I have. It's not very easy. The manual suggests that you remove the bumper fascia. I ended up just removing the screws on the bottom without fully removing bumper. Stuck my hands in between the black plastic shielding and the bumper and did my work there. It took a bit of time because the light bulb was securely fastened...had to get some pliers to help me twist the bulbs out. Ended up brusing and scraping my arms because it clamped down on my arms so much. Looks a lot nicer with the white LED...since everything else is already white (I also switched up license plate light)
Backup light LED replacement
Has anyone replaced their backup light to LED? Is it easy to do?
1 - 20 of 38 Posts
What bulbs did you put in, and how does the brightness and pattern compare to stock?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FTDJ9FA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
That's what I used for the backup light LED.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GZGW47U/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This one was for the license plate light. I had to get these lower profile ones in order for them to fit properly.
For pictures of both:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0slyiniiwy65na0/AADkWu0edyv8B-3kc7RkaDgGa?dl=0
Let me know if that link doesn't work.
Definitely increased brightness on the backup lamp and license plate. From a backup camera standpoint, it's negligible difference. It might be a little brighter, but the quality of the backup camera isn't very high, so the white light just gets saturated a bit. The big difference really is when you remote start your car or remote unlock your car, you personally will notice how much brighter those lights are...and how uniform they are with the rest of the cars lighting (door handles, front LEDs, etc)
That's what I used for the backup light LED.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GZGW47U/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This one was for the license plate light. I had to get these lower profile ones in order for them to fit properly.
For pictures of both:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0slyiniiwy65na0/AADkWu0edyv8B-3kc7RkaDgGa?dl=0
Let me know if that link doesn't work.
Definitely increased brightness on the backup lamp and license plate. From a backup camera standpoint, it's negligible difference. It might be a little brighter, but the quality of the backup camera isn't very high, so the white light just gets saturated a bit. The big difference really is when you remote start your car or remote unlock your car, you personally will notice how much brighter those lights are...and how uniform they are with the rest of the cars lighting (door handles, front LEDs, etc)
Those look great! Now I got to go see how bad the stock lights look on my car! I love all the other lights on the car, but I haven't paid any attention to the license plate or reverse lights
chillaxtodamax,
What did you have to do to get the license plate light covers off to switch out the bulbs? Do they just pop off?
What did you have to do to get the license plate light covers off to switch out the bulbs? Do they just pop off?
There are tabs on both of the housings. push in the tabs and pull down and then twist the bulb out....Very simple to do.
I bought them the reverse bulbs and they stay on all the time.http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FTDJ9FA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
That's what I used for the backup light LED.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GZGW47U/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This one was for the license plate light. I had to get these lower profile ones in order for them to fit properly.
For pictures of both:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0slyiniiwy65na0/AADkWu0edyv8B-3kc7RkaDgGa?dl=0
Let me know if that link doesn't work.
Definitely increased brightness on the backup lamp and license plate. From a backup camera standpoint, it's negligible difference. It might be a little brighter, but the quality of the backup camera isn't very high, so the white light just gets saturated a bit. The big difference really is when you remote start your car or remote unlock your car, you personally will notice how much brighter those lights are...and how uniform they are with the rest of the cars lighting (door handles, front LEDs, etc)
Chill, I'm planning on upgrading my backup lights to LEDs this weekend and noticed that aside from the 4 hex screws, there are 2 fasteners on either side of the bottom of the bumper. They don't seem to be standard push pin fasteners. Did you have to remove these to get to the backup lamp? If so, how did you remove them?I have. It's not very easy. The manual suggests that you remove the bumper fascia. I ended up just removing the screws on the bottom without fully removing bumper. Stuck my hands in between the black plastic shielding and the bumper and did my work there. It took a bit of time because the light bulb was securely fastened...had to get some pliers to help me twist the bulbs out. Ended up brusing and scraping my arms because it clamped down on my arms so much. Looks a lot nicer with the white LED...since everything else is already white (I also switched up license plate light)
You don't need to remove these to replace your back up bulbs. I replaced mine a few months back and only removed the 4ea. screws holding the heatChill, I'm planning on upgrading my backup lights to LEDs this weekend and noticed that aside from the 4 hex screws, there are 2 fasteners on either side of the bottom of the bumper. They don't seem to be standard push pin fasteners. Did you have to remove these to get to the backup lamp? If so, how did you remove them?
shield to the lower edge of the bumper.
Perfect. Thanks!You don't need to remove these to replace your back up bulbs. I replaced mine a few months back and only removed the 4ea. screws holding the heat
shield to the lower edge of the bumper.
Be sure to put some type of spacer blocks between the shield and bumper to keep your arm from getting scraped up. The bumper willPerfect. Thanks!
bite down on your hand and arm.
Great idea. Thanks again RichBe sure to put some type of spacer blocks between the shield and bumper to keep your arm from getting scraped up. The bumper will
bite down on your hand and arm.
I tried and gave up doing this. The dealership charged me $130 in labor to do it! But let me say the results are worth it! It looks so much better!
Let me reiterate that you do NOT have to remove the two rivets (they look like body plugs) on the lower body panel. But that's all I learned...
Let me reiterate that you do NOT have to remove the two rivets (they look like body plugs) on the lower body panel. But that's all I learned...
I agree the results are amazing!I tried and gave up doing this. The dealership charged me $130 in labor to do it! But let me say the results are worth it! It looks so much better!
Let me reiterate that you do NOT have to remove the two rivets (they look like body plugs) on the lower body panel. But that's all I learned...
After learning that the last two fasteners on either side of the lower bumper panel did not need to be removed, I attempted it myself a few weeks ago and had no issues. One poster suggested placing spacing blocks to keep the panels from squeezing down on your arm and allowing you to reach the lamp sockets easier. That made all the difference.
I used two 15SMD 15W Canbus LED lamps rated at 800 Lumens each, so they are very bright and look great!
If you have a spoiler, it's not as easy as you think. I mine to the dealer in Alexandria VA... it had to be heated with a heat gun to get the lense out. Well, they heated it too much and warped the spoiler, then gouged and scratched the paint on the truck when they replaced the spoiler. So, they had to repaint the entire trunk! Argh! Not at all happy with the dorks in the body shop and the service consultant told me he would take a 30% hit in pay for someone else's screw up. Makes absolutely no business sense.
piece of cake i guess, i simply bought them from ebay, make sure you get the codes right, i bought this:
2pcs Xenon White 10-SMD-5730 T10 168 2825 LED Bulbs For Car License Plate Lights
only a bit too bright, compared to the ones on benz and lexus, which are cool light, but it might be a downside too...
however colour is PURE white, and looks 100% awesome !...
2pcs Xenon White 10-SMD-5730 T10 168 2825 LED Bulbs For Car License Plate Lights
only a bit too bright, compared to the ones on benz and lexus, which are cool light, but it might be a downside too...
however colour is PURE white, and looks 100% awesome !...
I decided to tackle the backup lights this weekend now that the temps in Phoenix are finally below 100--not by much though. What a bitch of a job. I did wedge a block of wood between the bumper and the heat shield but those bulb sockets are really tough to turn. I finally rotated them with a small adjustable wrench. The results are great and I wonder why GM decided to stick with conventional bulbs in there. My gen II came with LED backup lamps. Also, what an idiotic process to replace the bulbs !
I just swapped out the reverse lights in my 2017 CTS. Use the same bulbs recommended by chillaxtodamax. As mentioned, the sockets are really tight and cannot be removed with just your fingertips. I used a 6" Crescent wrench and they came out and went back in with no problems. The license plate bulbs will be delivered tomorrow. Those should be a no-brainer...
Randy
Randy
I just swapped out the reverse lights in my 2017 CTS. Used the same bulbs recommended by chillaxtodamax. As mentioned, the sockets are really tight and cannot be removed with just your fingertips. I used a 6" Crescent wrench and they came out and went back in with no problems. The license plate bulbs will be delivered tomorrow. Those should be a no-brainer...
Randy
Randy
1 - 20 of 38 Posts
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