CLK led fog lights

[cobra2222]

Hi all,

I've got an 05 209 CLK and I'm trying to install led fog lights and have tried 3 different ones and can't seem to get passed the computer check, every one I install the car makes it blink every second and complains to change the bulb on the dash, all the LEDs I purchased were canbus ones.. Anything I can do?

 

[Ted]

Leave the original ones in circuit and locate them where they won't heat anything up.

 

[GLK]

Alternatively, leave the fog lights to be just the fog lights, and add LED DRLs - that's what I did, and am very pleased with the result.
Keeping the "follow me home" function working as intended, was important for me too.

 

[rifiki]

Had same problem with LED reversing lights, gave up and put originals back in.

 

[ash59fifty-uk]

You need to wire some resistors in of some sort. Google search will show how and where it needs to go, basically fooling the computer to think nothing has changed in terms of power to the lights

 

[Ted]

2.7 ohm 100 watt should do it if you want to do it that way.
They will get very hot

 

[cobra2222]

Thanks, if anyone has any recommendations of a LED supplier other than autobulbsdirect they have had success with please let me know.

 

[ash59fifty-uk]

Thanks, if anyone has any recommendations of a LED supplier other than autobulbsdirect they have had success with please let me know.

Best person to ask is GLK ^^^^^

 

[GLK]

Thanks Ash, but I'm not sure that I am - I have tried numerous LED bulbs, from very expensive to unbelievably cheap, and have now concluded that, it is not worth the bother to try to replace monitored bulbs with LED ones - best I got was perhaps six months before the error popped up (and it was the cheapest ones, COB type). The worst were supposedly error-free and pricey, turn signal ones, that immediately resulted in very rapid flashing, and were removed within an hour.

DIY solutions, like adding a resistor (which is what those so-called "CANbus compatible" LED are anyway), run very hot and I feel just too much of a safety compromise, plus they eventually come up with error anyway, and have a very limited lifespan.

Internal lights, on the other hand, are not monitored, and work brilliantly with cheap, cool (as in low temperature, due to no resistors added) COB bulbs.

Same for DIY aftermarket DRLs, as in my thread linked above - work perfectly and flexible enough to be adapted to an individual taste.

If OP is absolutely set on modifying fog lights to LED, whilst retaining fog light function, rather than adding a separate set of LED DRLs - there are more expensive options: HELA fog lights, about £200 or so IIRC, or Brabus fog lights, around £500, give or take. I didn't look into these options closely enough to comment though.

 

[richard]

2.7 ohm 100 watt should do it if you want to do it that way.
They will get very hot

Yes, and thus you need to fix them properly to the chassis cross member to act as a heat-sink. They'll get hotter than the bulbs since they are generating any light and using same amount of current as the bulbs in order not to trip the bulb fail sensor.

 

[Ted]

Over two years and no problems or error messages.


View attachment 56063

 

[GLK]

Over two years and no problems or error messages.

But these are not wired as fog lights, are they? As you can't have fogs on, without as least sidelights - so they would have a separate on/off switch and wiring, and as such are most probably not monitored?

 

[Ted]

They could have been wired as fog lights, and there would have been no errors.
They are the original foglights rewired as drls - switching the foglights in (say, to switch on the rear foglight) doesn't result in an error.