Which interior LED's for best light on a z4.

I know it's a noob question but :

1) Is it recommended to disconnect the battery before replacing bulbs?

2) Is there anything difficult / fiddly to watch out for when removing old bulbs / plastic covers? Any tools in particular?
 
hopz121, yep, bright enough for me. I also put them in the footwells.

n1nja-frog, no need to disconnect the battery. And with LEDs you need power to check they are the right way round.

Tips... I have some pics of the centre top cluster somewhere that I will try to dig out, but...

You need an old credit card or similar for the top lights, slid into the right edge on the front and back of it to loosen the clips. The left short edge has a 'lip' that holds that side in. To disconnect the electrics squeeze each side of the connector and pull off. Easier to do if you remove the middle bulb first. They twist and pull as you'd expect.

For the footwell lights you need to lever the short edge out with a small flat head screw driver or trim removal tool. One side has a kind of pressure spring, the other is the connector. You'll be able to tell which end is which because one will come out and the other won't. Be careful you don't lose the wire in the hole as it's not very long and there doesn't seem to be a clip on the connector. Once out and off pull the wire a little and bend round the edge of the hole. To get the black back off you need to gently lever up the middle on the long edge on each side. This is a PITA as you need to use a small screw driver and you MUST be gentle or you will snap the plastic holder for the bulb inside the unit. I got one side up, a finger nail in the gap to keep it up, then really gently levered the other side. Test the LEDs with the electrics connected before putting the holders back together in case you need to turn them round.
 
Photos to show the clips on the middle lighting cluster :

421dc019af03e77534d005d2bbdf58b5_zps6eac8ff9.jpg


My thumb is next to one of them above. This one shows the little lip on the left and the other clip(s) :

0ae4a5ba9ae42c19d152da91513865cb_zps9610b575.jpg


Thinking about it, the clips may only be on the edge closest to you / the camera. Hope that all helps.
 
Hi bing , how do the bulbs you bought fit in the centre light fitting , as they look totally different to the standard ones.
cheers Dunk
 
Started to get my LED's through the post now,

i went for various different options to see which ones work best some are cheap and some expensive.

So far i have done:

-Rear number plate lights (£27 ones) they are excellent mega bright and look great they have 18 SMD's per light and easy to fit.

-Storage compartment light and Boot light (£2.99 for 2) storage compartment light was tight as it has a mega short cable and not alot of room make sure you don't let the cable fall away. Not tested brightness yet as i only installed this morning. These were the cheapest ones i bought so i will be interested to see the light output compared to the others. They seem ok and better than standard but i fill find out later on.
 
Can you get a photo of the rear number plate lights please. I'm interested in them but Bing had issue's with his, saying they didn't fit well.
 
ben g said:
Can you get a photo of the rear number plate lights please. I'm interested in them but Bing had issue's with his, saying they didn't fit well.
Click to expand...

I would like a photo too actually, because if I'm reading right hopz121 got the ones Jonny recommended, which are NOT the ones I got... So they could well be ok Ben. It was the thickness of the pieces I bought that I have issues with... Well, that and they don't fit...
 
They fit ok to be honest, the metal spring clip needed bending slightly and it was a tight fit but it was easy enough and they seem secure.

They have a good foam gasket too to stop water getting in etc, Ill try and get some pics for you today guys, i must say though they look amazing when lit, alot better than OEM :)
 
dunk3 said:
Hi bing , how do the bulbs you bought fit in the centre light fitting , as they look totally different to the standard ones.
cheers Dunk
Click to expand...

They fit fine, just slot into the holders in the same way as the standard bulbs. They're a wee bit short, so need pulled back out slightly if that makes sense. The circular top bit is small enough to fit through the holes too.
 
Mine fitted - eventually - so I'm all blinged up :thumbsup:

Now all I need to do is work out how the LED Brake-lights fit so they also work as tail lights :?
 
I've just done mine (about a year after buying the LEDs) and found that the footwell light under the glovebox is a dummy light glued, rather than clipped, in place.

First I though that a previous owner had had a fault and glued it in place, but I've removed the housing and there's no bulb or bulb holder, no sign of damage, nor is there any loose wiring above the hole in the panel. I can feel a chunky wiring loom above the hole, but it feels like it contains about 100 wires and with gentle tracing I could not find anything loose up there.

Does everyone else have lights in both footwells? Is the driver's side only an M/coupe thing (for light weight :P )?

Only one left to do now, and that's the festoon bulb in the boot, as I'd assumed all the bulbs were the 5W5 variants.
 
mmm-five said:
I've just done mine (about a year after buying the LEDs) and found that the footwell light under the glovebox is a dummy light glued, rather than clipped, in place.

First I though that a previous owner had had a fault and glued it in place, but I've removed the housing and there's no bulb or bulb holder, no sign of damage, nor is there any loose wiring above the hole in the panel. I can feel a chunky wiring loom above the hole, but it feels like it contains about 100 wires and with gentle tracing I could not find anything loose up there.

Does everyone else have lights in both footwells? Is the driver's side only an M/coupe thing (for light weight :P )?

Only one left to do now, and that's the festoon bulb in the boot, as I'd assumed all the bulbs were the 5W5 variants.
Click to expand...

If they only fitted one footwell light instead of two for lightness, then they need sacking as I've read that the M is about 100kg heavier than the 3.0si :oops:
My car has lights in both footwells.
Regards
 
Hi i got these and they are awesome complete interior set !

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261181515097?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT





031_zpsc00b82c4.jpg
 
thepits said:
Mine fitted - eventually - so I'm all blinged up :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
as a matter of interest :wink: the LED 501's also fit the side indicators (now done :thumbsup: ) as well as apparently the front side lights (in planning)

thepits said:
Now all I need to do is work out how the LED Brake-lights fit so they also work as tail lights :?
Click to expand...

p.s. this appears to be a very informed site

but, they still do not list 566 equivalent LED Rear / Brake lights :headbang: The search goes on :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom