how to install license plate leds?

Have the tow package and reaching under the bumper is not possible. How do I switch out the stock license plate bulbs for leds?

 

Oh it's possible. Only took me about seven attempts on three different occasions and about 65% of the skin off of my knuckles. Fun times... put any small children and or modest adults inside the house before you get started... Good luck and welcome to TW.

 

Okay, I'm curious... what is the purpose?

Maybe I'm a paranoid azzhat but I'm unsure why I'd want to spend money making my license plate easier for others to read?

 

LEDs are longer lasting, and some like the crisp white light.

diff strokes

 

Totally personal preference. Incandescent bulbs look yellow and dingy IMO. That's why i did it. Well, that and the fact that i am not a bank robber or a drug runner so i could really care less if my plate is easier to read.

 

Personal preference is a fine reason.

I'm not a bank robber, drug runner, or involved in another other sort of criminal activity. I do speed pretty regularly, but you'll get rear-ended here if you don't.
I just didn't see any benefit to me to going to trouble or expense so I asked. No need for any wadded up panties.

 

Wow brother.... just a little humor, try to relax. Absolutely no wadded up panties anywhere over here. Also, making statements about myself is in no way making accusations about you.... Even if you yourself claim to be a "paranoid azzhat"

 

Touche!

 

It's possible because I done it on mine with the tow package, but it was ROUGH! I hardly got them twisted out and back in

 

i did my interior with LED's and they are 100% better... they were a pain to get lined up but they are worth it.

 

The license plate lights was an absolute pain for me too. The first time I tried I thought there was no way I was going to grab them from the back. I pulled out the manual to confirm that was the proper way to replace them. I had my wife try to reach back there. That didn't work either. I ended up laying on my back and just kept trying. I got the first one out, put the led in and tested it. When I went to reinstall it somehow the new led fell into the housing. Omg what a pain it was to get that out. I ended up rolling up some scotch shipping tape and fished it out by sticking it to bulb and slowly pulling it out. They look great installed. Be ready for a fight and some battle wounds on your hand.

Here's the before and after. You can tell a big difference in the color temperature in person. The picture doesn't do it justice.

 

I also have the tow package - lay on your back and look directly up so you can see what you are dealing with. Squeeze your hand up and twist counter clockwise a quarter turn to remove socket from the housing. Once it's out the Bulb pulls straight out of the socket. Reinstalling the socket is difficult because it is hard to get leverage. I used one hand directly on it to apply inward pressure and then reached with my other hand to twist.


It was not easy. It realllly helped me to get a good light shining up there to see what you doing like I said and get on your back and reach up and mash your hands up there. It was not easy.

One other thing you can do is once the socket is out, you can get the clear housing out that the socket locks into by pinching the two tabs in and pushing toward the hitch. At that point it's simple - just pull the socket and bulb through that hole and Clip it into the housing and snap the housing back in. I figured that out that hard way as I dropped my bulb into that housing on accident like @Brandonhd did.

 

They came with my interior leds that I bought from Amazon for $15 shipped. The crisp white light of the interior looks so much better that I want the same outside as well. Plus I have factory led bed lights andbit contrasts hard with the yellow factory plate lights.

 

I need to upgrade exterior lights like this because when I have retrofitted headlights with pure white light and led fogs that match, LED bed light and you have yellow colored license plate lights....big no no lol

 

Just did my LED license plate lights over the weekend and I was able to do them in a few minutes. As others have mentioned, unclip each side of the light housing beneath the bumper, push it out, swap the bulbs, and click them back in. I used a long flathead screwdriver for the job, along with lying on my back on a car roller and a headlamp. The socket did not have to be out. Definitely not as hard as I thought, but thanks to others who suggested the uncliping of the housing. And yes, I do also have the tow package.

 

Because that's what he wants to do....

 

Do you have bear paws for hands? I have bigger than average hands ( and other things) but I changed mine out in just a few minutes. Press the little release with a small driver and they pull right out.

 

No sh!t, of course he did it because he wanted to...

I asked *why* do it because I was curious and wanted to know.

Thanks for your opinion though, but you're two months late to the party...

 

"No sh!t, of course he did it because he wanted to..."

Another immature member who thinks they "know it all" added to my ignore list. Man, we sure have many here! Millennials I bet.

 

you folks do realize the whole housing pops out from the bumper also

it was mentioned in the original led thread.


https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/led-interior-lights.396266/page-13#post-11492871