Led bulbs
Led bulbs
So I would really like to have some LED bulbs in my tails on my 01 Screw. BUT I HATE the looks of all the after market tails. (I like the stock red)
But I need to know if I need to do anything with it, other than just replace the bulb. I have heard stories that the LED's wont work in the older trucks.
Can someone please explain it to me...
Thanks!
But I need to know if I need to do anything with it, other than just replace the bulb. I have heard stories that the LED's wont work in the older trucks.
Can someone please explain it to me...
Thanks!
Here's the thing:
LEDs are known as diodes. They do a simple job: allow electricity to flow one way and resist backwards current. The way and LED works is it lights up when the curcuit is completed. One great advantage of the diode is that it draws 0.04 amps, compared to 2.3 amps of a regular filament bulb. So our trucks PCM naturally emits a voltage of ~2.5 amps. However, Ford wanted you to know when a bulb was out. How? When a bulb it out, it does not draw any electricity. The PCM realizes that no electricity is being drawn, so it causes the flasher to enter "hyper-flash" mode, which in essence is just the blinker going crazy fast to grab your attention to get it fixed. So when you put a 0.04-amp LED in there, the PCM thinks its a dead bulb, so it enables this hyper-flash.
There are two ways to go around this. You can get a resistor kit (~$10 for a pair at AutoZone) that simply splices in-line of the lead wire and the ground to create a controlled short, which fools the PCM. You need one on each LED bulb. So if you do all 4 corners, you need 2 pairs.
-or-
You can simply swap out your flasher module out for an aftermarket one that does the same thing as the resistors, but you dont have to cut up wires. ~$20 online.
Hope this helps!
-Alex
LEDs are known as diodes. They do a simple job: allow electricity to flow one way and resist backwards current. The way and LED works is it lights up when the curcuit is completed. One great advantage of the diode is that it draws 0.04 amps, compared to 2.3 amps of a regular filament bulb. So our trucks PCM naturally emits a voltage of ~2.5 amps. However, Ford wanted you to know when a bulb was out. How? When a bulb it out, it does not draw any electricity. The PCM realizes that no electricity is being drawn, so it causes the flasher to enter "hyper-flash" mode, which in essence is just the blinker going crazy fast to grab your attention to get it fixed. So when you put a 0.04-amp LED in there, the PCM thinks its a dead bulb, so it enables this hyper-flash.
There are two ways to go around this. You can get a resistor kit (~$10 for a pair at AutoZone) that simply splices in-line of the lead wire and the ground to create a controlled short, which fools the PCM. You need one on each LED bulb. So if you do all 4 corners, you need 2 pairs.
-or-
You can simply swap out your flasher module out for an aftermarket one that does the same thing as the resistors, but you dont have to cut up wires. ~$20 online.
Hope this helps!
-Alex
Technical Article Contributor
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 10,511
Likes: 10
From: Under the flightpath of old ORD 22R
...<snip>...So our trucks PCM naturally emits a voltage of ~2.5 amps. However, Ford wanted you to know when a bulb was out. How? When a bulb it out, it does not draw any electricity. The PCM realizes that no electricity is being drawn, so it causes the flasher to enter "hyper-flash" mode, which in essence is just the blinker going crazy fast to grab your attention to get it fixed. So when you put a 0.04-amp LED in there, the PCM thinks its a dead bulb, so it enables this hyper-flash.
...<snip>...
...<snip>...
PCM has nothing to do with stop / turn tails on xx - 08 MY trucks.
The AMP part, I understand what you are trying to say, but the PCM does not have a voltage of 2.5 A. That is a unit of current, which has to do with the load ( resistance ) on the circuit. The trucks does not emit AMPs, the circuit draws AMPs.
Last edited by SSCULLY; Aug 27, 2009 at 10:33 AM.
The flasher does this, not the PCM.
PCM has nothing to do with stop / turn tails on xx - 08 MY trucks.
The AMP part, I understand what you are trying to say, but the PCM does not have a voltage of 2.5 A. That is a unit of current, which has to do with the load ( resistance ) on the circuit. The trucks does not emit AMPs, the circuit draws AMPs.
PCM has nothing to do with stop / turn tails on xx - 08 MY trucks.
The AMP part, I understand what you are trying to say, but the PCM does not have a voltage of 2.5 A. That is a unit of current, which has to do with the load ( resistance ) on the circuit. The trucks does not emit AMPs, the circuit draws AMPs.
Technical Article Contributor
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 10,511
Likes: 10
From: Under the flightpath of old ORD 22R
Toss in the GEM, and if year applicable, the HEC and it can get real confusing which does what, and which comm network they use for it.