Faulty Tail Light Housing

[tims210]

I've fallen victim to the melted tail light housing. The heat from the bulb did a number on it and now it won't accept a new replacement bulb. I was told to upgrade to a more heat tolerant housing that is white in color instead of the black one I have. It's supposed to be from a Land Rover Defender. I'm not familiar with what year and model it should be so I'm asking if anyone has any information so I can order one. The bulb is a dual filament.

Thanks

[spdbrake]

This thread has some great info on LED replacements and modding to a metal heat resistant socket.
taillights only work on rare occasiion

[jeffnolan]

My headlight receptacles melted. I replaced them with ceramic units and LED headlights.

[tims210]

I'm not looking to go LED at this point.

[spdbrake]

taillights only work on rare occasiion

Roger on the LED conversion. I thought "Widows Son" solution with the metal sockets quite innovative though rather than re-visiting the problem again down the road with the plastic sockets.

[123redtail]

goto any parts store get universal socket assembly part # 08547 . cut old one( socket part only) out expoxy new one in. I did it about $5 for part 15 minutes. looks factory if you tape edges with blue tape and wipe expoexy clean with a rag with wd40 on it.

[123redtail]

go to ebay ,search 08547 socket. I did mine 2 years ago always have worked perfect since.

[6t8stang]

I can't think of a good reason NOT to go LED at this point. You have to replace the socket anyway...you can cut the old socket and solder in an LED cluster directly to the harness now.

Not only do they run cooler, you won't need to worry about an intermittent socket, they draw less power, they're MUCH brighter, etc...

[jeffnolan]

my experience with this electrical system is that any time I can replace something and draw fewer amps, it’s a good thing. I’m pretty sure my harness was put together on Friday, at 4:45pm. The connections are pretty sloppy and I’ve had a lot of melted components and wires on factory pieces, like the headlamp sockets. I’m LED all around now and aside from missing the dome of a traditional headlight and how that compliments the pontoon fender, I think it’s a solid upgrade.

[joyridin']

I just replaced the old Lucas tail lights in mine a few weeks ago with LED lights from United Pacific. Fit perfectly and took about an hour to install. Numerous people have told me that my old lights weren't working, but they were just dim in the bright sun. The LED's look identical and are bright avoiding me having to put in a 3rd brake light so people could see me stop.

Well worth the $100.

[tims210]

I took the advice from the other thread and bought a universal replacement socket. Modified the old housing. Works fine.

As far as the LED's go, are they just plug and play or does some type of load need to be applied in the circuit?

[jeffnolan]

plug-and-play.

[BDR_Boy]

Jeffnolan... I'm with you on the idea of shedding as much load as possible. I was going to follow your lead and go with LED bulbs. I wanted to research headlights but, in the interim, thought I would replace the smaller marker/brake/turn signal bulbs. I just got back from the auto parts store & the guy there said the single elements would function properly, but the dual elements would not.

Is he misinformed? You're certain they're plug & play?

[joyridin']

They were plug-n-play for me. Hooked up the wires and everything worked fine. Most of the new ones have a load resistor built in to compensate. That is assuming you buy the whole light. If you are just trying to replace the bulb, that might be an issue.

Also, if you are thinking about headlights, you have to have a housing that is totally clear like most new cars have. It cannot have lines in it like a sealed beam or like many Hella replacement housings. If you have housings with lines cut/molded in them, Phillips make a bulb (can't remember name) that mimics LED bulbs and is extremely bright when used with relays.

[BDR_Boy]

Thanks for the clarification... that's exactly what I was hoping to do... and now I see how & why that won't work.

[Kobura]

I have had failures of the brake light sockets and the hydraulic brake light switch. I replaced the melted plastic sockets with metal sockets keeping the incandescent bulbs and replaced the hydraulic switch with a mechanical brake pedal switch because I couldn't access the hydraulic switch easily to remove and replace. I find the incandescent bulbs draw enough power to cause my voltage meter to drop noticeably enough to verify that they are operating. Same with the turn signal lights. So, my wife is no longer called upon to participate in brake light checks.