What bulb is in the switches?

[Sqrly]

I noticed my switches light up at night. The door lock buttons and window switches in the doors and overhead console.

I also noticed a few of them don't light up. Taking the switch apart is not a problem, if they do come apart.

Can anyone tell me what bulb goes in them?

 

[mrrsm]

 

[Sqrly]

@mrrsm

The switches work fine. In my vehicle the white icons and text on the buttons light up on every door and the overhead console when it's dark.

I was hoping to buy bulbs before I take them apart.

(It's not dark yet so you can't see them lit in the pic)

 

[Mooseman]

IIRC, they are just 12v T1 3mm bulbs with wire leads like these:

20pcs Miniature lamp 3mm 12v Indicator Bulb Bombilla Incandescent Filament NEW | eBay

Item : Edison Miniature 3mm Lamp Bulb.

www.ebay.com

 

[TJBaker57]

Here is a sneak peek inside. One picture shows the bulb alongside a standard yellow pencil.

 

[Mooseman]

Those are replaceable twist lock types. AFAIK, the GMT360/370 don't have those except in the rear HVAC control. They are all soldered in place. We do have this big LED mod thread but most of the pictures are long gone. Maybe @Blckshdw still has them somewhere but we may not hear from him until after the hurricane. There are some writeups also on the old site.

 

[Blckshdw]

The front door modules and rear HVAC controls have the twist lock bulbs, everything else is soldered in place. @Sqrly if you're interested in doing an LED conversion, I've been recommending these T4.7 style LEDs. You can get them in various colors, and have built in resistors, so all you have to do is solder the leads in place, and you're on your way.

T4.7 Instrument Panel LED Light,Gauge Cluster Bulbs 10Pack White​

Maybe if I'm bored today, I'll go back into the old LED mod thread and add back the pics as attachments

 

[Sqrly]

@Blckshdw

I can stick those LED's in the twist lock holders too? I'd want everything the same brightness.

I like the idea of using longer lasting parts. Especially when repairing 'non user servicable' parts.

 

[Blckshdw]

The issue with the door modules is the lights don't shine directly under the buttons. There's a clear piece of acrylic, with 2 holes on the driver's side, 1 hole on the passenger side, which the bulb seats in. The light emitted from the sides of the bulb goes through the acrylic, and refracts under the buttons to light them up.

What I ended up doing was soldering some wire to the pads on the circuit board, running them around to each location of the buttons, drilled 5mm holes in the acrylic and solder in an LED in place under each button inserted through the holes. They are very bright, especially the white ones.

 

[Sqrly]

The lights in your picture are way too bright for me.

I was thinking some standard 5mm leds.

 

[Mooseman]

If too bright for you when you install them and test it, use a black marker on the LEDs. I did that on the ones for the steering switches. Worked great.

Now I'm getting the itch to do LEDs on my current TB. I had done it on my 02 EXT many moons ago. I've got a bag of those T4.7 that are just itching to get in. Only my door and steering switches are burnt out.

 

[Blckshdw]

The first time I did them, I used 5mm straw hat LEDs but they weren't bright enough, redid them with 5mm flat tops, and liked that look much better. But when some of them failed after years of use, I found these which were just easier due to not needing resistors.

 

[Sqrly]

I found these at one of my usual outlets. They are 12V with built in resistors and they do come in red, white, green, blue, and yellow. They also come in 3mm and 5mm sizes.

White Clear 12V LED

 

[Blckshdw]

Nice find! I haven't spent time cruising Digikey and Mouser in I don't know how long.

 

[Sqrly]

Nice find! I haven't spent time cruising Digikey and Mouser in I don't know how long.

Thanks. If/when I buy some I'll get a photo of one side by side a stock bulb.