Jump to content
SAU Community

Recommended Posts

This is a common problem. Almost certainly it's the diode in the circuit under the red plastic. Check the fuse first to make sure, but I think the same fuse controls other things like the rest of the brake lights so you'll probably have no brake lights at all if it's the fuse.

Remove the whole lighting assembly (I think it's held in with 2 screws from underneath) and check the circuit with an ohmmeter. If it's open, then it's probably the diode. Separate the red lens from the backing plastic with a razor blade or the like, and look near where the wires go in, you'll see the diode and probably notice it's burnt out.

You can either replace the diode with the same type, or just put a straight piece of wire in. The diode is only there to stop the whole series of LEDs getting zapped if you wire it in back to front, which you won't do because the plastic clip is directional. So a bit of wire is fine (that's how I fixed mine).

Put it all back together, using spots of super glue here and there to hold it in place. Not too much though because you want to be able to pull it apart again if you need to fix it in future. If you use wire instead of another diode though you probably won't ever have to fix it, except to replace individual burnt out LEDs, which is a total bitch to do and probably not worth the effort.

Hi JimX,

Many thanks for your reply - I was hoping I wouldn't have to pull it apart but it looks like it will need to be - I'm just thinking where the screws are, is ther 2 screws under the spoiler in the middle and the led lens bit will slide out or something?

Yeah that sounds about right. I'd like to give you a definite answer but I fixed mine so long ago that I can't remember. And I'm at work so I can't check for you :D I'm pretty sure it's just 2 screws, one either side and underneath. I used a stumpy philips head screwdriver under there somewhere.

Hi

The thingi that Jimx called a diode is really a resistor and it is there to drop the voltage down so you dont blow the LED's so putting a piece of wire in is not a good idea. mine was burnt out so could not see how many ohms it was. I worked out it should be around either 47 or 470 ohms (I cant remember, its writen down at home) If you can see the colours on it can you please let me know,

Mine has gone too. I've had a couple of cracks at separating the red from the black plastic... Its a BIATCH! :cuss: I'm making progress, but I end up just putting it back in after a while of cutting with a stanley knife. Might have another go this arfo.

BTW: it's 3 screws on an R33 :(

Nah, it's a diode. There's a diode sign on the circuit board and you have groups of 4 or 5 diodes running in series, dropping the voltage to each to somewhere between 2 and 3 volts removing the need for a resistor.

Put a diode in. Not that it means much, since all the LED's are diodes anyway :O Just bridge it if you don't have a replacement diode handy. I had one lying around and it's been working for 12 months.

Hi

The thingi that Jimx called a diode is really a resistor and it is there to drop the voltage down so you dont blow the LED's so putting a piece of wire in is not a good idea. mine was burnt out so could not see how many ohms it was. I worked out it should be around either 47 or 470 ohms (I cant remember, its writen down at home) If you can see the colours on it can you please let me know,

Serlock_nz

Its a freaking diode man. I was the electrical knowledge guy that helped jimx fix his spoiler light. From a rough memory the diodes are grouped together that the forward voltage drop on them is enough so you dont need to worry about dropping the voltage.

Lets just say that jimx's haev been running fine for at least 12 months and leds blow pretty fast when you put 12v or higher through them.

Cheers

Bombster

Well the one that I replaced was a resistor because I could see a couple of coloured rings but couldnt tell what colour the other rings were,

In mine only one section of the LED's had gone out, about a dozen.

they must use both diodes and resistors on the different models

Would I be right in saying to identify which you have, diodes are usually black with a silver ring around them with the diode symbol, and the resistor is usually cream coloured with coloured rings around them to show resistance value

Cheers

Well hmm. It doesnt matter if it is a diode or a resistor. Both diodes and resistors lower the voltage.

The average diode will drop the voltage around 1.5v and have the added bonus of only conducting in one direction for polarity protection of the circuit.

If you replace either with a piece of wire you may not necessarily destroy the device immediatly but you may reduce the potential lifetime of the LED's in the brake light assembly. Depending on the tolerence of the circuit of course.

Chances are nothing bad will happen.

  • 1 month later...

I have the same problem :)

I took the unit out from under the spoiler, but I have absolutely no idea how to get it apart to fix the diode! The unit seems impregnable!

Has anyone got any tips, instructions or pics on how to get it apart?

Thanks.

I think the whole light is around $200 second hand. Once I used the razor blade, I kind of levered it apart with a screwdriver. I managed to chip a small bit off the red part, so be careful.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • For once a good news  It needed to be adjusted by that one nut and it is ok  At least something was easy But thank you very much for help. But a small issue is now(gearbox) that when the car is stationary you can hear "clinking" from gearbox so some of the bearing is 100% not that happy... It goes away once you push clutch so it is 100% gearbox. Just if you know...what that bearing could be? It sounding like "spun bearing" but it is louder.
    • Yeah, that's fine**. But the numbers you came up with are just wrong. Try it for yourself. Put in any voltage from the possible range and see what result you get. You get nonsense. ** When I say "fine", I mean, it's still shit. The very simple linear formula (slope & intercept) is shit for a sensor with a non-linear response. This is the curve, from your data above. Look at the CURVE! It's only really linear between about 30 and 90 °C. And if you used only that range to define a curve, it would be great. But you would go more and more wrong as you went to higher temps. And that is why the slope & intercept found when you use 50 and 150 as the end points is so bad halfway between those points. The real curve is a long way below the linear curve which just zips straight between the end points, like this one. You could probably use the same slope and a lower intercept, to move that straight line down, and spread the error out. But you would 5-10°C off in a lot of places. You'd need to say what temperature range you really wanted to be most right - say, 100 to 130, and plop the line closest to teh real curve in that region, which would make it quite wrong down at the lower temperatures. Let me just say that HPTuners are not being realistic in only allowing for a simple linear curve. 
    • I feel I should re-iterate. The above picture is the only option available in the software and the blurb from HP Tuners I quoted earlier is the only way to add data to it and that's the description they offer as to how to figure it out. The only fields available is the blank box after (Input/ ) and the box right before = Output. Those are the only numbers that can be entered.
    • No, your formula is arse backwards. Mine is totally different to yours, and is the one I said was bang on at 50 and 150. I'll put your data into Excel (actually it already is, chart it and fit a linear fit to it, aiming to make it evenly wrong across the whole span. But not now. Other things to do first.
    • God damnit. The only option I actually have in the software is the one that is screenshotted. I am glad that I at least got it right... for those two points. Would it actually change anything if I chose/used 80C and 120C as the two points instead? My brain wants to imagine the formula put into HPtuners would be the same equation, otherwise none of this makes sense to me, unless: 1) The formula you put into VCM Scanner/HPTuners is always linear 2) The two points/input pairs are only arbitrary to choose (as the documentation implies) IF the actual scaling of the sensor is linear. then 3) If the scaling is not linear, the two points you choose matter a great deal, because the formula will draw a line between those two points only.
×
×
  • Create New...