Lights and bulbs

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baldybrewer

Member
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36
Location
Wirral
Hey guys picking up my first disco 2 next week and I will want to upgrade all the exterior and interior lights to led's. I will be upgrading the dipped beam to HIDS and I'm wondering if the disco uses the canbus system or will I be ok using led's without resistors thanks.
 
hi mate and welcome

if u do a quick search in here there’s some very good info ref the led lights etc
 
The D2 isn't a CANBUS vehicle, ordinary LEDs can be used. I used the direct replacement types on mine.
You should have no trouble replacing the interior lighting for LEDs, 38mm festoon replacements are easily obtainable. The same applies to the number plate lights too.
Front side lights (type T10, 501 white) and rear fog lights (type 382 red) should present no troubles either.
There are a couple of things you'll have to sort out as you go:-
  • Some of the bulbholders will be the wrong polarity, so that'll mean having to change the wiring over at the bulbholder.
  • You might come across a problem with the "High level brake light" (type 382 red) due to the reduced currents required to light a LED being "back fed". I sorted mine out with current steering diodes (1N5401). The Stop/Tail LEDs are type 380 red.
  • The indicator circuit will not handle LEDs directly, although LEDs can be fitted into the repeaters on the front wings with no trouble (type T10, 501 yellow). The Indicator flasher circuit on the D2 is not the type which can be reworked with a LED flasher unit either. The flash rate is set electronically in the BCU which then operates the appropriate relay in the IDM. You could use a kit of shunt resistors (from ebay) which would work, but you'll then lose the facility of error detection should an indicator bulb be blown. Indicators LEDs, should you decide to go that way are type 382 yellow.
  • The LEDs which I chose to use were the same colours as the lenses they were operating behind. Standard white LEDs tend to be a "ice-white" blue-ish colour which can give strange colours when installed behind coloured lenses. This also means that should the lens become damaged, the light which will show will still be the correct colour.
  • In the reversing lights I found that the "ordinary" LEDs weren't bright enough so I used type 382 white CREE LEDs which can now light up the whole street behind me, although they are really only intended as an indication to other road users that you have selected your reverse gear. They too were direct plug-in replacements. The only downside with them is some interference on the radio when I select reverse gear.
You have referred to the Dip beams separately, so I presume that you have a facelift D2. That being the case, I would caution against changing the bulb type to anything other than the specified type, that is a filament bulb. The beam pattern produced by the headlight is dependant on three parameters set during design, the reflector shape, the point of the illumination source and the flutes on the lens, which in the case of the facelift D2 lens doesn't apply. By altering the point of illumination in the reflector as it is designed is not going to produce the proper beam pattern, which in the worst case could lead to an MoT failure. Poorly adapted headlights are currently the number one cause of dazzle to other road users. HID modifications are the second.
If you want brighter, whiter headlights, I would recommend that you try "Osram Nightbreakers" or "Phillips X-Treme +120%".Headlights are type H7 for both main and dipped. Front fog lights use type H11 bulbs.
All the LEDs and bulbs which I used are available from various suppliers on "the bay".

Edited to include LED and diode types.
 
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