DIY: Installing PositionLights (Updated 4/23/07)
 

Hey guys so as many of you know I replaced my parking lights the other day. Many members have asked how to do it so I decided to make a DIY. So here we go:

Tools:
Hands
10mm
Your new bulbs, the bulbs I used for this one were white high power's from V-leds. The size of the bulb is 194. A picture comparison is below. The 4 led one next to it is going to go for my clear corners. I'm replacing all the autolumunation ones with these new ones.

1) On the driver side take off the fuse box cover. Refer to picture 2 for where the socket is located.
2) On the passenger side remove the ECU cover. You will the 10mm for this. Also the battery cover must be taken off as well as the hoses that are attached to the covers. Refer to the 1st picture for details.

The install is very easy. Once you locate the sockets, you will need to twist it until it comes unlocked and then pull it out. The passenger is a tight fit.

Good luck and have fun! :ylsuper:

Did you do blue or super white? I just like the color in your sig, and I want to make sure I don't get something that looks silly. Thanks for the great DIY btw!

how's it going? I ordered them from here http://autolumination.com/194.htm I got the 6LED type in super white. Attached are 2 pictures of them at night. I also replaced the fog lights with hyper white H11 bulbs as well.

Thanks for the quick reply! I'm going to order my led's right now. Just curious, do you think the led's match the HID color pretty well?

They turn out a little bluish but they look so much better than the stock ones that are in there. Once you replace all the bulbs in the front you have a nice uniform look. Keep in mind that I had the led parking lights in for a few hours before I put in the replacement fog lights and the combination of the Xeons and the Super Whites the fogs looked yellow. I would look into replacing the fog lights as well if you have them. I paid $4/bulb on that site. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

great job on the DIY... I think I'm going to look into this.

Thanks for your advice. I looked over all the other threads with the exact same questions for you, and you are just ridiculously patient. Thanks for putting up with my non-searching habits haha!

Did you order anything yet? I placed an order today to replace all my bulbs on the 8 including interior.

nice diy,

what h11s did you put in and what would you reccomend????

beers :beer:

swoope, i put in the Super White Krypton from http://autolumination.com/headlights.htm . They were $3 each. There is another set on the page for $14. I like how the ones I got look. My guess is that they come pretty close to color. They are both bright whites so it shouldn't really matter which ones you use. They look so much better than the stock ones. I couldn't stand the yellow look they were giving me after replacing my parking lights. the $8 spent on both bulbs just gives your car a whole new look.

wow,
did not get that far down on the page. that is silly cheap, almost to cheap. i got some off of ebay the color match was perfect to the stock zenons. they lasted about 8 months. they were like 12 bucks.

let us know how it goes.

beers :beer:

holy shit that's so


so


simple.

I hope your 6LEDs last longer than mine did. The both have only 3 elements lit and they have only been in the car for about 6 months (3 of which the car sat during the winter months).

Well guys I ordered the super-whites for the parking lights, and I decided to "go against the grain" and got super yellows for the driving lights. I plan on using some 3M film in conjunction and see if it looks decent and works well. I know, I know, you dont NEED yellow light for your fogs... but I think it looks damn hot ;-)

I'll post pics when I get them in!

autolumination sucks.

i buy everything from superbrightleds.com

if it burns out or doesn't match color send it back and they give you new ones.

-- I have ordered three times from Autolumination and have received my order by US Mail in less than 4 days each time. I am happy with the products and the service --

thanks for the DIY. i did manage to replace the bulb but I've run in to another (hopefully not bigger) problem. i replaced the bulb but it's not turning on now. same with my sidemarker lights. i thought it might've been the thing that holds the bulb (sorry, dont know what it's called) but i tried the same bulb on another light, still doesn't work. then i thought it was the bulb, i've tried 3 different bulbs. anyone have any idea what's going on?

Sounds like one side works so it shouldn't be the fuse but that is the only think I thought of beyond the potential as you mention, that you have broken the connection either in the wiring or the connector ... oops!

i changed my parking lights. looks great! no more yellowish color. :)

Ugh. I just had one of those "oh #$!@" moments trying to do what I thought was a simple mod. I was following this DIY (which was very helpful) with the 6-led super-whites from autolumination. I got the driver's side bulb replaced with no real problem. A little blue, but overall it looks so much better. But on the passenger side, after I got everything reinstalled (or so I thought) and turned on the lights - no light on that side. So I pull the connector back out and ... no bulb. Looking in the front of the headlight assembly I see the LED bulb laying loose inside the housing. Oops. Somehow it came out of the connector. I probably didn't push it in far enough, or all the moving around trying to get it to line up caused it to come loose. I could barely get my hand down in there (why did Mazda make changing every bulb in this car so freaking difficult??) to get the connector to line up, so there's no way I can reach or get a tool down to the housing opening to pull the bulb out. I tried a magnetic pick up, but it's so contorted down there I can't get it to reach. Can you get to the back of this light through the wheel well like replacing the turn signal? I seriously need help getting this bulb out. As is I've got one blue eye with the parking lights on. :( Does anybody have any ideas???

wire hanger and tape... and time.

beers:beer:

If you have some double-sided tape around, cut a longish strip lengthwise and feed it into the hole. The tape should pile up and hopefully catch onto the bulb. I have to do this when I lose parts inside of electronics cases. Good luck!

Tape is your new best friend for getting that bulb out.

I've got 6 led's from Autolumination on their way to my house. I just hope they don't turn out too blue.. (ordered hyper white)

They're pretty blue, but match the HID's perfectly from a distance

Thanks everyone for the ideas. The hanger and tape seems especially promising. I hadn't thought of that. I'm on my way out to go try...I'll post what works in case anyone else ever has this same problem.

As for the color of the hyper-white autolumination leds, I agree with zenmoused. They're pretty blue close up but look really good from a distance. Even close up the blue looks WAY better than the stock yellow. If you're replacing your bulbs, do yourself a favor and turn on the lights after replacing just one of the bulbs. The comparison is striking and points out just how yellow the factory bulbs are.

your welcome.

you would be suprised how much stupid you can fix with that combo... i have been doing stupid for a long time..

beers :beer:

Yeah, I do stupid way too well. Luckily you were right, and the coat hanger and tape worked great in getting the bulb out of the housing. Only took 2 attempts. Unfortunately as soon as it came out the bulb came off the tape and fell down into the abyss of wire bundles and sharp metal edges in the engine compartment near the light connectors never to be seen again. So a new order is in with autolumination for more leds.

if you have jackstands, jack the car up and take the screws out of the leading edge of the bumper... pull it down and i bet it will just fall out..

beers :beer:

yeah, only takes 10 minutes to remove front bumper. Don't order more, it'll be easy to get out

used this DIY once and it was perfect! One of my driving lights burned out so I'm off to replace it... thanks again ndtechie09

i followed this DIY to replace my parking lights and it worked out great. but......
the shafts holding the bulbs seem kind of loose, not like they were before i took them out. I mean i pushed them in as far as possible and twisted and i know it caught, but they just seem kind of loose in there. And on top of that, it seems like i can see the housing (dark circle of entrance) around the bulb only on the passenger side. But still, over all i love the look of it, matches my factory HID's very well. just curious to see if anyone else have experienced the holders being a little loose after installation.

my guess is that only one of the tangs got in the groove.. rotate back to the left, then make sure it is flush..

and yes it is almost impossible to do.. but try again...

beers :beer:

but it hurts my hands :cussing: oh well. i will give it a shot.

i went at it with a long long set of needle nose pliars. it help.

what helps more is a child or a woman with small hands that has some mech ability..

beers :beer:

ok well i just tried and still got the same results. maybe its the bulbs, they aren't LED's, they are just regulat 194 bulbs. would LEDs help? i still like the look overall. i guess i can try again in daylight tomorrow.

no it is an angle thing i had to take out the ecu and the ecu box to get the pass side one in right...

and taking that stuff out is not for the new diyers..

btw, i got high beams also.. i have no idea how the f i am going to get them in..

beers :beer:

if anyone can do it. you can swoope. haha. what kind did you get?

just stuff from autolummanations.. i was just buying bulbs for puddle lights, and the next thing you know i had ordered fogs, highs and parking lights..

here is the fogs and parking lights. the parking lights are 4 led hyperwhite... and they are bright. will have to see how they hold up to the heat..

note the colors are a bit off because i have tint on the headlights...

beers :beer:

the high beams were the easy ones. i got those in place and it only took me about 2 minutes. i don't wanna have to move the ecu box, but is there a way i can move it around enough to get more space without completely removing it?

OK i just read the DIY on how to remove the PCM, and it doesn't seem bad. now will removing it mess up anything in my car? such as having to reprogram anything? thanks

Is there any other way to do the passenger side high beams and position lights? I got the drivers side all done and the passenger fog but can't get the damn ecu box out. I unscrewed the 3 bolts and pulled out the coolant hose line but it feels like on the side away from the engine bay(near headlamp housing) that it is still stuck in there good. Any idea how to get it out?

I just swapped out my bulbs for LEDs from v-leds.com. It took less than 10 minutes. I didn't remove the box from the passenger side. It was a tight squeeze, but it only took a few minutes to get it.

What LEDs have people used and not had problems with them burning out due to heat? I am looking to replace interior and exterior but I am looking primarily for recomendations for Fog and Parking lights.

I previously used bulbs from www.autolumination.com but they do not last very long, don't waste your money.

I'd go with vled's. you can find them on ebay selling stuff all the time.

I brought mines from www.motoringmax.com, they have lots of goodies there from LED to HID bulbs to HID Conversion kit.

His ebay ID is motoringmax, which sells the same products with even better price.

Just installed my PIAA GT-X. 10min job at most. I also found an easier way to see the hole. Best to do in a garage or in low light conditions. I took a flashlight and shined it from the front into the light housing and could easily see the opening from inside the engine bay.

Stock bulb on the left.

https://www.altspace.com/rx8/piaa.jpg

Thank You
 

The DIY on replacing the front parking lights came in very handy...

If I may comment on the bulbs I chose...I purchased my bulbs from Autolumination and are VERY happy with the color, BUT one of my bulbs, the LEDs where burned out...

I bought the 194 6-LED and 3 of the LEDs where already blown...I thought I did something wrong and tried it several times and no good...
What is funny, the passenger side I found somewhat easy (after removing the PCM), but the problem bulb turned out to be on the driver's side...

I then removed both bulbs and placed the "bad" bulb on the passenger side and still 3 of the LEDs are burned out...I put the good bulb in on the driver side, no problem...All LEDs are lit...

I have contacted autolumination and I am sending the bulb back, BUT I will not buy from them again...What is a kicker, they are located here in Arizona (Higley)

Granted it was not very expensive, but its the aggravation...

I have ordered another set from SuperBrightLeds...

Great DIY. The driver side was very easy.

The passenger side... Oh good gosh! I thought my hand was going to get stuck. I did find an easy way to get it out. If you can get your hands on the end of it to get a little support, you can stick a flathead screwdriver in a gap between the frame and the headlight. The bulb has 'wings' on it, and you can use one of those for leverage to do the counterclockwise for removal.

hey while i was attempting to fish out one of my precious VLED led bulbs with a coat hanger the other end of the hanger was touching a part of the fuse box that was exposed. the hanger got really hot and started smoking a little and then i noticed and pulled it away. after driving my car today i feel like its running a little weird. i am just being paranoid or did i mess up something?

if anyone cares......i managed to lose 3 led bulbs and knock the cover off the parking light while trying to rescue the bulbs. i had no choice but to put my headlight in the oven to soften up the glue then pry it apart. i was really scared my HID's would never work again but everything was fine!!!! alot of people use this method on there civics and RSX's for the jdm black headlight housing look.

Parking Lights
 

I got my LEDS from SuperBright (very fast) only took 2 days...

Installed the lights with NO problems...Pleased with the color and brightness...

I have since mailed my bad LED bulb to Autolimination for replacement...

hey guys, i just installed my LED's....damn it was tight to get in there but i managed. i wanted to know, how much of a turn does it take to lock the socket in place? lets say 1/8 turn? im not sure if mine is tight enough....i tried to turn the socket as much as i can, but it wont turn anymore than it already did....so im assuming its as much as it goes......