[joebaggg]

anyone know about resistiors? i have LED bulbs in my reverse lights and i want the error message gone. i located the wires i just need to know what resistors to connect to them and where exactly. any help would be awsome so i dont fry my electrical system trying to figure it out myself... here is a pic of the massive led bulb

[joebaggg]

can anyone help with this??

[Analog]

You first need to figure out how much current the OEM bulb draws. (use Power=Voltage * Current, i.e. for 5W bulb, 12 DC voltage, current output will be
417mA). Then find the spec on the LED bulb. Then you want to use the resistor to generate the "dummy" current, so the computer wont sense an open.
hope this help.

Originally Posted by joebaggg

anyone know about resistiors? i have LED bulbs in my reverse lights and i want the error message gone. i located the wires i just need to know what resistors to connect to them and where exactly. any help would be awsome so i dont fry my electrical system trying to figure it out myself... here is a pic of the massive led bulb

[mds82]

OHMS Law....

[ksfrogman]

in other words, I = E/R
or said another way, R =E/I

I is current in amps
E (electromotoive force) is the voltage (volts)
R is the resistance in ohms


aside: Power = I*E

[joebaggg]

wow ok. looks like i gotta do some homework. thanks guys

[Chesmu]

one of frgman's other posts included the wattage of the various bulbs in our cars. It's also in the owner's manual, I'm sure.

edit: found it....copied and pasted...

Ksfrogman once wrote:

A friend of mine is an electrician, and based on the fact that an e46 owner was using 6 ohm resistors on either side, 13V/6ohms = ~ 2 amps per bulb. Does this sound right? Is this the current rating of our corner bulbs? If so, P = I*E, so power = 2amps * 13V = 26 watts of heat from the resistor. That's a lot of heat. Incandescent bulbs are probably 50% efficient (from what I have been told), so a resistor generating 26 watts of heat would be like having a greater than 50 watt light bulb. That's hot.

My electrician friend suggested using a heat sink around the resistor, and mounting it somewhere that won't melt anything.

EDIT:
The owner's manual gives the following specs for the various bulbs:

Parking lamps, roadside parking lamps
5 watt bulb, W 5 W

Turn signals, front
21 watt bulb, PY 21 W or PY 21 W Silver Vision

Side-mounted turn signals
5 watt bulb, WY 5 W or WY 5 W-ST (Silver Top)

Tail lamps
21 watt bulbs, P 21 W

License plate lamp
5 watt bulb, C 5 W

[ejazbmw]

damn if this was back in my high school days i could've answered this in a sec...

[joebaggg]

yes i believe it says P 21 W located near the bulb. so does this give us the answer?

[joebaggg]

what was stated above about 13w and the resistor getting too hot then my 21 w usage will be way hotter?

[Chesmu]

Originally Posted by joebaggg

what was stated above about 13w and the resistor getting too hot then my 21 w usage will be way hotter?

the resistors used in the corner delete mod have heat sinks around them. You should be able to find something similar for your needs.

[joebaggg]

ok ill look for that. so what kind of resistors do i need and how many?
im sorry i couldnt make sense of all those calculations up there.

[Chesmu]

the front turn signals (same Wattage =21) required a 6 Ohm resistor for each side...so the rear lights should require the same resistor.
I think.

[joebaggg]

ok so a 21w 6ohm resistor with a heatshink for each side. how are these connected just put it somewhere on the positive wire in a safe place?

sorry about all the questions. i just dont wanna hurt my baby
i apreciate all the help

[Chesmu]

it should be similar to the connections used in replacing the front turn signals. One ned of the resistor is connected to the positive wire, adn one end is connected to the negative wire. the idea is the make the car think that there is still a bulb attached. Kwik connet the resistor to the positive and negative wires, and connect the LED bulb to those wires, as well.

[joebaggg]

ok thanks. i will try this tomorrow and let you know how it turns out.

[joebaggg]

i contacted the bulb maker. he says 6 ohm 50w is needed... does this sound right?

[ntpcrew13]

please take pics of the install. thanks.

[Chesmu]

Originally Posted by joebaggg

i contacted the bulb maker. he says 6 ohm 50w is needed... does this sound right?

sounds right. give it a twirl.

[joebaggg]

ok... no one arroud here has that kind of resistor. im ordering online and ill install when i get it. ill take pics as well. ill keep u guys posted