Interior LED lights

So I decided to upgrade the regular filament bulbs in the dome light and map lights of my 2003 Tacoma 4x4 (Extra cab), but the darn things won't light up properly. I know it has something to do with the integration relay and the fact that the LED bulbs don't draw as much current at the regular bulbs so the relay/control circuit doesn't sense there's a bulb there. I also know it is probably tied to the auto-dimming feature that works in conjunction with the electric door locks. The question is, does anyone figured out a way to bypass the setup without re-wiring the whole cab? I don't have any problem doing that, but if there's an easier way, I'm all ears.

Thanks in advance.

 

Look through this thread. OTOball figures out the 2003 models in the midst of it. You just solder the right size resistor on. Different resistors for diffrent years, btw. Quick and easy! http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/1s...me-light-led-bulb-actually-works-right-3.html

 

Solder resistors. I think I have some extras that have the correct ohm/resistance rating. The tiny ones get HOT. These are a little larger and don't get pushed to their limits as much.

 

I used some replacement bulbs from 'superbrightleds.com' and they work great. Much more light, and direct replacements for the stock bulbs. No modifications necessary. The part number is "3022-NW4". I put one in for the dome, and 2 in for the map lights.

FYI - unlike the stock 'filament-type' bulbs, these are somewhat directional. I needed to rotate them a bit to obtain the best illumination.

 

01-04's need resistors.....early model tacos will accept the LEDs without needing resistors.

 

The 01-04 need an extra resistor because of the dimming circuit that is not in the earlier trucks. I gave up on reverse engineering the entire circuit to modify it to work with the lower current draw of an LED and just soldered high wattage resistors to the LED I used in the dome.

 

See this thread