LED tail light upgrade

[BryanT]

I have read post about LED upgrades.  I bought these bulbs off of Amazon and I could not believe how much brighter they are than the old incandescent bulbs. Not sure of their longevity. With lights on high beam on and car at idle with emergency flashers on headlamps would slightly pulse, they do not now. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0932SW27C?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

[shelbymann1970]

I have been running an LED kit on my 70 for years now. One of the first complete kits out by a Cougars Unlimited in NM. I think in conjunction with WCC they were made(?). Second pic is with my normal bulbs in my Mach1 for reference. MY set was bought around 2015 and still work great.   http://www.thuntek.net/cougars_unlimited/smparts.htm

[67 GT350]

I have found in the pinball world, there are cheap LEDs and more expensive LEDs. EVERYONE says stay away from the cheap stuff. (99.99999999999 % of the time will say China if it is cheap). The good ones, still might say China on them, but there are good factories and bad ones, but if you can find a manufacture that is not in China, buy them.

On the other half of this, I had my tail light out and the silver that surrounds the bulbs was in poor condition. What I did was bought some chrome tape for vent tubes for HVAC. It is like sticky aluminum foil, and stuck it and formed it to the tail light, installed regular bulbs, and now it is bright and looks correct.

I like the use of LEDs when possible, but finding quality bulbs.....?

[shelbymann1970]

I have found in the pinball world, there are cheap LEDs and more expensive LEDs. EVERYONE says stay away from the cheap stuff. (99.99999999999 % of the time will say China if it is cheap). The good ones, still might say China on them, but there are good factories and bad ones, but if you can find a manufacture that is not in China, buy them.

On the other half of this, I had my tail light out and the silver that surrounds the bulbs was in poor condition. What I did was bought some chrome tape for vent tubes for HVAC. It is like sticky aluminum foil, and stuck it and formed it to the tail light, installed regular bulbs, and now it is bright and looks correct.

I like the use of LEDs when possible, but finding quality bulbs.....?

Read my last post. Trust a company like Cougars unlimited and their warranty. 8 years so far in my car and nobody almost rear ending me in bright sunlight what I paid is worth it. Unsure? Talk to them or WCC.

[mikeh]

I used on of these kits for my 69 350:
https://www.customcarlight.com/categories/ford/shelby.html?sort=featured&page=1

Works great, far superior to the old technology. Not for concours but if you drive a lot these are a life saver. And requires no modifications to existing wiring.

fwiw

[shelbymann1970]

I used Cougars unlimited because of the kit(sequential box) and it all looks factory other than brighter bulbs. If someone just wants bulbs I'd recommend my friend Bill  who owns HIPO parts. He was at the forefront of LED lighting for classics after he left Ford Motor company and moved "up North" from Dearborn to Gaylord, Mi. Bill will set you up right and he is a car guy mostly 71-3 Mustangs and Boss 351s.  https://www.hipoparts.com/

[67 GT350]

I used Cougars unlimited because of the kit(sequential box) and it all looks factory other than brighter bulbs. If someone just wants bulbs I'd recommend my friend Bill  who owns HIPO parts. He was at the forefront of LED lighting for classics after he left Ford Motor company and moved "up North" from Dearborn to Gaylord, Mi. Bill will set you up right and he is a car guy mostly 71-3 Mustangs and Boss 351s.  https://www.hipoparts.com/

Do can you put a LED 1157 type bulb in a 67 tail light? With no problems? And without having to play with something else?

[BryanT]

I used Cougars unlimited because of the kit(sequential box) and it all looks factory other than brighter bulbs. If someone just wants bulbs I'd recommend my friend Bill  who owns HIPO parts. He was at the forefront of LED lighting for classics after he left Ford Motor company and moved "up North" from Dearborn to Gaylord, Mi. Bill will set you up right and he is a car guy mostly 71-3 Mustangs and Boss 351s.  https://www.hipoparts.com/

Do can you put a LED 1157 type bulb in a 67 tail light? With no problems? And without having to play with something else?

For me installing the LED 1157 in my 67 was easy. Had to move the spare tire a little. Flashers flash at normal speed. I did check out HIPO parts and they have a nice LED dash kit with a light blue tint.

[shelbymann1970]

I used Cougars unlimited because of the kit(sequential box) and it all looks factory other than brighter bulbs. If someone just wants bulbs I'd recommend my friend Bill  who owns HIPO parts. He was at the forefront of LED lighting for classics after he left Ford Motor company and moved "up North" from Dearborn to Gaylord, Mi. Bill will set you up right and he is a car guy mostly 71-3 Mustangs and Boss 351s.  https://www.hipoparts.com/

Do can you put a LED 1157 type bulb in a 67 tail light? With no problems? And without having to play with something else?

I used their kit(Cougar central) which included a Sequencer board that fit into my plastic box for a factory look and the electronic flasher. IIRC they spent some time finding what they considered the correct bulbs so the tail lights look just like factory bulbs in color but much brighter.  If you talk to Bill at HIPO parts I'm sure he can answer all your questions on this. A friend of mine who is best friends with Bill uses all his LEDs in his 69 Mustang including the dash ones. Why I used Cougar Central's kit I was tired of the regular sequencer boxes for 69-70 Shelbys failing and my tail lights were so dim that the sun shining on the back of the car people in some cases couldn't see my brake lights. When a young gal said she almost rear ended me many years ago because she couldn't see my brake lights right away I knew it was time for LEDs but had to wait for my kit to come out as it was in development and almost done.

[T-Bone68]

I used Cougars unlimited because of the kit(sequential box) and it all looks factory other than brighter bulbs. If someone just wants bulbs I'd recommend my friend Bill  who owns HIPO parts. He was at the forefront of LED lighting for classics after he left Ford Motor company and moved "up North" from Dearborn to Gaylord, Mi. Bill will set you up right and he is a car guy mostly 71-3 Mustangs and Boss 351s.  https://www.hipoparts.com/

Do can you put a LED 1157 type bulb in a 67 tail light? With no problems? And without having to play with something else?

I used the West Coast Classic Cougar red plasma 1157 6 pack in my 67 Shelby with no problems.  No changes in flashers needed so easily swappable back to regular bulbs.  You don't need the indicator relay.  I also can vouch for the HIPO dash cluster LEDs that worked great in another 67 Mustang as a drop in, but you do lose some of that dimmer functionality.