These days, numerous car makers are making it tougher for vehicle owners to carry out simple routine maintenance duties on their own. GEM’s Technological helpline will often get common distress phone calls from people that can’t see how to replace a headlamp light bulb at home, without needing to take apart the front of the vehicle.
Lately, GEM have been approached by a number of members, stressing they can’t even change a straightforward front side light bulb. Generally speaking, these little light bulbs are susceptible to faltering on a much more consistent basis, compared to dim-dip and main beam headlamp models. If your front bumper needs to be removed, for that lamp to be unbolted, to allow accessibility to the back of the unit, changing a £2.49 component becomes incredibly difficult and costly. This aspect is particularly true, if garage services need to be required.
Even numerous modern day vehicles, built with costly gas-discharge headlamps, make use of old-fashioned halogen light bulbs for sidelights that are positioned inside a cavity in the headlamp assembly, where by they could get too hot and fail. The answer would be to substitute the light bulb using a multiple LED variety which can be found with bases which are suitable for the car’s original lamp-holder. The outcome is a straightforward upgrade which will work for considerably longer than the usual standard halogen replacement.
Nevertheless, there are some caveats. Should your vehicle have a bulb-failure alert facility, installing front LED side light bulbs may possibly fool the device into believing that the light bulbs have failed. The reason is the LED’s lower current usage. Additionally, if the vehicle is equipped with CANBUS electrical wiring (since several vehicles produced after 2007 are), make sure that Light emitting diodes are compliant. If you’re not sure, ask the seller for information.
Concerning the LED light bulbs themselves, make sure that they shine white. Many different kinds can radiate a range of shades, such as blue, which can be looked down on in a roadside spot-check or MoT Check. Also, some less expensive brands of LED available online, can provide a really bad luminosity, so it is obviously a good idea to question the seller to back-up any advertising and marketing statements, before purchasing some.
LED substitutes can be installed very easily, without the need of any wiring alterations, which have got a considerably longer life over the conventional bulb. To provide a good spread of light, be aware that a number of Light emitting diodes are installed all around the bulb.