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Old 02-08-2010, 08:49 PM   #1 (permalink)
 
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Default Changing console lights from red to...anything!

I once owned a car that had red console lights. For the most part, it didn't bother me...until I had to do a long night drive. I had a headache at the end of the drives as a result.

Now I own a 2010 Forester, and I'm looking at red lights again!

It's hard to tell where the red is coming from, but I'm guessing it's the buttons themselves. The radio is not that big a deal...that's not staying long if I can help it. Climate control OTOH, can't be swapped out so easily, can it? If anyone has any advice, I'd appreciate it.

Besides, the instrument cluster is a nice cool white / blue...the red looks pretty cheesy sitting next to it. :P

Russell
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Old 02-08-2010, 10:54 PM   #2 (permalink)
 
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Funny.. a lot of people try changing to red from green.. blue is kind of bright at night though, don't you think? I know what you mean about the red though.. when I drive the Matrix, it strains my eyes... which is why I assume Subaru went green in the first place (since it is easiest on the eyes).

Haven't seen anyone do 09+ lights yet but I'm assuming they're either LEDs now or still using colored condoms over small bulbs. If they're the condoms, you just replace the condoms. If they're LEDs, you're going to have to do a bit of soldering.
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Old 02-09-2010, 07:23 AM   #3 (permalink)
 
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Blue hasn't been a problem yet. The instrument cluster can be dimmed, not so for the red lights on the radio or climate control.

I'll see if anyone else has pulled apart their consoles to see what's behind there. I'm hoping colored condoms on little bulbs. If its as few as 2 LED's, and the solder is simple, I might manage that as well.

Thanks for the response!
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Old 02-09-2010, 07:36 AM   #4 (permalink)
 
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Oh and for the instrument cluster, hopefully it's still just bulbs, but changing the color will probably involve sanding the back of the gauges to remove any color tint. That's how I remember my gen's conversion to be.

Here's a good starting point, since I assume Subaru carried over a bunch of the existing stuff into the new electrical on your gen:
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=690922
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...ht=gauge+color

It's primarily info for Imprezas but we're pretty much all Imprezas, except for the Legacy and Tribeca folks (though we seem to get their stuff a generation after them).
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Old 02-09-2010, 03:50 PM   #5 (permalink)
 
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Thanks Neoshi! Does look like a good place to start. After looking at the post, and looking again at the console, I'm almost positive it's incandescent lights with condoms.

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