MK5 Golf GTI

All Things Mk5 => Mk5 General Area => Topic started by: WhiteGTI on December 22, 2008, 05:34:27 pm

Title: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: WhiteGTI on December 22, 2008, 05:34:27 pm
Anyone know how to do this, or know where a DIY guide can be found??

I quite fancy changing my speedo/rev counter etc etc lights from the purply blue to a nice crisp white (as on the S3 and the new GTI). Think it would look pretty damn good with the red needles also!

Ive done this mod on a previous car and it worked pretty well.

Any help would be appreciated ............. :smiley: :smiley: :happy2:
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 05:40:30 pm
ive done this mod on a previous car and it was a good mod.

but....i would guess that the LEDs in our clocks are SMDs surface mounted Diodes. these things are tiny.

it would probably involve completely stripping each circuit board (risky) and soldering each SMD on. and i bet theres a good 30 SMDs in there.

i would also guess it be dam near impossible to dissassemble the clocks
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: WhiteGTI on December 22, 2008, 05:41:06 pm
ive done this mod on a previous car and it was a good mod.

but....i would guess that the LEDs in our clocks are SMDs surface mounted Diodes. these things are tiny.

it would probably involve completely stripping each circuit board (risky) and soldering each SMD on. and i bet theres a good 30 SMDs in there.

i would also guess it be dam near impossible to dissassemble the clocks
:sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad: :sad:

Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 05:41:41 pm
i know, i do love the white in the MK6. and audis!
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 05:42:02 pm
i bet its not impossible but a MAJOR fook around
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: WhiteGTI on December 22, 2008, 05:43:58 pm
lol, to be honest i couldnt be bothered to do it if it was as you have explained above...!!

If anyone else knows of anything then do post! I hope its not as JPC has said, but it sounds pretty likely!
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 05:47:45 pm
i ever sum up the bravery to diss-assemble a set of clocks, ill let you know.

i will probably be retro-fitting highline so ill take my midline clocks apart.

all in the name of research! ;)
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: WhiteGTI on December 22, 2008, 05:54:13 pm
i ever sum up the bravery to diss-assemble a set of clocks, ill let you know.

i will probably be retro-fitting highline so ill take my midline clocks apart.

all in the name of research! ;)
:smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley:

Yeah it would definitely be good to know what type of bulb they are  / if its easy to disasemble the clocks! I wouldnt have a frigging clue where to start! :ashamed: :ashamed:

Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: RedRobin on December 22, 2008, 06:07:12 pm
....

I'm wondering if the Mk6 aka Mk5.5 instruments cluster will transfer successfully. It's not only clear white but also angled.

Personally I love the blue lighting but I find the speedo display atrocious, especially the kph. I use PogoAlert GPS speed display anyway and the rev counter is clear enough just by needle position rather than accurate readout.
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 07:14:03 pm
Red.... as in will the cluster be taken well?
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: RedRobin on December 22, 2008, 08:52:42 pm
Red.... as in will the cluster be taken well?

....Sorry but I don't understand your question :confused:

:smiley:
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 08:56:53 pm
forgive me if this turns into a ramble....i have become good at this recently

my question related to this

"I'm wondering if the Mk6 aka Mk5.5 instruments cluster will transfer successfully."

do you mean, you wonder how well the change from blue to white from mk5 to mk6 will be taken?

or did you mean:

you wonder if its possible to lift a mk6 cluster into a mk5?

if you meant the latter, i pretty sure the mk6 cluster is a completely different shape
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 08:57:42 pm
or as another option, have i just completely not got what your saying and had too long of a day at work? hehe
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: RedRobin on December 22, 2008, 09:15:16 pm
^^^^

Thanks for explaining, JPC.

I meant is it possible to fit a Mk6 cluster into a Mk5, but obviously not possible if a different shape.
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on December 22, 2008, 10:42:37 pm
its quite ok, you can call me jay too if you had forgotten my name! you might have miss-heard me as i dont talk properly because im from the north!!!haha!!

from my quick scan of the mk6 in the dealers the other week, i thought the shape of the front plastic shield seem to have a much more concave shape. and i seem to remember the "0,00" button being a lot bigger
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: WhiteGTI on February 07, 2009, 07:56:25 pm
Ok, so I've just cottoned-on that the R32 has gorgeous white lights with the blue dials, which I think looks amazing!

How hard would it be to transfer the lights from an R32 dial cluster to a GTI?

Would it require that the whole cluster to be transferred? (I'm guessing so  :sad:)

I'm really confused as to what it would require, lol!  :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused:
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: mortygttdi on February 07, 2009, 09:24:43 pm
If you can put a 3.6 passat engine into a mk2 golf and a audi TT dash into almost any thing else im sure its possible to put the mk6 cluster into a mk5 golf???

Darren
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: stealthwolf on February 07, 2009, 09:28:46 pm
i bet its not impossible but a MAJOR fook around

I've seen a post somewhere by somebody on this and it's a huge undertaking. You could fit something like 20 of these SMDs onto the surface of a 5p coin! (Think it was a 5p coin they used for scaling). Imagine trying to solder pin heads and you get the picture.
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: LaserBlue on February 07, 2009, 10:09:36 pm
i ever sum up the bravery to diss-assemble a set of clocks, ill let you know.

i will probably be retro-fitting highline so ill take my midline clocks apart.

all in the name of research! ;)

So JPC can you actually do this? i have a 55 plate gti, i did purchase a highline from a 2006 car around 14 months ago, anyhow tuck it to vw they said noway would it work as i dont have the highline wires and other stuff thats required :confused: :surprised: :scared:

i did ring awesomegti they said they can do it but would have to be on the vw premises as they need the secret codes becauise the imobilizer wont let me drive th car?.

i rang vw and after some very serious chat they said they would supply the codes but my warrenty would be void.

but now im outta warrenty i wouldnt mind doing it if someone has finally found the cure?  8)
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: vRStu on February 09, 2009, 11:56:05 am
As has been pointed out the lighting on the dash insert is indeed Surface Mount LED's.  You'd need to be very handy with a soldering iron to swap these fella's over.  Yes has been done, but you need to know what you're doing and have a decent solder station etc.

As for changing the dash insert, disregarding the physical differences, then the coding of the Immo etc can be done but you need to have the SKC (Secret Key Code).
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: cmdrfire on February 09, 2009, 06:39:15 pm
People have done this, as Stu says, changing of the SMD LEDs just requires a steady hand. I work with SMD components regularly at work and my uni project was done entirely in 'em ;) I once offered to benny to do a colour-changing effect on his speedo with hall effect sensors but he never took me up...
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: WhiteGTI on February 09, 2009, 06:42:55 pm
All - thanks for the input. At least I now know exactly what is involved. Its just a question of finding someone that can do it now! And, do a good job!

I never thought I'd get bored of the blue lights, and they were one of the many reasons why I was originally excited to get my car, however things change I guess!!  :smiley: :smiley:
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: cmdrfire on February 09, 2009, 06:59:08 pm
It may not be as simple as it seems (the voltage drop for blue LEDs IIRC is significantly different to that found with white LEDs so it may not just be a straight swap).
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: JPC on February 09, 2009, 09:39:36 pm
id expect very intricate circuits in there too, so as cmd says, the current they draw might be enough to throw up a code or worse. i do have a spare set of clocks, and a decent soldiering station, so i might have a go one day!
Title: Re: Replacement of blue speedo/rev counter etc lights..
Post by: WhiteGTI on February 11, 2009, 08:04:49 am
id expect very intricate circuits in there too, so as cmd says, the current they draw might be enough to throw up a code or worse. i do have a spare set of clocks, and a decent soldiering station, so i might have a go one day!


If you do, then let me know the outcome!  8) 8)