J.A.'s Toyota 4Runner Sport Edition
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Interior LED Lighting, 6000k color temperature:
Get current product pricing here...
  • Craftsman #82334 Autoranging,
    11 Function Digital Multimeter
  • V-Leds 4Runner Led Bulbs

  • VLeds.com full interior led kit
    for the 4th Generation Toyota 4Runner
    As an Amazon Associate,
    I earn from qualifying purchases
     
    Please note: This is not my current setup. I have switched from 6000k to 5000k interior leds for a slightly warmer effect.

    Concept.
    This page details the changing of my 4Runner's factory interior courtesy lighting from standard automotive incandescent light bulbs to Led (light emitting diode) type lighting. This was done primarily to assist with significantly increasing overall night time visibility and secondarily to change the color of the factory incandescent bulbs warm yellowish cast to a whiter and cooler color range. This modification was done in conjunction with two other mods, the Maplight Mod and the Footwell Light Mod, and when all three are completed the results are a drastic improvement over the factory courtesy lighting setup. The results are brighter light output, better color, a reduction of dark shadowed areas, and lower power consumption.
     
    Testing.
    I will detail what I know and have learned about each particular Leds specifications. I feel that it is important to be informed of and understand this info in order make the right choice for a particular application. You will find that there are a vast array of 12V Led replacement automotive light bulbs on the market from a wide variety of companies. For example, for a common incandescent #194 5W bulb there can be literally over 100 different Led replacement choices from various companies, in various color ranges, running at various power levels, providing vastly different light output, and of course at various price points.
     
    Unfortunately not many retailers make these specs available or provide consistent information on their websites. In fact upon contacting a few of the companies myself, they simply either don't know, don't care to find out, or don't want to share that type of info. This makes it hard to comparison shop amongst various competing products. Specs such as "high power", "HID color", "cool white", "super bright", etc., really are meaningless without tested numbers to substantiate the claim. As with any product, you have to take the manufacturers or retailers advertised information with a grain of salt, do your own research beforehand, and follow it up with independent testing.
     
    While I am unable to test the Color Temperature or Luminous Flux ratings due to not having access to that type of testing equipment, I can confirm the advertised Watts (power) and Amps (current draw). To do this one can use a simple electrical multimeter which can test the current draw and supply voltages. Multimeters cannot calculate wattage, but you can back into the number by multiplying the supply voltage by the amperage draw of the electrical load.
     
    Before we discuss how to do this testing, let's discuss why. My goal is to add four high power Led footwell lights to the existing factory dome light circuit. This is being done, rather than running a new independent circuit, to tap into that particular circuits factory features (on with remote/key/door operation, off automatically after 30 minutes). No additional relays or fuses will be added to keep the wiring simple and neat. As long as we don't exceed the factory amperage draw for the dome light circuit, these additional relays and fuses will not be necessary at all and things will still be completely safe.
     
    I am changing out all the factory incandescent interior courtesy lighting to Leds at the same time as performing the footwell lighting mod. Since Leds run at a lower power consumption per lumen than incandescent lights do, the savings in watts seen by switching the interior courtesy lighting over to Leds can be used for the footwell lights in a safe and effective manor.
     
    To measure the DC supply voltage of the vehicle's battery, set the meter to volts, and connect the electrical multimeter in parallel with the battery.

    Measuring DC voltage

    Measuring battery voltage
    Vehicle off

    Measuring battery voltage
    Vehicle on

    To measure the DC current draw of an electrical load such as an automotive light bulb weather it be incandescent or Led, connect the multimeter, operating as an ammeter in this case, in series (in-line) with the circuit so that all electrons flowing through the circuit have to go through the meter.
     
    When a multimeter is placed in ammeter mode, it acts like a simple length of wire, with very little resistance from one test probe to the other. Consequently, an ammeter will act as a short circuit if placed in parallel (across the terminals of) a substantial source of voltage such as the vehicle's battery. So be very sure to switch the mode from amps back to volts before connecting it in line (parallel) with the battery as if you don't you will create a short circuit. Hopefully your meter has a fuse, which will blow in that situation. If your meter does not have a fuse you will either damage your meter or your vehicle's electrical system.

    Measuring DC current

    Measuring current draw (amperage)
    of the factory dome light

    Referencing the pics above, let's go thru a basic example checking the wattage of the factory festoon 31mm dome lights (DE3175) which are known to be rated at 8.0 watts. The wattage of any bulb can be calculated by taking the supply voltage (V=12.5) multiplying that by the current draw or amperage (A=0.62) which gives a wattage of W=7.8 watts which is right about on target.
     
    The meter being used in these tests is a Craftsman #82170 30 Range, 10 Function Digital Multimeter. It is accurate to 0.5% when reading DC voltage and 1.5% to 2.0% when reading DC current.
     

     
    Interior dome and cargo area dome lights:
     
    Factory Bulb: DE3175
    Factory Wattage: 8.0 watts
    Factory Amperage: 620 milliamps
     
    Led Replacement Bulb: VLeds 6-Led circuit board, 16mmx16mm flat back
    Part no.: DIY_6_HP_W
    Led Type: 6 high power M-SMT
    Advertised Kelvin color rating: 6,000k White
    Advertised Wattage: 3.0 watts
    Recommended forward DC Voltage operating range: 11.5-14.5 volts
    Actual metered Amperage: 160.5 milliamps
    Actual calculated Wattage at 12.5V (W=V*(MA/1000)): 2.0 watts
    Approximate Luminous Flux: 120 Lumens
     
    Comments:
    At first, like many others in the 4Runner community, I was interested in Oznium's 1.5" x 5.0" 14 SMT Ultra Thin LED Dome Light, to replace each of the two 4Runner's dome lights. The consensus from various 4Runner owners is that these are indeed very bright. The 1.5" x 5.0" size will fill the entire dome light housing as well, providing a nice full look. Additionally I prefer the fact that they are available in standard white color (rather than just 3,300k warm or 6,000k cool white options) which they approximate to be around a 5,000k Kelvin color rating.
     
    My dislikes with the Oznium light, and the reason I did not choose them, is that during communications with them they could not provide any information regarding luminous flux ratings or amperage draw. Again, I understand they are "super bright", but I am not looking for the brightest leds out there. Having the brightest dome light may be great for someone who is not doing the Maplight and Footwell mods. But I am looking to have an overall uniform and consistently lit interior, hence the choice of lower lumen levels from more lighted areas. Finally, they are priced at double what the V-Leds.com 6-Led board costs.
     
    I was first made aware of the 6-Led boards while in communications with V-Leds.com during my quest for the ideal footwell light. They suggested a new product, their newly acquired 3.0 watt 6-Led boards, that were not yet even listed on their website. Due to their ultra small size and high light output, I decided to give them a try as footwell lights. When they turned out to be too bright for that application, and while I was still undecided on the Oznium domes, I gave these 6-Led boards a try as dome lights. They turned out to be ideal for that application. Their 120 lumen output lights up the rear seating area perfectly. They match the brightness of my two maplights which are rated at 60 lumens each (same 120 total lumens), as well as my footwell lights which consist of two 60 lumens lights up front and two 60 lumens lights in the rear again totalling the same 120 lumens for each area.
     
    Installing the V-Leds 6-Led board is simple. They come with five different socket adapters and the supplied DE3175 adapter fits perfectly in the 4Runner dome lamp housing. The boards do not come with a self-adhesive backing. To secure the board itself to the housing, I used double sided thermal transfer adhesive tape made for computer chipsets and RAM heatsinks. The tape is very thin and holds quite well. It can be found on Ebay for a very low cost. It comes shipped as 1" wide strips by 6" in length and can be cut to any size you need. This worked out great as the tape does need to be very thin as there is not much room between the mounted 6mm thick led board and the installed dome light lens.

    Factory Incandescent DE3175 Bulb

    DE3175 amperage
    0.62 amps (620 milliamps)

    6-Led board

    Includes 5 multi sockets base adapters
    for 194, 3175, 211, 57 and 1156 type bulbs

    6-Led board amperage
    160.5 milliamps

    Dome light lens removal

    Led Dome light installed

    Incandescent dome and cargo area dome lights
    1 second exposure

    Led dome and cargo area dome lights
    1 second exposure


     
    Map lights:
     
    Factory Bulb: W5W
    Factory Wattage: 5.0 watts
    Factory Amperage: 360 milliamps
     
    Led Replacement Bulb: VLeds High Power 3 M-SMT Led 1.5W HID White 194
    Part no.: 194_3HP_W. This has been discontinued, I recommend 194_4_RB_W_6K as a replacement.
    Led Type: 3 high power M-SMT
    Advertised Kelvin color rating: 6,000k White
    Advertised Wattage: 1.5 watts
    Recommended forward DC Voltage operating range: 11.5-14.5 volts
    Actual metered Amperage: 75.0 milliamps
    Actual calculated Wattage at 12.5V (W=V*(MA/1000)): 0.9 watts
    Approximate Luminous Flux: 60 Lumens
     
    Comments:
    Choosing the maplight Led replacement bulbs required particular consideration. First of all, due to performing the maplight mod, these lights will now automatically turn on with every instance of entering and exiting the vehicle. For consistency, their light color and brightness would need to match that of the dome lights since they will be in operation at the same time. Fortunately, nearly all of the V-Leds.com white led replacement bulbs appear to be rated at the same 6,000k Kelvin color. So sticking with this one supplier for all the replacement light for this project would be a given from here on out. In terms of the maplights brightness, I was looking for them to match the dome lights 120 lumens. Since there are two maplights, 60 lumens each would be perfect. I specifically chose a down firing only Led bulb, rather than one with radial (side mounted) firing Leds, to reduce the glare that may affect the drivers night time vision when used as a traditional maplight in complete darkness while driving. The V-Leds 194_3HP_W #194 replacement bulb running at 3watts and 60 lumens each would be a perfect choice.
     
    Since this is a wedge type replacement bulb, installation is no different than with a standard incandescent factory bulb.
     

    Factory Incandescent W5W Bulb

    W5W amperage
    0.36 amps (360 milliamps)

    Led #194 1.5W Bulb

    Led #194 1.5W amperage
    75ma

    Map light lens removal

    Map light installed

    Incandescent Map lights
    1 second exposure

    Led Map lights
    1 second exposure


     
    Door lights:
     
    Factory Bulb: #194
    Factory Wattage: 3.8 watts
    Factory Amperage: 250 milliamps
     
    Led Replacement Bulb: VLeds High Power 4 M-SMT Led 2.0W HID White 194
    Part no.: 194_4HP_W. This has been discontinued, I recommend 194_4_RB_W_6K as a replacement.
    Led Type: 4 high power M-SMT
    Advertised Kelvin color rating: 6,000k White
    Advertised Wattage: 2.0 watts
    Recommended forward DC Voltage operating range: 11.5-14.5 volts
    Actual metered Amperage: 115.0 milliamps
    Actual calculated Wattage at 12.5V (W=V*(MA/1000)): 1.4 watts
    Approximate Luminous Flux: 80 Lumens
     
    Comments:
    The factory door lights put out virtually no light at all onto the ground. They are basically there as marker lights to warn oncoming vehicles your door is open. I intended to find a high power wedge replacement Led that would put out much more light and hopefully act as puddle lamps if at all possible, lighting up the ground in the area of entering and exiting the vehicle. Their position and aiming is not exactly well suited for this usage but that was the hope at least. There is no reflector inside the door light housings and a down firing only type Led would again be the best choice here. V-Leds highest power offering in the wedge base #194 surface mount technology (SMT) type bulb is their 2watt, 80 lumen 194_4HP_W #194 bulb. I ordered four, one for each door and am very satisfied with the choice. As can be seen by the pics, light does indeed reach and illuminate the ground in the area of entering and exiting the vehicle.
     
    Is the light output the same as having true dedicated puddle lights, probably not. But these give off enough light to put my thoughts going thru the trouble of wiring up thin strip lighting into the bottom of each door, and tapping into the factory lighted running board circuit ('LP' pin 6 white with red stripe on the Body ECU).
     
    To install, I prefer to pop out the entire door light housing rather than just the lens. It just comes out easier then trying to get only the lens itself off. Once the housing is out of the door, the lens can be removed much easier. Since this is a wedge type replacement bulb, installation of the bulb itself is no different than with a standard incandescent factory bulb.

    Factory Incandescent #194 Bulb

    Incandescent #194 amperage
    0.25 amps (250 milliamps)

    Led #194 2.0W Bulb

    Led #194 2.0W Bulb

    Led #194 2.0W amperage
    115ma

    Door light lens removal

    Door light lens removal

    Door light installed

    Incandescent Door lights
    1 second exposure

    Led Door lights
    1 second exposure


     
    Vanity lights:
     
    Factory Bulb: 1+1/8" long double end
    Factory Wattage: 2.0 watts
    Factory Amperage: 167.3 milliamps
     
    Led Replacement Bulb: VLeds High Power 3 SMT Led HID White Vanity
    Part no.: VANITY_W
    Led Type: 3 high power SMT
    Advertised Kelvin color rating: 6,000k White
    Advertised Wattage: 0.5 watts
    Recommended forward DC Voltage operating range: 11.5-14.5 volts
    Actual metered Amperage: 17.0 milliamps
    Actual calculated Wattage at 12.5V (W=V*(MA/1000)): 0.2 watts
    Approximate Luminous Flux: 20 Lumens
     
    Comments:
    Nothing special here as there are not many variations at all to choose from when it comes to the vanity replacement bulb. This 3 SMT Led bulb appears to run at almost a quarter watt and the color matches all the other lights we are replacing as part of this project.
     
    Installation again is relatively simple. Just take your time removing the vanity light lens as the tabs holding it in place appear to be fragile in nature. Getting the lens out with a small screwdriver is simple, but putting it back in place is a little more worrisome. When trying to remove the factory bulb, be sure to remove the dome light fuse before using any type of metallic tool to pry it out. Otherwise you risk creating a short circuit and blowing the fuse at a minimum.

    Factory Incandescent Vanity Bulb

    Incandescent Vanity amperage
    0.17 amps

    Incandescent Vanity milliamps
    167.3ma

    Led Vanity Bulb

    Led Vanity amperage
    17ma

    Vanity light lens removal

    Vanity light installed

    Incandescent Vanity light
    1/2 second exposure

    Led Vanity light
    1/2 second exposure


     
    Glove Box:
     
    Factory Bulb: #74
    Factory Wattage: 1.2 watts
    Factory Amperage: 82.8 milliamps
     
    Led Replacement Bulb: VLeds High Power 1 M-SMT Led 0.5W HID White 74
    Part no.: 74_HP_W
    Led Type: 1 high power M-SMT
    Advertised Kelvin color rating: 6,000k White
    Advertised Wattage: 0.5 watts
    Recommended forward DC Voltage operating range: 11.5-14.5 volts
    Actual metered Amperage: 17.5 milliamps
    Actual calculated Wattage at 12.5V (W=V*(MA/1000)): 0.2 watts
    Approximate Luminous Flux: 20 Lumens
     
    Comments:
    This #74 bulb, although small and often overlooked, has quite a few replacement choices. Again, high power SMT technology was desired first and foremost along with a 6,000k color rating. Looking at the factory bulb housing for this glove box light shows that a down firing only type of bulb would again be best. V-Leds half watt 74_HP_W #74 replacement Led appears to be best offering out there.
     
    Installation is quite tricky, but once you find the release tab and pry it open with a small screwdriver, the light housing will drop down. Then, as with the vanity bulbs, it is difficult to get your fingers in there to pull out the bulb. Using a piece of electrical tape, sticky side towards the bulb, to assist with getting some grip on it appears to help quite a bit in removal efforts.
     
    This Led light itself is very bright, more so than I thought it would be. The limiting factor with useful light output is the factory design and location of the light housing itself. With the upper storage box in the open position, and all the owners manuals and such in this upper compartment, little if any light can make it's way to the lower and much larger main storage area. In the future and as time permits, I will have to add additional Led lights and the wiring that will be required to make them work, to this main glove box compartment.
     
    One should note that this bulb is not part of the dome light circuit. It is part of the Taillight and Illumination circuit. To operate this light, the glove box needs to be open and the headlamp switch needs to be in any on position (parking,low,high). Yes the 2006+ 4Runners have a glove box door operated light switch. The 2003 and 2004 models do not, not sure about 2005. So anytime your 03-04 parking headlights are on so is the glove box light.

    Factory Incandescent #74 Bulb

    #74 amperage
    0.08 amps

    Incandescent #74 milliamps
    82.8ma

    Led #74 Bulb

    Led #74 Bulb

    Led #74 amperage
    17.5ma

    Incandescent Glove Box light
    upper compartment closed
    2 second exposure

    Led Glove Box light
    upper compartment closed
    1 second exposure

    Led Glove Box light
    upper compartment open
    1 second exposure


     
    Total Power Consumption:
     
    The 2 dome lights, 2 map lights, 4 door lights and 2 vanity lights I changed over to Leds are all on the dome light circuit. So is the ignition key cylinder light, but that is already a Led type light as equipped from the factory. For Limited model owners, the running board (step) lights are on this circuit too. The glove box light, which I changed to Led as well, is not on this circuit, it is on the Taillight and Illumination circuit.
     
    I took measurements of the dome light circuit's current draw with the above mentioned lights (2 dome lights, 2 map lights, 4 door lights and 2 vanity lights) ON both before and after the conversion to Leds. As you can see in the pics below, the amperage draw with incandescent bulbs was 3.46 amps or 3,460 milliamps which equates to 43.3 watts. After converting to Leds, but before adding the footwell lights, the circuit was measured drawing only 1.42 amps or 1,420 milliamps which equates to 17.8 watts. This is a significant savings and adding further Leds, such as the footwells, to this circuit will not be a problem at all.
     
    To measure the current draw of the dome light circuit, you need to hook up the multimeter in series with the circuit's wiring. The easiest way to do this is to remove the dome light circuit's 10 amp fuse located in the engine compartment fuse box and connect your meters probes there instead.

    Before - Incandescent
    domes, maps, doors, vanities
    3,460 ma or 43.3 watts

    After - Leds
    domes, maps, doors, vanities
    1,420 ma or 17.8 watts

    Led footwells only
    350 ma or 4.4 watts

    Led domes, maps, doors, vanities, footwells
    1,650 ma or 20.6 watts

    Quick Reference Lighting Chart:
    2006-2009 Toyota 4Runner Lights Led Aftermarket Replacement Bulb
    Light Bulb Factory
    Bulb
    No.
    Factory
    Bulb
          Wattage      
    Factory
    Observed
    Amperage
    Type  Brand  Description Led
    Part
    No.
    Led
    Advertised
    Wattage
    Led
    Observed
    Amperage
    Led
    Observed
    Wattage
    Approx.
    Lumens
    Interior Lights on dome light circuit
    Interior light
    (dome)
    DE3175 8.0w 620ma Double end V-Leds High Power 6 M-SMT Led
    flat back 16mmx16mm board
    HID White
    MS_6_HP_W 3.0w 161ma 2.0w 120lm
    Luggage compartment
    (cargo area dome)
    DE3175 8.0w 620ma Double end V-Leds High Power 6 M-SMT Led
    flat back 16mmx16mm board
    HID White
    MS_6_HP_W 3.0w 161ma 2.0w 120lm
    Personal/Map lights W5W 5.0w 360ma Wedge base V-Leds High Power 3 M-SMT Led
    HID White 194
    194_3HP_W 1.5w 75ma 0.9w 60lm
    Door courtesy lights 194 3.8w 250ma Wedge base V-Leds High Power 4 M-SMT Led
    HID White 194
    194_4_HP_W 2.0w 115ma 1.4w 80lm
    Vanity lights 1+1/8" long 2.0w 167ma Double end V-Leds High Power 3 SMT Led
    HID White Vanity
    VANITY_W 0.5w 17ma 0.2w 20lm
    Running board lights 194 3.8w 250ma Wedge base - N/A on SR5 and Sport Edition - - - - -
    Sub-Total   48.4w advertised
    43.3w observed  
    3,460ma         18.0w 1,420ma 17.8w  
    Footwell lights N/A - - - V-Leds High Power 9 SMT Led
    flat back 30mmx30mm board
    HID White
    CMYT_336_9LED 1.5w 70ma 0.9w 60lm
    Total   48.4w advertised
    43.3w observed  
    3,460ma         24.0w 1,650ma 20.6w  
    Other Interior Lights
    Glove box light 74 1.2w 83ma Wedge base V-Leds High Power 1 M-SMT Led
    HID White 74
    74_HP_W 0.5w 18ma 0.2w 20lm
     

    Before - Incandescent
    1 second exposure

    After - Leds
    1 second exposure

    Special Offer:
    I have purchased all the above Led lights from one source, V-Leds.com. The decision to go with them for all the lights was based on much advance research into their product line, communication with them via email as well as customer feedback found on a wide variety of online automotive forums. I have had nothing but excellent customer service from this company.
     
    V-Leds Coupon offer:
    Join the V-Leds Newsletter and get 15% off your next order!
     
    One Year Update:
    I have had various V-Leds bulbs installed for over one year now and I have had absolutely no issues or problems at all. I continue to return to them for all my automotive LED and HID bulb needs.
     


     
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