Color your HVAC and headlight switches

[Alta Boy]

**Part 1 of 2 for this mod**

This is a "How to" for modifying your existing HVAC and headlight control switch bulbs to LED's. This was done on my 2000 Dakota so yours may be somewhat different. By doing this your HVAC controls and headlight switch can be made to shine a different color such as red or blue. This mod is a must if you've already did the guage cluster. This mod uses your existing bulb holders so the only thing to buy are the LED lights and a resistor to knock the voltage down for the LED's. Here's a couple of pics of my controls lit by the blue LED's. It was hard to take a good pic of them in the dark with no flash. There is only one section of the controls that don't light up that well. The red on the temp control section of the HVAC section.

[Alta Boy]

**Part 2 of 2 for this mod**

Here's a pic of the modified bulb holder with an LED light and resistor [top] compared to the stock one on the bottom.



I used a 3.9V, 5mm diameter,1500MCD blue LED bulb with a 470ohm resistor. LED's brightness is measured in MCD. The higher the number the brighter it is.

Disconnect the battery [just to be on the safe side] and remove your HVAC and headlight switch controls. These are the bulbs your going to be working with [circled, 3 in total]. The white dot on the headlight switch is the foglight indicator bulb. I chose not to do that one. The bulb holders have a straight slot cut in the end of them. A small flatblade screwdriver gets them out with a 1/4 turn counterclockwise. Much the same as the guage cluster lights.



Here's a drawing of the bulb holder assembly. Take some fingernail clippers and pull the wires out from around the cleats. Straighten the wires out and then grab the bulb and pull it out of the holder.



Take the LED bulb and run the wires through the two holes in the holder until they come out of the end. Run one wire around one of the cleats, flatten it a bit with some pliers and then solder it together. The other wire on the LED bulb will require a resistor. On the other side solder a round loop onto the cleat. Solder your resistor to the LED wire and then to the loop like so.



When soldering the resistor on, be aware to leave enough room allowing you to get your screwdriver into the slot to reinstall the new LED bulb and holder. Make sure also there will be no interference on the switch base itself when installed. Reinstall the holders.

*IMPORTANT: LED lights are polarity sensitive. Current will only flow through them one way. If you install your newly modified LED lights and they don't work simply screw the holder out from the switch base, spin it 180* and reinstall it.

*IMPORTANT: The ceramic portion of the resistor gets very warm to the touch when operating. Make sure they won't come into contact with other wires or plastic once installed. It doesn't matter if the resistor is wired to the [+] side or the [-] side of the LED wire leads.

[N/A BRO]

Where did you pick up the bulb holders and the resisters at?? I installed Leds already but in the truck not in the clusters.... i did red. Now time to do the clusters

[SH0K0TA]

i'm planning on changing my guages and hvac controls this weekend, but one quick question about the resistor, do you need to install one with the lights? its to knock down the voltage, but none are needed for the guages when they are swapped. wouldn't they have the same voltage putout?