[Mk2] [Generic] Retro fitting UK dash dimmer switch into JDM

[Mullen]

As title. Did a search and found lots of posts but none with instructions on how to do it.

Anyone done it or knows how to? Thanks.

[shinny]

It's just a rheostat, so should be child's play! that said, if you have LED bulbs, you're do better off creating a PWM solution.

that said, I never moved the dimmer from the brightest setting on my UK cars. Don't miss it one bit on my JDM car

[Mullen]

The question was prompted by a guy on one of the Fb MR2 groups who thought it would be a simple job but having looked at the two looms discovered the dimmer rheostat has 3 wires & they're all different colours to his JDM loom.

He has LEDs but wants to dim them on long M-way trips.

Also, I know nothing about electrics... what's a PWM?

[shinny]

PWM = pulse width modulation (essentially turning the current on and off really fast)

LEDs are current devices and therefore only work well with the correct forward voltage. The rheostat will be changing that, which works great for filament bulbs but less well on LEDs. Any decent LED dimmer will be using PWM to dim the LED... well, more accurately, alter the ratio of the time it's on compared to the time it's off.

[Mullen]

That's a good point.
Thanks for the explanation.

[acf8181]

i've been wondering how to make my jdm display brighter (my preference when i had uk was to have it fully bright)....any way other than doing the above?

[shinny]

i've been wondering how to make my jdm display brighter (my preference when i had uk was to have it fully bright)....any way other than doing the above?

Not sure anything above talks about making it brighter...

What bulbs have you got fitted? New bulbs are about the only practical way of making the speedo brighter. If you're rocking 15 year old filament bulbs, then ditching those are your first port of call

[Mullen]

i've been wondering how to make my jdm display brighter (my preference when i had uk was to have it fully bright)....any way other than doing the above?

I've just put LEDs in mine & it's much better than it was.
I don't know if new filament bulbs would be more or less bright than the LEDs mind you.

[shinny]

I don't know if new filament bulbs would be more or less bright than the LEDs mind you.

Depends on the LEDs! Not all LED bulbs are created equal by a very long way... that said, neither are filament bulbs.

[Mullen]

Indeed. I just bought the same ones as a mate put in his having seen his dash at night recently.