LED Interior Lighting

[SAR Jeepster]

I was looking for a light to install in the interior back area of my Jeep that didn’t stick out and enter fear with my cargo. I found these great LED at my local AutoZone they are thin, bright and only $20.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1381

I mounted the LED strips to the roll bar, ran the wires inside the roll bar and mounted the switch in the bar to be able to turn on the LED’s from the back. I also ran a wire to the front so they could turned on from the cab.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1382

They work so good I am going to add some to the front on a separate switch. I am also going to add them in my trailer the 1 foot strips can be cut about every 2 inches with 3 LED’s and power wires soldered on to use the cut offs. This would allow very compact lighting in all the trailer compartments.

[XJINTX]

This looks like a GR8 resource. I am going to checkout / buy some this morning. After my latest tip I see the need for this lighting in the rear of my XJ. THANKS for posting!

[jeffy]

Do they look brighter in person then what the picture shows?

[SAR Jeepster]

Yes!! they are much brighter in person. The package has a small battery pack so you see them work in the store but they are brighter connected to the vehicle battery.:Wow1:

[Beowulf]

Pictures seem to be gone????

[mudbutt]

Pictures seem to be gone????

Not for me.

[Life_in_4Lo]

check oznium.com for a bunch of good LED lighting

[jeffy]

Yes!! they are much brighter in person. The package has a small battery pack so you see them work in the store but they are brighter connected to the vehicle battery.:Wow1:

Hmm, I'll have to check them out. I need some under dash lights as the single bulb doesn't really cut it. I also want to replace the hardtop light with LED's so I can see what I'm doing.

[87FoRunner]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/LED-ELECTROPODS-BLK-KIT-WHITE-LIGHTS-MOTORCYCLE-480300_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem20abada2edQQitem Z140319236845QQptZMotorcyclesQ5fPartsQ5fAccessorie s

My roomate has used these on his sport bike for quite some time with no troubles.

I plan on ordering a set for my topper for some night lighting soon.

[TJ Willy]

I was looking for a light to install in the interior back area of my Jeep that didn’t stick out and enter fear with my cargo. I found these great LED at my local AutoZone they are thin, bright and only $20.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1381


I look at these things every time I go in the store. I thought about using them for aux light in a couple different places. One being the engine bay (on inside of hood), but I worried about the heat and moisture. Do you think they would withstand that type of abuse? Do you think they would flood the area with usable light?

I prefer LED for the size=small factor.

[SAR Jeepster]

look at these things every time I go in the store. I thought about using them for aux light in a couple different places. One being the engine bay (on inside of hood), but I worried about the heat and moisture. Do you think they would withstand that type of abuse? Do you think they would flood the area with usable light?
They seem to be incased in a clear silicone with the same 3M double stick tape used to install emblems on cars. They look like there is no way moisture can affect them. It was cold when I did the install and they were a little stiff to bend and flatten out so I used a heat gun to warm the roll bar and LED strips. I got one very hot with no visual effects and it still works great. Under the hood is a good idea I am going to try that. It seems that they would work great as long as you have a good clean mounting spot.

[TJ Willy]

Thanks for the feedback. If you beat me to it, post up with your results.

:)

[SAR Jeepster]

I picked up some more of the LED strips to do under the hood like TJ Willy suggested. I put 3 one foot strips under the hood one in the center front edge and one on each side. I taped the LED strips in many places before actually sticking them down for good. This configuration seemed to provide the best over all light to allow for any repairs in the dark.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1448

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1449

The real test will be how they hold up under the heat of engine compartment on an all day trip in low range this summer.

[Nikson]

if these hold up to the heat/cold changes without any issues, and stick well to the hood...

that might be just a best setup I have seen so far.. thanks for the input...

[TJ Willy]

Thanks for posting up the pics Tom. That looks fantastic. Three strips provides a ton of light. Did you put them all on one switch? I assume yes. I am wondering what it looks like with one light on. Did you happen to grab a pic before wiring up all three?

Thanks for the follow-up.

[SAR Jeepster]

Did you put them all on one switch? I assume yes. I am wondering what it looks like with one light on. Did you happen to grab a pic before wiring up all three?

I used a toggle switch under the hood. I didn’t think to get a picture with one strip.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1450

While I was testing for the best location for mounting the LED strips with just one I got a lot of shadows while reaching in the engine compartment as if I was doing repairs.

Another option would be to cut the strips and make multiple smaller LED strips.

[StumpXJ]

Wow... that puts out a good amount of light! I will have to check my local Auto Zone to see if they have these... I need em for my XJ, and my trailer.

Thanks!!

~ James

[jeffy]

I really like the hood idea, too. It defuses nicely as well. Is the tape the grey 3M molding tape of the foam backed? If it's the foam and that doesn't work then you might try to the 3M grey molding tape. That stuff hold up really well.

[SAR Jeepster]

I really like the hood idea, too. It defuses nicely as well. Is the tape the grey 3M molding tape of the foam backed? If it's the foam and that doesn't work then you might try to the 3M grey molding tape. That stuff hold up really well.

I think they come with the tape you are describing. They seem to stick very well and the LED strips are very light weight.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1471

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1472

[jeffy]

I think they come with the tape you are describing. They seem to stick very well and the LED strips are very light weight.
That looks like the stuff. I doubt you'll have any issues with it.

[Driver-Navigator]

I replaced my interior overhead light's regular bulb with an LED model from Roundeyes. It's a bit brighter but not ridiculously so, which is good since I didn't want them to blind me when I had to turn them on while driving at night. :)

I like your setup on these for when you might want more interior light though. How did you mount the strips to the roll bar?

[SAR Jeepster]

I used the double stick tape that came on the LED strips and just cleaned the bars so they would stick. I ran all the wiring into the roll bar through a hole with a rubber grommet and mounted the switch in the bar.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1473

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1474

[SAR Jeepster]

Well I may have gone crazy with the LED lights but after showing them to my wife she had a few suggested modifications. She wanted to be able to turn on the rear lights from the front and some more lights in the front seat area. So I added another package of LED strips. I wanted to have separate control of driver and passenger lights. The space I picked wasn’t long enough for a full strip so cut then in half and put them next to each other. I add 3 switches under 1 of my radios: Driver side, Back, Passenger side. I think this will do it for now on the Jeepster, next the trailer!

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1480

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=212&pictureid=1479

[TJ Willy]

I finally got a chance to install the infamous LED strips. I have a set of Kilby Cargo Panels and spent the afternoon installing them with a few goodies. This was a perfect time to get the LED strips wired up on a switch.

They come two in a pack and put out a lot of light.

I put a simple toggle switch in the panel. It could be I put a second switch up front at a later date.

I'll start a separate thread for the Kilby Cargo Panel install and how I did everything with pics.

Right now, the LED strips are held in place by zip ties since they won't stick to to the roll bar padding. If the bars were painted to match, I would remove the padding... but it seems they no longer bother painting roll bars completely. Ideas for mounting the strips to the padding would be appreciated.

[AlexJet]

Nice find.... Looking good.

[alexfm]

Have any of you that have these lights tried them while driving at night?

[TJ Willy]

Have any of you that have these lights tried them while driving at night?

The ones I installed are just for cargo. I bought a set of red to run up front and another set of clear for the sound bar. Those are yet to be installed. I can post up when that is done.

I will say they are bright but the light is soft. Probably no worse than your dome lights. Just don't look directly at them.