DIY: Side Marker LED Color Change

Indiana102

Hey all! I've been meaning to post this DIY for a long time, and I finally got around to doing so. Hopefully this helps some of you. You can also download a PDF copy of this DIY here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/4d6etl9l7y...0LEDs.pdf?dl=0. Shoot me a message if you have any questions and I'll do my best to answer. If this helps you out, I'd appreciate the rep!


Supplies
• 20 Piranha SuperFlux LEDs (I order from Kingbright) (4 spare, just in case)
• De-soldering Iron or Soldering Iron
• Heat Gun or Hair Dryer
• Small flathead screwdriver
• Small phillips screwdriver
• Waterproof epoxy

1) Remove the side markers from your car. Follow the diagram below and it should just pop right out. If not, try using a small plastic tool to give you a bit of leverage. Once you do that, just disconnect the wiring harness


2) Let me start this step off by saying that I tried this about 15 different ways and this is the only one that truly worked. Take a heat gun (low setting) or a hair dryer (high setting) and apply heat to the top of the marker. We need to heat up the epoxy that keeps the reflective piece sealed. Be careful not to overheat the plastic, as it will begin to warp at the slightest touch



3) Once the epoxy has become flexible again, take a small flathead screwdriver (or something similar) and begin to GENTLY separate the reflector from the side marker. Take your time and DON’T rush this step, or the reflector will crack. You can even see where I got too excited and I started making dents in the plastic rim. Take your time


4) This is what you should see with the reflector removed


5) With the reflector removed, you should now see 2 screws. Remove those to gain access to the LEDs



6) Now take the plastic holder that keeps both LED boards in place and remove it. This should be a simple wiggle and remove process, but to take note that the boards are connected via small cables


7) Once you have the small plastic piece removed, disconnect the red and black cable to separate the boards from the marker. You can leave the small black cable attached to both boards


8) There are 8 Piranha SuperFlux LEDs that we want to swap. 2 on the large board, 6 on the small board. Using a de-soldering iron, remove the solder from the old LEDs and pull them off




9) Place a new LED in each spot and solder it to the board. Each LED has a flat corner, so make sure you line it up accordingly to the outline on the board


10) Once you have all your new LEDs soldered onto each board, reconnect the red and black cable



11) Place the boards back in the plastic piece and insert them back into the side marker. Insert both screws to hold down the boards


12) Prepare your epoxy and apply a thin layer on the reflector’s edge. Attach the reflector back to the base of the side marker and press firm for 60 seconds to help the epoxy set. Wipe any additional epoxy from the base when you’re finished


13) Reconnect the side markers to the wiring harness and snap them back in place on the car



14) Turn on the car and give them a test! You should now see the new LED color light up in each side marker