How To: 1999-2002 Silverado Gauge Bulb Swap

[pmf608]

Will also work with 2000-2002 Tahoe, Yukon, Suburban, 2001-2002 Denali, 2002 Escalade.
This How-to will show you how to swap you stock gauge bulbs for LED lights.
**NOTE: Trucks with transmission Temp. gauge may require additional LED bulbs**

Parts / Tools Required:
- (6) Type 194 LED lights
- 7mm socket/ratchet
- small tool (such as miniature screwdriver)
- flat screwdriver (not required, but useful)

Sorry about the big pictures - PhotoBucket says they're smaller then they are - nothing I can do there.

BEFORE:
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/IMAGE_023-1.jpg
AFTER:
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/PA210027-1.jpg

Step 1:
SAFETY WARNING: BEFORE PERFORMING THIS FIRST STEP, FULLY ENGAGE THE PARKING BRAKE AND/OR CHOCK THE TIRES TO ENSURE THE VEHICLE DOES NOT ROLL
- Place steering wheel in lowest position and gear lever in 1st. Pry behind dash bezel and pull to remove.
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/PA210029.jpg

Step 2:
- Remove (4) 7mm screws from around gauge cluster. Unplug connector from top and remove cluster.
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/PA200023.jpg

I couldn't fit all images in one post... remaining steps in second post.

[pmf608]

Sorry again about big pictures - Photobucket made some the right size and just says others are

Step 3:
- Use the flat screwdriver to undo the clips holding the back cover onto the gauge cluster
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/PA200016.jpg
- The bulbs are housed in these twist-in sockets:
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/PA200018.jpg

Step 4:
- Remove stock bulbs from housings. They are soldered to the metal contacts, so it may take some force to break the wires from the contacts. This is where you push HARD on the bulbs with your small screwdriver. DO NOT remove the contacts, as it requires A LOT of extra work to put them back in. Don't worry about breaking the bulbs - none of mine did.
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/PA200021.jpg

Step 5:
-Insert your new LED bulbs to the housings. Due to the way the housings are designed, you will have to twist the terminal wires on the bulb to the sides of the bulbs. Keep the wires pointing downward and slightly outward when you insert the bulb. Ensure that your bulbs are tight, or they will come loose and fall out inside your gauge cluster and you would have to fish them out.

Step 6:
- Re-insert the bulb housings. At this point you may choose to put the back cover back on or leave it off. It is likely you will have to remove it again anyway, so I put mine on but did not clip it together.

Step 7:
- Plug the cluster back into your truck to test the functionality of all bulbs. Most type 194 LED bulbs only work one way, so if any do not work, remove the socket and rotate it a half turn. If the bulb still does not work, you will have to remove it to adjust the contacts in the socket. It is not necessary to unplug the cluster to remove the bulb.

Step 8:
- Re-assemble your truck (clip back cover back on to cluster, plug cluster in if unplugged again to swap bulbs, re-fasten (4) 7mm screws, clip dash bezel back on by lining up clips and pushing to engage them)

Step 9:
- Admire your finished work.
http://i707.photobucket.com/albums/ww75/pmf608/Silverado%20pictures/PA210027-1.jpg

I also have a larger version of completed LED swap here (http://www.gmtruckclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=16587&page=2)...

[sweetdawg99]

nicely done and well documented!

[Steve]

Great write-up!

[pmf608]

Thanks. I actually got the idea from some other members of the club who have done it, but I couldn't find any formal write-ups on it, so I decided to do one myself. So thanks to the other people who have done this swap.

[MWright936]

Great write-up! :great:

[Springthing]

Awesome write up... and not only does it look good, it also helps with gas mileage apparently! Look at that..!... near empty with the old lights and practically full with the LEDs! :-)

[pmf608]

:lol: I knew I'd forget so I took the first pic a couple days early with my phone - thats why its so blurry. I just wish I could do my whole dash like that. I couldn't get the climate control unit open though. After I broke 2 of the 5 little clips, I decided I didn't want to break it.:grrrrrr:

[oOcornflakeOo]

yo, I wish you had taken a picture of the LEDs... do you think you could give me the specs of the LEDs? i know they're 194s but were they 1 watt? I think these might have been the ones you used but definitely correct me if I'm wrong:

http://i401.photobucket.com/albums/pp99/oOcornflakeOo/LED_1_B.jpg

[vncj96]

I like the blue! Is there anyway to change the color of the needle on the cluster though???

[Duncan_Z71]

yea i want the red with the white needle.

[Springthing]

I like the blue! Is there anyway to change the color of the needle on the cluster though???


I believe the only way to change the colour of the needle is to get a new one. The needle itself is orange. I guess you could change the colour if you don't mind some kind of orange/other colour meld!



Just as an FYI - I opened up the 2WD/4WD push button module to see what the insides were like. I made a post about it - click here to see it and the few photos (http://www.gmtruckclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17439). It seems easy enough to change the LEDs in here if you are good with a soldering iron.

[pmf608]

^^agreed^^ The needles are orange plastic, so even with a color swap such as my blue, they stay orange (the smaller ones turned a little whitish, but not the speed & tach) If you want a different color needle, you will have to find new ones somewhere and replace them. This is not something I would want to take on due to the risk of not resetting them in the exact proper positions.

[Crawdaddy]

I edited your first post to include a safety warning for when you pull it out of park. Also, what pattern bulbs wiw you use to illuminate the dash?

[pmf608]

Thanks for putting that in. I forgot because I usually just hold the brake pedal for the time I need the lever down. For the bulbs, I used type 194 with 2 LED's per bulb and a plastic refractor around the rest of the bulb, so they basically have a 360 degree light pattern. There are still some darker spots, but they are not very noticable as long as all the lights are working.

[Duncan_Z71]

where in the world would look for new needles to go on there though?

[cdvntx]

Very cool! I am curious as to where you bought your bulbs and what you paid for them.

[pmf608]

you might be able to find needles on a custom parts site or usspeedo.com. also check other gm vehicles for needles you like in roughly the right sizei bought the bulbs at canadian tire, and i believe they were about $5.50 CAD each.

[GOTSAND4ME2]

So i found this post and told myself i have to have blue gauge lights so i printed out the thread and headed to the local autozone and bought what i needed. Got home and ripped apart my dash and when i came time to pull the bulbs out of the base i broke every single one of them and after digging out what was left of the bulb the pieces of wire were also broke.

Anyhow i got the part numbers and ordered new bases and bulbs from superbritelleds.com

Hopefully the install will go better than he tear down lol

Yours looks nice by the way.

[pmf608]

thanks. good luck on your swap. When i did mine, I had not been able to find any bases that I didn't have to reuse the stock ones. Shortly after, they showed up. Now that I know they are not a part you would need to special order of the internet, I would strongly suggest just using new bases.

[GOTSAND4ME2]

Just got done with my bulb swap and here's the scoop

Get some new bases from bulbtown.com part number pc194 Better thank stock

Get some led bulbs any color from superbrightleds.com part number wled-x4 I got the blue option (just a warning tho the wled-4 bulbs are REALLY bright) if you don't want them that bright get the wled-2
Hope this helps someone who is considering doing this:glasses:

[pmf608]

Update: I just ordered a bunch of LED's off of ebay. When they get in, I will update this thread on how to convert the heater controls and all lighted switches to LED also.

[lowriderinms]

man that trick was a good touchj good job!