the circuit board that Nissan used for a few short months before going back to their original design so I could not find the correct bulb holders. All the ones I ordered did not fit. But now I have the correct one on its way and plan on installing this weekend.
Ive taken the cluster out so many times I can do it with my eyes closed. Lol.
Thanks to @seedyrom, @tunermaxima @maxspeed96 (thanks for finding the correct bulb holder) and everyone else who contributed to this mod.
I just did this mod on my 03 SE cluster and the results are amazing.
I did manage to break two of the bulb holders so for now no lights on odometer and the other info screen.
Thank goodness for this this thread because my max has the circuit board that Nissan used for a few short months before going back to their original design so I could not find the correct bulb holders. All the ones I ordered did not fit. But now I have the correct one on its way and plan on installing this weekend.
Ive taken the cluster out so many times I can do it with my eyes closed. Lol.
Thanks to @seedyrom, @tunermaxima @maxspeed96 (thanks for finding the correct bulb holder) and everyone else who contributed to this mod.
Last edited by Graymax03; Oct 17, 2017 at 10:58 AM.
