- Member ID
- #1044
- Messages
- 7,205
- Reactions
- 33,321
- Likes
- 352
- City
- Riverside
- State
- CA
- Country
- United States
- Vehicle
- 2015 Dodge Charger Hellcat!
So, I've had my tinted led side markers, for some time. I recently noticed that the front left had all but a couple of led's out. I ordered a fresh pair, but decided, since I had some on order, that I would look into the matter. I removed the lens and found that water had seeped into the assembly and corroded the solder, at a few led's. This particular corrosion looked like rust. Yep... rust. What I found is there are two screws that hold the board to the body of the marker assembly. Water rusted those screws and it ran down the board, taking out several led's (shorted them out).
OEM side markers don't have this issue, because they use one led, at the very top, above the connector. This is key, here... Above the connector. This is where the water is coming in. The two pins, that make contact with the car side connector, just poke through two holes, in the body of the side marker. This allows for water to seep into the side marker and do a number on the circuit card and screws.
I don't have any pictures, unfortunately, but I suspect this is the case with the many failures that we are encountering, with these side markers. Trouble is, they make them so damned cheap, that they're not worth fixing. This was more of an R&D mission, than anything else. I wanted to see WTF was happening, here.
I had the correct led's in stock, so I removed the damaged ones and installed some fresh ones. Simple fix and it worked. When installing, back on the car, I packed the connector body with some dielectric grease, to prevent future moisture from entering the assembly... Plus, it maintains good electrical continuity.
The lens is pretty easy to remove, with a box cutter and a small blade screwdriver. A little cutting and a little prying and it pops right off. I don't advocate diy repairs, unless you have everything you need. Just go to AliExpress and get another set, for $20-$30. No need to pay $100, or more, for a repackaged Chinesium product.
Hope this helps us understand what is at issue, here.
Regards,
Bob
OEM side markers don't have this issue, because they use one led, at the very top, above the connector. This is key, here... Above the connector. This is where the water is coming in. The two pins, that make contact with the car side connector, just poke through two holes, in the body of the side marker. This allows for water to seep into the side marker and do a number on the circuit card and screws.
I don't have any pictures, unfortunately, but I suspect this is the case with the many failures that we are encountering, with these side markers. Trouble is, they make them so damned cheap, that they're not worth fixing. This was more of an R&D mission, than anything else. I wanted to see WTF was happening, here.
I had the correct led's in stock, so I removed the damaged ones and installed some fresh ones. Simple fix and it worked. When installing, back on the car, I packed the connector body with some dielectric grease, to prevent future moisture from entering the assembly... Plus, it maintains good electrical continuity.
The lens is pretty easy to remove, with a box cutter and a small blade screwdriver. A little cutting and a little prying and it pops right off. I don't advocate diy repairs, unless you have everything you need. Just go to AliExpress and get another set, for $20-$30. No need to pay $100, or more, for a repackaged Chinesium product.
Hope this helps us understand what is at issue, here.
Regards,
Bob
-
3
-
2
-
1
- Show All
