High Mount stop light... (? 1 of 3)

[zephram22]

Hey guys. I've been gone for a while and have a couple of questions. I'm breaking them up into three different posts in order to organize things a little better and keep each post to one topic.

(Question 1 of 3)

I know how to remove the center mounted stop lamp. But, I have two questions about this. 1) Does the high mount lamp use one bulb, or does it use multiple bulbs. So far I've been able to find only the lamp ID code in case I need to replace the lamp. I haven't really found much else about it.
2a) Does it use incandescent bulbs or leds? 2b) Would leds in the stop lamp make it put out brighter and much crisper light 2c) Would it be reasonably easy to convert it to leds without major modications? I'm pretty familiar with leds so I know that they can be tricky and can cause major problems if installed incorrectly (case is point, switch to an led brake lamp instead of incandesent on my lumina and blew the entire lighting system on the car because I put the thing in backwards. On my 'rora, I've installed leds in the bumper grills and connected them to the side marker lights. They act like turn signals now. I had some pretty tough times getting those to work so I'm somewhat cautious.

Sorry if this has already been covered. But, I'm very tired and am having trouble finding anything much related to my particual car.

Thanks Guys,
Shaun

[zephram22]

Just a bump to get it back to the top.

[Indy8]

I'm not sure of late models, but my '97 third brake light has two bulbs(left&right)and is accessed through the trunk. Reach up under the base of the rear glass and you should find holes or cutouts in the rear deck. Mine has the Bose subwoofer so there is a plastic panel I have to move out of the way. It's held on by two plastic rivets. LED WARNING! I spent HUNDREDS of dollars on converting the major exterior bulbs on my car using LEDtronics units. They are top quality(avg.$30ea)but man what a pain. One must understand that the electrical system of the car is designed to have a significant load on it. So the manufacturers selling point of "less strain on your electrical system" is not a good thing, which is why I had to install their 50 watt resistors all over my car. These become mini heaters that get very hot and cannot come into contact with any wires, rubber or plastic when they are mounted. The company rep was very polite and forwarded my request for tech assistance to one of their "engineers" who offered a couple of basic suggestions(things I had already tried)then I was on my own to try and get the signals to work without any further hacking of my car. The led's are not any brighter, regardless of what the company claims, the only benefit is instant on(no ramp-up time),cool burn(except for the resistors)and life span. They claim an extra 17ft. stopping distance from the person following you @ 60MPH because of the reaction time to the instant on. I did not blow any fuses or hurt the system. You won't have any problems with replacing the single-filiment bulbs like back-up and third brake. They will light when power is applied. Getting the parking lights and turn signals to work properly is the trick, even with both electronic flashers installed.

[zephram22]

Originally Posted by Indy8

I'm not sure of late models, but my '97 third brake light has two bulbs(left&right)and is accessed through the trunk. Reach up under the base of the rear glass and you should find holes or cutouts in the rear deck. Mine has the Bose subwoofer so there is a plastic panel I have to move out of the way. It's held on by two plastic rivets. LED WARNING! I spent HUNDREDS of dollars on converting the major exterior bulbs on my car using LEDtronics units. They are top quality(avg.$30ea)but man what a pain. One must understand that the electrical system of the car is designed to have a significant load on it. So the manufacturers selling point of "less strain on your electrical system" is not a good thing, which is why I had to install their 50 watt resistors all over my car. These become mini heaters that get very hot and cannot come into contact with any wires, rubber or plastic when they are mounted. The company rep was very polite and forwarded my request for tech assistance to one of their "engineers" who offered a couple of basic suggestions(things I had already tried)then I was on my own to try and get the signals to work without any further hacking of my car. The led's are not any brighter, regardless of what the company claims, the only benefit is instant on(no ramp-up time),cool burn(except for the resistors)and life span. They claim an extra 17ft. stopping distance from the person following you @ 60MPH because of the reaction time to the instant on. I did not blow any fuses or hurt the system. You won't have any problems with replacing the single-filiment bulbs like back-up and third brake. They will light when power is applied. Getting the parking lights and turn signals to work properly is the trick, even with both electronic flashers installed.

The 3rd brake light on the 2nd gens. are mounted on the headliner. It's easy to remove but I'd rather not do it just to check. I'm afraid I might damage the headliner or the light in some way. But, thanks for the help anyways.

Shaun