LED Bulbs
 

Has anyone tried the new Philips LED bulbs for their brake lights or reversing lights? They seem to be pretty bright, but I'm afraid they won't work with the bulb monitoring system.

You will get an error message. No LED bulb will keep this system happy, not even the so called CAN bus compatible type.

Your two options are to either add load resistors or modify the locking module that powers the lights.

There is a schematic of the bulb monitor circuity here:
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...module-134781/

It is an older model but the newer circuits are probably very similar.

According to JTIS, the year 2000 model retains the LCM, so you should be fine with the reversing lamps as they're not monitored.

To fit LEDs as stop or tail lights, as ccfulton suggests, you will need to disable the LCM sensing to stop the 'bulb fail rear' error being thrown. This can be achieved by grounding the red wire that connects between BT18-25 on the LCM and BT41-1 on the SLCM. Easier to do this on the LCM as the wiring is more accessible.

Hope this helps,
Mike

Silly question - why would anyone want to do it?

Not at all. Should trigger a sanity check..

Two reasons really; firstly the lower current draw. This puts less strain on the edge connectors (which are a known weak spot), and there's less likelihood of a flat battery if the sidelights are left on.

Secondly, LEDs, or at least the decent quality ones, are much less likely to die than incandescent lamps.

This mostly removes the need for a Jaguar Guardian Of The Rear Bulbs, who has become much more of a nuisance than any of his charges.... :icon_rant:

Just my :icon_twocents:

Mike

LED's are also supposed to be more responsive, e.g., affording slightly more time for the driver behind you to react when you brake. If it could mean the difference between a rear end hit and a near miss, I'm in. Still not quite ready to mess with the (S)LCM, though.

As an alternative, I wonder if the load resistor route would work on our cars, e.g., this combination...

382 Ultimate 92 LED Car Bulb - White or Amber Light
+
LED Resistor kit (pair) canbus osram

:icon_denk: