I was wondering how difficult it would be to chnage the lighting on the dashboard and especially the instrument cluster, from the amber. I would change them to possibly a white or blue, maybe even red LED, depending on how eye-friendly it is, just t try and modernise the cabin and have the stereo headunit matching, along with other new electronics. Has anyone ever done this and how difficult was it?

Its a relatively simple task.

If I recall correctly you just need to remove the gauge cluster, at the top is where the bulbs are located. Keep in mind the bulb are not what gives the color, there is a transparent piece of red plastic that gives the effect. You could just change the color of this to a blue, green, clear, what have you. I did this once with blue and it looked rather nice, but I couldn't change the BMW red it just looks so damn good, so I kept it. While I was at it I replaced all the bulbs to a slightly higher wattage for a brighter burn.

All the bulbs in the dash are done this way and can be changed as well.

IMO Red is the best and is a tradition with BMW

Red is used because it is easiest on the eyes during night driving. Much like the lighting in a submarine. In dark environments red is the easiet color for your eyes to transition too.

Thanks for the info guys. When you speak about red, do you mean the sort of amber colour that is stock or a red filter you had put in?

Much like the lighting in a submarine. In dark environments red is the easiet color for your eyes to transition too.

Is that why some brothels use red lighting??? off topic here :D

haha we have one out the back of my work its funny watchin people tryin to be inconspicuous when the ygo in and out. They see me watchin then put there heads down so funny.

Almost a year ago now I believe there was a post from a guy who changed his old bulbs to blue LEDs, but this was on Fred's site. He put in something like 9-12 of them. Really small ones, but it turned out pretty good. He said it wasn't that hard, just had to rewire and sodder some stuff, and I think he used hot glue to keep the LEDs in place.

He probably ended up banned for doing it. Fred is a bit of a nazi about keeping 320i's in era correct trim. Anyone who is deemed too 'radical' gets the ban stick and isn't welcomed back.

Anyone who is deemed too 'radical' gets the ban stick and isn't welcomed back.

:shifty :D

I think Fred was just jealous you tapped a fine ass back on the east coast Matt :)

I don't even bother to look at that site anymore, it always was the same questions over and over again with nothing new at all ever being posted. The threads that did have something different got changed pretty quick and the poster bashed for doing something to 'bastardize' our precious e21s.

My inst. light is blue, I changed it with LEDS and painted a peice plastice blue and took out the red ones (the ones at the top) and looks great!

I think Fred was just jealous you tapped a fine ass back on the east coast Matt :)


Huh?

Remember, you had an Avatar of that chicks ass?

Remember, you had an Avatar of that chicks ass?
:needpics

Yeah, I saw that blue lights thread, that an owner put in his instrument cluster.

He drilled into it and used a ton of blue leds. It looked cool, but a bit of a sacriledge. :embarrasm

So I am sticking with my stock red ones - hey if ita not broke why fix it? :stickoutt

I have blue in my GTI anyway.

Joe

Its a relatively simple task.

Keep in mind the bulb are not what gives the color, there is a transparent piece of red plastic that gives the effect. You could just change the color of this to a blue, green, clear, what have you. I did this once with blue and it looked rather nice,

Where did you find the blue plastic? - I'm searching for this.

Where did you find the blue plastic? - I'm searching for this.

I dont think you can find it, you would have to make it yourself, at least thats what I did.

I dont think you can find it, you would have to make it yourself, at least thats what I did.

OK. when I opened my speedo it looked like the black dial was attached to the orange plastic plate? I'm impressed that you pulled it off. I would'nt start on something like that. - I know that it's probably not the hardest thing to do, but something always seems to go wrong when I try something like this.

its VERY easy. if u want help and want to know how i did min, let me know.

its VERY easy. if u want help and want to know how i did min, let me know.

Thanks! I'll go buy some blue plastic tomorrow then. How thick a plate do I need?

You can use a very thin piece it really doesnt matter. I went to a hobby shop and they had all the candy colors you can imagine, they are used for airplanes and such.

You can aso buy a thin piece of Lexan and then either spray it with your color of candy paint or you can buy a sheet of the candy "celophane" stuff they use to wrap the skeletons of model airplanes...

You can use a very thin piece it really doesnt matter. I went to a hobby shop and they had all the candy colors you can imagine, they are used for airplanes and such.

You can aso buy a thin piece of Lexan and then either spray it with your color of candy paint or you can buy a sheet of the candy "celophane" stuff they use to wrap the skeletons of model airplanes...


Thanks. just to give it a little bit extra strong light, do you use blue bulbs also? or would that give it an almost black look?

You use the existing bulbs, I bet you will never find any color bulbs like the ones we have... It would be cool if yo ucould prove me wrong but i dought this.

You could always use the autometer lights. They have bulbs with little colored condoms on them. Then just take the red plastic out. I think it's autometer. could be another company. Damn, the more I think about it, the more I think you could just slip them over the existing lights. Not my cup of tea, but to each his own I guess.

looks sweet
<img src="http://members.shaw.ca/bmw328/e36/night2.jpg">

the part that says ur milage can't be changed.. the lights behind that are white, and they go thru a orange/red plastic piece..

im not 100% sure how this guy did it.. but anyways..

the dash belongd to a user i believe on dtmpower a long time ago, i think he died or something..

not sure

-nathan

That's an E21 instrument cluster? It looks different from mine, possibly because it's euro?

I may be wrong but it looks like an e30 cluster.

And it has the tach that I remeber my freinds e30 325i had,

Its certainly very cool, and how did they get the digital odomenter.
I have never seen that on the 325i.

thanks

joe

e36 or e46....it has a digital odo at the bottom, e30 still had analog like the e21. Hurts my eyes though....but that's me and I like red/amber.

looks sweet
<img src="http://members.shaw.ca/bmw328/e36/night2.jpg">

the part that says ur milage can't be changed.. the lights behind that are white, and they go thru a orange/red plastic piece..

im not 100% sure how this guy did it.. but anyways..

the dash belongd to a user i believe on dtmpower a long time ago, i think he died or something..

not sure

-nathan

THAT is the look that I'm going for! I want to keep my cluster black during the day - this means that I'm not interrested in those white speedo's that turn black at night with at strong blue light through the numbers - allthough I'm going for this look at night.

Yesterday I talked about buying some blue plactic to replace the original orange... But I looked at my cluster last night and saw that it was not just the numbers and the pins that was orange, but the hole dial was a little bit orange, with at much stronger orange in the numbers. - It would look bad if the cluster does the same with blue...

Does anyone know where I can buy a cluster that looks like this day and night?

As I said....that is either an e36 or e46 ERA car. The odo in the bottom of the speedo is digital, something the e30 didn't even have.

You could paint you needles red or orange, that might cure some of that. Then the lights just light up the stuff....

As I said....that is either an e36 or e46 ERA car. The odo in the bottom of the speedo is digital, something the e30 didn't even have.

You could paint you needles red or orange, that might cure some of that. Then the lights just light up the stuff....

I don't know if you have noticed it, but I have an E36.. I'm just posting to this topic because i'm interested in a colored cluster.

Sorry....thought we were still talking about doing this on an e21...hadn't noticed that you specifically don't have one. Sorry.....

Sorry....thought we were still talking about doing this on an e21...hadn't noticed that you specifically don't have one. Sorry.....

No problem... :) I could just have made you aware of it from the start. my bad.

....or I coulda read what car you have....

Either way though, you seem to still need to figure out how deal with the plastic 'lense' that is used to make your odo red/amber. The post above says it is a clear light back there, but I dunno how bright it is. You might want to try posting that pic in the e36 area and see what they say. Someone in there has GOT to have taken one of those things apart a few times already...

....or I coulda read what car you have....

Either way though, you seem to still need to figure out how deal with the plastic 'lense' that is used to make your odo red/amber. The post above says it is a clear light back there, but I dunno how bright it is. You might want to try posting that pic in the e36 area and see what they say. Someone in there has GOT to have taken one of those things apart a few times already...

Yeah, you are right. thanks. btw. I have taken mine apart one time and the bulbs are white. It's just the plactic that makes it orange. Problem is that people are telling me just to replace the orange plate, but that will leave me with a blue cluster light allover with a bit stronger blue light in the numbers. I'm hoping for the black plastic-piece of the dial to keep the blue light out, so it only light up the numbers. (as in the picture)

But I'll poste the picture in the E36 forum.

Thanks anyway.