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Replacing instrument/dash lights? (merged thread)

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#122 ·
ridinvintage said:
Well I went and got some 194's and they work like a charm, only thing 2 of my bulbs condoms ripped while pulling out, so I just removed them all. Dash isn't as green now, so I'm gonna pick up some more condoms.
Click to expand...
I'm having this same issue. I called a local Subaru dealership and what they had explained to me is that a 194 would fit in place of the 158, but would burn hotter and they had seen cases where it had actually melted the plastic. And then the proceeded to offer to send my cluster out to a company to have it 'repaired' for $270 usd. Ha! what a joke. I suggest finding your cluster at a junk yard and snagging the bulbs out of it. If the bulb is still clear and the filament looks attached, it should work just fine. And at a much cheaper cost than buying from a store.
 
#123 ·
Seems like no one was able to change to a different color without losing a significant amount of visibility on the indicator needle, correct? I like the idea of switching to blue to match my ProSport Halo gauges (which actually can be blue, red or white), but I'm not willing to make a sacrifice on the whole point of a gauge - monitor a specific parameter. Dim or non visible indicator needles don't cut it for me.

The only pic I saw was by "BackpackerTay" and it showed 1/2 the cluster illuminated and the fuel & temp needles completely invisible. His/her other three pics are not coming up, so not sure if those were any better.

So, what I am gathering after reading this entire thread is that LED's are NOT the way to go, unless I go clear, and even then I am looking at a lack of uniformity on the disbursement of light.

Which is ok. Only my odometer light is out, and I am content with the green. Just not in love with it.
 
#124 ·
Hey Type2, so when I finished all the lighting, the gauges are lit extremely well (if a bit "hot" near the source, but not bad.), and the needles are dim, but readable. If you use a different color, I'm sure it would work better. Red especially. Red would make the needles very bright, and the red would light the numbers too. The other option is to add a light gel (used in stage lighting). Just cut and tape the gel to the rear of gauge.
 
#125 ·
Do you have any recent pictures? I like the idea of red because my gauges will change to red (or blue or white). Are the letters painted green or are they white and just take on whatever color. What type of gel tape are you talking about? I'd like the gauge to look oem, and not hacked :) Thanks for any help!
 
#126 ·
Sure, let me see if I can message you the pics instead, that way I know they'll show up. The letters/numbers are light green, HOWEVER with red light they ought to show up as red, as the green is not incredible strong green, while I have not tested this theory, since blue shines through just fine, I imagine red would to. Give it a try. As for the other route, these: Color Gels & Filters :: StageSpot are what I'm talking about. from the outside it will not look hacked, inside, it will. Here's a write up from NASIOC. Works exactly the same for ours. Gauge Cluster Color Change: LED's and Gels - NASIOC
 
#127 ·
Thanks! The pics look good. I do wish the needles were like BLAM in your face bright though :) Thanks for the link to the NASIOC thread. Looks like a lot of folks out there are doing this. The cutout filters look interesting and by cutting them out you can do some nifty things...
 
#129 ·
I'm back with a question.

I don't know if it's the cold weather or what, but I've had three illumination bulbs pop out of their blue bulb holders in the past month. I can't keep taking my gauge cluster out every week! I figure it's worth replacing them altogether. I can't remember the part # on these holders... I think Toshiba makes them. Does anyone know where they can be found? eBay?
 
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#130 · (Edited)
Looking for EWG103 or suitable replacement

Hello,

I have a 2004 Honda Odyssey and it uses a single EWG103 bulb for the temperature gauge. I am having trouble finding the bulb and was wondering if anyone could suggest a suitable alternative.

Thanks!
 
#131 ·
Hmm, interesting... Honda uses these too eh? Good to know.

You may actually save money going to the dealership. ;)

-Mark
 
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#132 ·
I bought T5 replacement LED's from EBay (~$12), the dash gauges were easy. One point to note, if they don't work, pull the whole socket back out, turn it 180 degrees and put it back in. I initially thought I had to pull the bulb out of the socket and turn it and then put it back in, but that's not the case. I got the blue LED's, they match the paint :) The turn signals are even blue, that might take some time to get used to.

I'd also like to point out, the 2 HVAC bulbs are a terrible pain in the *** to get out/back in. I'd suggest getting triple led's or stick with the stock incandescent bulbs for the HVAC. The single LED's that I got shine straight forward, and don't light up the dials very well, but at least I can sort of see them now.
 
#133 ·
Missing parts on cluster

BackpackerTay said:
Behind the Tachometer (2 bulbs), Speedometer (1 bulb), and in the Rear Hatch light (1 bulb): You need #194 bulbs or use these LEDs:

194 type LED replacement

Behind the Coolant (1 bulb), Fuel Gauge (1 bulb), clock (1 bulb), Mileage (2 bulbs), Ignition Ring (1 bulb), and Ashtray/Power Ring (1 bulb), you need #74s or use these LEDS:
#74 type LED replacement

Behind the HVAC (3 bulbs): you need a neo-wedge bulb called a PC118 or PC119 or use these LEDS in 4mm version
PC118/PC119 replacement LEDs

Behind the Fog light, Cruise, and Window Defroster switches (6 bulbs total [3 for backlight, 3 for operation light]): These do not have a useful LED equivalent that I can find, I've ruined a number of different LEDs and none fit quite right. Might as well just get the 7219 bulbs and some bulb covers.
Click to expand...
First, thanks to BackpackerTay for the links. Just got a new-to-me 2003 Subaru Forester 2.5 X. Drove it for the first time at night one evening and realized I can't see half of my dash. My fuel gauge was completely black and the tachometer was really faint. I actually thought for a moment that this was just normal...but then I decided to see what the forum had to say about this and sure enough my instinct was right. Because why would a used car dealership replace something so simple and useful? Grr...

My bulbs just came in today and I immediately went to replacing them. Only when I took the cluster out, it seems that not only were lights burned out...but that they were missing entirely! :( Maybe I am wrong and this is normal?

Image


There are 4 empty spaces. Can anyone help me identify what these are supposed to be lighting up? I thought I replaced my fuel gauge (though it is still light outside) but I don't see anything lighting up currently.

Also, What are these little caps that hold the light bulbs called?

THANK YOU. :)
 
#134 ·
Some were missing in mine. If you shine a flashlight through the back, you can see what the indicators are. I found out that the empty ones in mine were features my car didn't have, such as VDC and Traction control and things like that. I did think they fell out at first, but I now believe it came this way from the factory, they simply didn't put lights in spots that the car didn't need them.
 
#136 · (Edited)
Just thought I'd add to this so others don't make the same mistake I did:

I had one light out in my speedometer since I bought the car 2 years ago: the needle and the the half of the speedo with the lower speeds. I got on a roll one weekend (spark plugs, rocker gasket, egr valve cleaning) and figured I'd tackle what would seemingly be the easiest of all. One light... to paraphrase Jezza.. How hard can it be?

Easily pulled the cluster as others have mentioned. Stuck a 12v 194 in (I had a spare from my previous Toyota). Put everything back and then my tach, fuel, temp lights stopped working, AND, the speedo didn't look any different (yet the bulb still worked when hooked up to 12 volts outside of the cluster).

Then I start banging my head b/c service manual says to disconnect negative terminal on battery, and I didn't unplug the centre plug in the back. I thought I fried my circuit board. Thankfully, not the case. Yield to the advice of the voltage!! 14V

Large bulbs (speedo, tach): $6-something per bulb at dealer
Small bulbs (fuel,temp): $8-something per bulb

NAPA - nada
The Source (CDN radioshack) - the source of disappointment
Canadian (Crappy) Tire - for your Subaru? that's funny..

I'm not one to promote Crappy Tire, and of course they didn't have the lights in their system, but took a chance on:

Sylvania 194LL 14v, 4.6w (large) - 2 pack for $5
Sylvania 37LL (small) 14v, 1.3w - 2 pack for $5

Let there be LIGHT!!!

So far so good. I'll check back if they still work in a while - just hope the extra wattage doesn't overheat the cluster.

Note - the 37's didn't fit the socket perfectly.. Worried it'd break it, I chose not to stuff it in all the way and so it's a little longer than the OE light. But it fit into the cluster without issue.

Also - be extra careful with the cluster when you pull it out from the dash and/or flip it upside-down. I scratched the hell out of the back of my steering wheel.. Maybe put a rag or something on top of it when extracting.
 
#137 ·
online bulb replacement source

Hey -just discovered this site and clearest info I can determine from posts is not for bulbs I need. Trying to replace (4) 85066GA390 and (16) 85066GA110. Of course, Subaru wants $200. Other online sources I've seen are at least $7/ea. Any idea for me?
 
#138 ·
questions for new subaru owner

Bought my first forester white s model. 2001 i paid $1000 has 285k runs great druves great. Lots of power comparing to my geos though. But lights behind speedo dont work and none of the needles are luminated im guessing bulbs sincse moms forester acts the same. My question is what bulbs are for needle
 
#139 ·
If it has an aftermarket radio, you can probably save a lot of time and money by checking the wiring. Make sure the illumination(orange wire isn't run to anything and insulated. Also, check your fuses. It should be a 30 amp running your illumination

Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
 
#140 ·
PC74 works great as dash/instrument bulb replacement for 2001 Forester

I tried the T5 wedge bulbs and the base was too big to fit in the dash... or maybe the T5 bulbs I bought were labeled as T5 but weren't really T5. I read other places that T1.75 (or T1 3/4) is likely the right base size for the 2001 Forester. That aside, I didn't want to gamble on T(x) size so I began looking for 74 bulbs w/ the most lumens and longest life.

These EiK0 PC74 bulbs come w/ the bases and fit perfectly in my 2001 Forester. The bulb base size is the same. The "head" size is a bit smaller but w/ 9 lumens they illuminate the dash very nicely.

EiKO Lighting PC74 - Light Bulb | O'Reilly Auto Parts

You may be able to buy them cheaper somewhere else but there are a handful of O'Reilly locations in Madison and it would be easier for me to return if they didn't fit or work.
 
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