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Astra K rear turn indicator LED modification (no error)

33K views 27 replies 13 participants last post by  vaskion 
#1 ·
Hi fellow Astra K owners, this is my first time posting here after lurking for 3 months. I have acquired a Holden Astra K RS hatchback with 1.6T and equivalent SRI VX trim in New Zealand on January 2019. I have immediately noticed that although the car has beautiful LED DRL and integrated turn signal at front, the rear turn signals are traditional bulbs and doesn't flash in sync with the front ones, which is a bit irritating.

I have thus started the quest of converting the rear turn signals to LED to match the front. After reading many forum posts and foraging on eBay, Aliexpress for a couple of weeks, I have finally put together a solution to this conversion and successfully put it into my car today. I want to share this knowledge with all the Astra K lovers here.

Let's look at the results first:

Firstly, this mod is completely reversible. There is no drilling, cutting and soldering of anything comes with the car. It can be reverted in minute's notice.

Secondly, the heat output by the load resistor is mild. Although it starts to get warm after a couple of minutes continuous use of the indicators, it is not in contact with anything plastic and the closest reflector surface stays completely cold.

If you are comfortable performing very simple soldering and can use double sided tape. Please go head and read it.

1. Getting the bulbs:
I have bought the 2x bulbs from here: https://www.ebay.com/itm/2PCS-x-Amber-T15-3030-24SMD-Error-Free-LED-Bulbs-For-Car-Backup-Reverse-Lights/153140079907
The shape provides 360 degrees illumination. It has integrated rectifier so polarity doesn't matter. It also has proper constant current LED driving circuit so the LED elements doesn't get degraded with use.
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2. Take the rear light assembly out and apart.
If you don't know how, search on the forum or google. Be careful not to break the plastic clamps. There are 3 very tight clamps and just pry them open by hand. Don't use a screw driver since it exerts to much force and can damage them.
On the assembly there is P21W brake light and W16W turn signal light. We will remove them both for ease of handling.
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3. Strengthen the LED module
Mix some 2 part glue and run them along all the edges and seams of the LED module and wait for them to set for at least 30min. This makes sure the light assembly is structurally strong and doesn't get damaged by vibration.
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4. Get the resistors:
I have bought the 2x resistors from here:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/0-01-5k-Ohm-Watt-Shell-Power-Aluminum-Housed-Case-Wirewound-25-50-100W-Resistor/183603453219
Make sure to select 15R as Ohm and 25W as Power. I have calculated this value to be fairly conservative. The LED themselves consumes 4W of power by measurement. The resistor only needs to dissipate 12W of power for the Canbus bulb out detecting circuit to pass.
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5. Treat the LED contact points
The LED's contact points are a bit thin, so the LED will mount loosely and might dislodge themselves by driving vibrations. We want a very secure mod, so put a layer of solder on the contact pins. A very thin layer is enough (0.3mm) for a very firm mount.
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6. Prepare resistor contact pins
Find 4x coated copper wires of 0.8mm thick and 20 - 25mm long. The best ones can be found from electronic component legs, like resistors, capacitors. Make a slight bent on one end as in the picture below.
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7. Solder wires to resistor
Solder wires to both ends of the resistor. Use ample of solder and make sure to heat them properly. Cold solder points can crack when exposed to repeated mechanical stress, like driving. If you don't know how to solder, watch some youtube tutorials and practice before you do this on the actual car mod.
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8. Get the mounting tape
I use 3M Scotch outdoor double sided mounting tape. You can use something similar. The stronger the glue the better.
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9. Attach the mounting tape to resistors
Make sure the tape covers the entire bottom side to prevent the metal casing of the resistor to make contact with light power wires and short them.
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10. Bend the wires to shape
Make 90 degress bend on the wires and the length of mounting tape. When you sit the resistor on the table, the bent part sits flat with the table.
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To be continued in next post, as 10 images are the maximum allowed.
 

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