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Well I have played around with a lot of the lights in the car.  I couldn't leave the lights in the cargo area untouched.  I did replace the 194 bulbs with LEDs and it was brighter, however I wasn't happy with the way it looked.  I don't like how Ford doesn't have a reflector behind the light.  Half the light is wasted.  Also, with the way the light is inserted behind the plastic lens, only half of the lens is lit up.  Little things like that annoy me.  So naturally I had to find a way to hack and modify things.

 

Firstly I found small LED cob strips on ebay. 

I don't know much about them, and info from the seller was minimal, and the info that was provided was incorrect.  I did get 10 for about $8, shipped.  After I received them, my testing indicated there are 9 LEDs, most likely in 3 groups of 3.   If I run them at 60mA, they make little heat and can be used as is.  If I run them higher, a heatsink is needed.  This project, I used 2 cob strips running at 150mA.

IMG_20150714_183556_zpsbcs3y3jo.jpg

 

I had a lot of spare aluminum blocks from work, so I used silver epoxy to glue up a bunch, and then used the same silver epoxy to glue the LED cob strips onto the aluminum blocks.  Running the LEDs at 150mA for hours would result in the aluminum blocks to be warm to the touch.

IMG_20150719_105120_zpsbccdzef9.jpg

 

 

They lit up quite nicely.

IMG_20150720_103415_zpsiju3ul7c.jpg

 

I then used Goop to glue some protoboard to the back.  I mounted a 150mA constant current regulator from ON Semiconductor.  I fashioned a wedge connector with some leftover protoboard.  This will plug straight into the connector where the 194 bulb pushed into.  I used Goop to also attach the whole unit to the plastic lens.

IMG_20150721_161723_zpsetgjz49e.jpg

 

IMG_20150721_161714_zpsxz4n32zr.jpg

 

I did cover all exposed connections with either epoxy or liquid electrical tape.

The result is a brighter cargo area with lights that look like they are fully lit.  Unfortunately I don't have a picture of them lit up, but they look aweseome. 

Edited by notquitesane
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