2003 Thunderbird - Can the dash lights be replace with LED's?

[cliffcostello]

I'm new to owning this 2003 Thunderbird. Some of my previous vehicles, I've been able to swap out the old incandescent light bulbs with LEDs to brighten up the instrument gauges. Does anyone know if that is possible for the 2003 Ford Thunderbird instrument cluster? I've seen conflicting info, but have heard it is a sealed unit and bulbs can not be replaced. Does anyone know, and if so, has anyone replaced bulbs with LEDs?

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[HKS]

I'm new to owning this 2003 Thunderbird. Some of my previous vehicles, I've been able to swap out the old incandescent light bulbs with LEDs to brighten up the instrument gauges. Does anyone know if that is possible for the 2003 Ford Thunderbird instrument cluster? I've seen conflicting info, but have heard it is a sealed unit and bulbs can not be replaced. Does anyone know, and if so, has anyone replaced bulbs with LEDs?

They are yellow LEDs. Dim in twilight but OK at night.
You would need to cut the plastic sealed housing open and unsolder the LEDs. I would like to have blue LEDs.
Way too much work.
HKS

 

[cliffcostello]

They are yellow LEDs. Dim in twilight but OK at night.
You would need to cut the plastic sealed housing open and unsolder the LEDs. I would like to have blue LEDs.
Way too much work.
HKS

Ahhhh ... that's what I was afraid of. I have always disliked the older Ford dash and instrument lighting (the old dim green) and was surprised that even with the white gauges, they are tough to see at night ... Too bad. I love what improvements the LEDs have made in other vehicles. I even replaced the old 194 dash bulbs in my 1970 El Camino SS with bright LEDs and WOW!!! Who needs modern gauges. They make a complete transformation to a 1960's/70's dash!!!

 

[BluByeU]

Short answer is Yes you can.
Long answer is Holly Cow! It is a lot of work with some very small LEDs soldered in place, not pressed into a socket.

A side note on operation, the dash lights operate on a voltage controlled by a day light sensor. As the out side light gets darker the dash lights get brighter bringing out the T-Bird blue color of the indicator pointers. This brightness can be controlled by the dash roller type controller to tone down or brighten it up as the outside darkens.
I myself enjoy this feature & really don't enjoy a very bright dash.

 

[Big Al]

IF anyone reading this and has an 05, I would be hesitant. The 05 has lights that light the dash as gold at night yet the turquoise needles still stay the right color..... Gold for 50th Ann. of course.

 

[BluByeU]

Nice touch but you are not entirely correct. The 03-05 dash lighting is all the same, including the Lincoln LS.

 

[Big Al]

So... 03, and 04 digits light up as gold at night too?

 

[cliffcostello]

So... 03, and 04 digits light up as gold at night too?

My look Yellow or "Gold" in color at night ... I find them pretty hard to read at night.

 

[BluByeU]

Big Al, Yep 03, 04 & 05 all the same.
I find the instrument cluster easy to read not harsh & distracting at all. But that said I need to mention my 05 is a daily driver, had it since late 04, our only car in & out of it all the time so I guess it is all based on what one gets use to.

 

[stevedaphotoman]

I wasn't sure if some of my bulbs were out or not.. They are not as bright as modern displays.. If I look at all my instruments such as my climent controls and such, they all look like they are all working and the same brightness.. If I was driving all night the brightness on my 2002 would be just about right.. Not that distracting on dark unlit roads.. But on a bright city lit street, they seem dim.. I do have the brightness control all the way up.. It my be age related too.. Not the bulbs but me..

 

[SeanPwnery]

Well darn... I was looking into this too because as others have said, low-light conditions make the cluster a bit dim, but in actual night-time darkness, they are indeed fine.

I was hoping to change them out to blue eventually =/

 

[Papa bear]

My very first T Bird (2002) purchased in September, so it was put to bed early (October) to protect it from our unforgiving Canadian winter! I am the 2nd owner (95 Kms) and am wondering that if other owners have replaced front front suspension rubber bushings, where they may have purchased same? Can hardly wait for Spring!!

 

[stevedaphotoman]

Well darn... I was looking into this too because as others have said, low-light conditions make the cluster a bit dim, but in actual night-time darkness, they are indeed fine.

I was hoping to change them out to blue eventually =/

I saw a video on line where they were replace the bulbs to LED in the instrument cluster in a Lincoln LS.. Was the link on this thread? Well after watching it, i realized it was pretty involved, way beyond my expertise limits and I could do some damage so I placed that out of my mind and off my t-bird dream list.. Don’t they say it’s always better to keep it as original as possible...

 

[stevedaphotoman]

My very first T Bird (2002) purchased in September, so it was put to bed early (October) to protect it from our unforgiving Canadian winter! I am the 2nd owner (95 Kms) and am wondering that if other owners have replaced front front suspension rubber bushings, where they may have purchased same? Can hardly wait for Spring!!

I also,have a 2002 with 18k miles... My front bussings are hanging in there but last summe I had major surgery on the rear end.. The Ford dealer took care of all the bushings and links in the rear end... Was not cheap.. About $1,700 US .. welcome to the club.. Mine is under cover in the garage waiting also for spring.. In NY that could be about April or May..

 

[HKS]

I'm new to owning this 2003 Thunderbird. Some of my previous vehicles, I've been able to swap out the old incandescent light bulbs with LEDs to brighten up the instrument gauges. Does anyone know if that is possible for the 2003 Ford Thunderbird instrument cluster? I've seen conflicting info, but have heard it is a sealed unit and bulbs can not be replaced. Does anyone know, and if so, has anyone replaced bulbs with LEDs?

The instrument lights are yellow LEDs. Intrument module is sealed.
I wish I had Blue LEDs but cutting open a sealed instrument module and unsoldering all the chip LEDs is too much trouble.

 

[HKS]

Updates info. The 2002 instrument cluster has incandescent bulbs. A common type. The sealed part is where all the key security is. I have a friend that has pulled the instrument panel out and Ford lists bulb part numbers. So, when Ford says not serviceable, it does not include incandescent bulb replacement.

I will edit when I find the part numbers.
Looks like the PWM signal is sent to LEDs and incandescent bulbs. So LED replacements might work.

The instrument panel dimmer switch allows the brightness level of backlights and displays to be adjusted dependent upon the headlamp switch position and the instrument panel dimmer switch position. The instrument panel dimmer switch sends a signal to the instrument cluster which then sends a backlighting intensity and dimming curve command over the standard corporate protocol (SCP) link to the front electronic module (FEM), the audio unit, and the dual automatic temperature control (DATC) module. The FEM then sends a pulse width modulated (PWM) dimming signal to the instrument cluster, the dimmable LEDs, and the dimmable incandescents.

 

[Frankie the Fink]

Updates info. The 2002 instrument cluster has incandescent bulbs. A common type. The sealed part is where all the key security is. I have a friend that has pulled the instrument panel out and Ford lists bulb part numbers. So, when Ford says not serviceable, it does not include incandescent bulb replacement.

I will edit when I find the part numbers.
Looks like the PWM signal is sent to LEDs and incandescent bulbs. So LED replacements might work.

The instrument panel dimmer switch allows the brightness level of backlights and displays to be adjusted dependent upon the headlamp switch position and the instrument panel dimmer switch position. The instrument panel dimmer switch sends a signal to the instrument cluster which then sends a backlighting intensity and dimming curve command over the standard corporate protocol (SCP) link to the front electronic module (FEM), the audio unit, and the dual automatic temperature control (DATC) module. The FEM then sends a pulse width modulated (PWM) dimming signal to the instrument cluster, the dimmable LEDs, and the dimmable incandescents.

Interesting, my '02 dash lights are on ALL the time ANY time the ignition key is on, even with the dash light switch in the OFF position....the instrument (temp/speedo/tach/fuel) lights stay at a constant brightness regardless of the dimmer wheel position, yet the odometer panel and climate control panel dim with the wheel... My console shifter light never comes on (I just changed the P37 bulb, the socket gets no voltage). The car is off to the Ford dealer Wed morning for a diagnostic run. If your described signal flow is accurate, I think the FEM is failing in that last part in sending the PWM to the dimmable cluster LEDs/bulbs...

 

[edward301]

Here is a photo of the back of an 02 T Bird dash.

 

[Frankie the Fink]

At least 7 of those bulbs look like typical "twist in" sockets with replaceable bulbs. I would love to know the numbers so I could get on superbrightLEDs.com and order LED equivalents and never worry about them again.

 

[HKS]

Me too,
I only want the Tachometer and Speedometer lights brighter.
Other lights get very little use and would last forever anyway.
HKS