Writeup For Fixing Bulb out Warning with LED Tails

**needforsleep** · 03-19-2006 07:51 PM

This writeup will show you how to remove the bulb out warning in the cluster if you have purchased KaTuning's LED Tail lamps (sold by TMTuning.com). Not sure if Topauto.de's tails are the same, but I suspect they are.

The skill level is about a 5/10 with soldering ability needed.
10 = Master tech
5 = Average Garage monkey
1 = 10yr old son's ability

The equipment you'll need is:
+Wire Cutters
+Pliers
+Soldering Iron
+Solder
+18-20 Guage wire (12 inches total)
+2 100ohm-150ohm 5W-10W ceramic coated resistors
+Heat shrink (various sizes)
+4 squeeze connectors

Start off by cutting four 3" wires. Strip only one end of each wire to expose about 1/2" of wire. Then trim the resistors so that only about 1/2" of the wire coming out of each end of the resistor is showing. Next wrap the wires around the ends of each resistor.

Next solder the wires to the resistors.

Next cut some heatshrink and use the base of the soldering iron to heat up the heatshrink.

Next cut some larger heatshrink and shrink it over the Resistor.

Next use the pliers to clamp the wire squeeze connectors onto the BLACK and GREEN/WhiteStripe wire on the LED Tail Lamp. The Black wire is the ground wire and the Green/WhiteStripe wire leads to the LED's for the running light. The wires are the same for each tail lamp.

Now you're done.

Here's what the Running Lights look like installed on the car with NO Bulb Out Error.

With Brake Lights on:

With Hazards on:

**HP18** · 03-19-2006 07:55 PM

great writeup!..maybe i'll get those leds now hah..

do you have any close up shots of them..i heard the weather strip sticks out..i would like to see it up close

**Vortec4800** · 03-19-2006 07:58 PM

Yeah, what are your overall opinions of the tails? I really like them...

Oh and this is totally unrelated, but what color did you paint your car Mr Sick?

**HP18** · 03-19-2006 08:02 PM

Lambo Blue (Gallardo)

**Vortec4800** · 03-19-2006 08:08 PM

Sweet, I couldn't tell if it was a color from a different car company, or if it was like Nogaro or something. Looks a little deeper than Nogaro though.

**needforsleep** · 03-19-2006 08:13 PM

I trimmed the weather stripping off the sides. I'm actually going to strip it clean and put newer, lower profile weather stripping on them. I don't have any close ups now they are painted and trimmed.

Here's a picture of the tail lamps as they came from TMTuning.com:

**needforsleep** · 03-19-2006 08:17 PM

I forgot I had these.
Here's some pics with the weather stripping trimmed and painted.

**HP18** · 03-19-2006 08:21 PM

You painted the black part?

**vinny.dtw** · 03-19-2006 08:48 PM

no the stock headlights have the red on the top part of the headlight. While the LED's dont have it. So he painted it read to match and made it look like oem rear lights? Do u get what i mean sicka4...kinda bad description. but if u look at the top pics and bottom pics ull see the difference

**Vortec4800** · 03-19-2006 08:53 PM

Yeah I see the difference. They do look better painted like that. Hope the paint doesn't fade...

**redhair1129** · 03-19-2006 08:57 PM

did you spray paint them from the outside, or saprated them and spray paint from inside? nice work by the way!!

**HP18** · 03-19-2006 08:59 PM

Originally posted by Vinny05.dtw
no the stock headlights have the red on the top part of the headlight. While the LED's dont have it. So he painted it read to match and made it look like oem rear lights? Do u get what i mean sicka4...kinda bad description. but if u look at the top pics and bottom pics ull see the difference

ya i got it..i actually sent that reply after the first post of the pics..but az lags lol

**needforsleep** · 03-19-2006 09:11 PM

Originally posted by redhair1129
did you spray paint them from the outside, or saprated them and spray paint from inside? nice work by the way!!

They were painted from the outside.
I'm thinking about re-doing the paint job.
I don't think I have the patience to use a heat gun to remove the plastic lens to paint it from the inside, but that would be the best option.

I used 3 coats of Testor's candy apple red and 2 coats of Testors's clear high gloss. Then I put 3 coats of DupliColor's Clear Acrylic gloss. That final coat of gloss gave it a matte look, which is fine over the non-red areas, but I think the Red areas look better glossy. I might see if a body shop can paint a better high gloss on them if I ever strip the paint and re-do it.

**martini** · 03-19-2006 09:24 PM

i wouldnt have painted the red part....

**Vortec4800** · 03-19-2006 09:33 PM

I think if I got these tails I'd have my body shop tint the entire things, kind of what mine are like now. Not totally black, just a nice light tint.

**needforsleep** · 03-19-2006 09:41 PM

Originally posted by martini
i wouldnt have painted the red part....

I painted the clear coat on the red parts. I didn't put any red paint over the red parts.

I have Nightshades tint too. I thought about just tinting them. I might give that a shot too.

**RASTA4** · 03-20-2006 07:25 AM

great write-up, looks pretty good especially when lit

**Tgr_Clw** · 03-20-2006 07:39 AM

Looks great.

**dmg312** · 03-20-2006 07:43 AM

I was going to do a GB on these. Now that the problem is fixed I might try again.

BTW they sell them smoked.

**Vortec4800** · 03-20-2006 10:13 AM

I actually think the red ones smoked would look better, that way they would still have a bit of red in them and you wouldn't have the bright reflector on the bottom.

**Hamotee** · 03-20-2006 10:30 AM

How bright are the leds compared to normal tails?

**Frankvr6** · 12-03-2006 11:12 PM

IMO FK product are good quality. Great write up.

**A4TUNE** · 12-04-2006 12:10 AM

this thread is kind of old, but good writeup nonetheless.

**doublezero30** · 04-27-2008 07:10 PM

i dont get what im supposed to do with the red clamps? i see one has a red and a black wire in one side, but i dont see anything on the otherside? and same with the one with the green/wht stripe wire and the red wire.

**vinny.dtw** · 04-27-2008 07:11 PM

Red clamps? you mean the wire splicers/squeeze connectors??

**doublezero30** · 04-27-2008 07:28 PM

oh is that all they are? so really you just splice the red/black wire together and the green with white line with the red? dont really NEED the red block thingys?

**232power** · 05-16-2008 01:14 PM

Here is a day shot .. I love the way it looks even if the top is clear..

**SICCHEF1.8t** · 05-18-2008 02:46 PM

Awesome write-up...took $20, and 30 minutes and works like a charm

**SeKKeY** · 05-18-2008 02:51 PM

have you had any LEDs blow out?

**audi_buff** · 02-24-2010 11:46 PM

Can the resistors be installed between the tail light and the body of the car? Puts it in contact with paint and plastic, which websites that sell these things say to avoid...

**fore_rings** · 03-17-2011 08:07 PM

I installed my resistors and doubled-up the amount of heat shrink tubing so that this could not burn through the plasic or wires...Seems to not get hot enough to do that...Great write-up for this...Works perfectly...The tap connectors work perfectly for this application.

**network233** · 05-30-2011 04:39 PM

This is an awesome write up but would anyone happen to know what color wires one would connect the resistor on a C5? i know brown is the ground.

**Darwood** · 03-28-2012 10:32 AM

Old thread, I know, but I had a few questions. Did adding these resistors affect the brightness at all? Do the side marker lights at the bottom outer corners work now? And does the whole running light stay lit when the rear fog light is on?

**phattystylez** · 04-23-2012 09:49 PM

This worked and finally fixed the problem I have been having. Having said that, I would like to add:

ADDITIONAL AND IMPORTANT NOTES:
In most cases, the wire is black. In my case with DEPO lights, it is Black/White.
To solve the blinking LED issue in the middle, make sure you are following the wire coming from the LOWER MIDDLE. I emphasize on this because the color of the wire may also vary. Instead of Green/White, mine was solid green.
When you connect the resistor, be sure to connect one end of the wire to the respective wire closest to the pin connector for both the LED Wires. In other words, you are putting the resistor in place after all the group of spliced wires that were installed by the manufacturer.