Why does this have to be so difficult?

"Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing." (granfury)
07/11/2020 at 12:31 • Filed to: None

OK, I was thinking of adding LED brake lights to my 2012 Mazda5. I thought that it would be simple, with the differentiation being CAN bus or not (not, as best I can tell).

When I was getting to press the button to select the bulbs the website asked another question - SCK wiring or not. Huh? I’d never heard of this before, and apparently has something to do with where the ground connections are in relation to the signal lines.

I thought I could do everything online, but I guess now I have to break out the multitester or look at the existing bulbs. Well, it’s hot and I don’t want to go outside. I guess this project is now on hold...

DISCUSSION (10)

dogisbadob > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/11/2020 at 12:49

Those LED bulbs don’t always work well, so be careful

VincentMalamute-Kim > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/11/2020 at 13:14

where the ground connections are in relation to the signal lines.

If the setup is like that, doesn’t that imply the bulbs are being controlled via CANbus?

Let us know what you learn about SCK. And what bulbs you end up with. And if they’re an improvement like dogisbadob warns.

DipodomysDeserti > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/11/2020 at 13:22

Those bulbs don’t last. Tried using them in a motorcycle and they kept dying. They seem to be made of the finest Chinesium.

bob and john > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/11/2020 at 13:29

there are a few kindas of LED bul;bs you can get. the ones like you posted (lots of tiny LEDs) arent usually t he best. Try to find the one with the fewest numebr of LEds you can.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/11/2020 at 13:58

Never heard about ‘SCK wiring’ - I wouldn’t worry about it. But do NOT get the cheap kind you have in your pics....go with Philips. I’ve bought Chinesium ones before and, although they worked great WHEN they worked, they all failed within a year and a half. I’ve got Philips LED side repeater, reverse light, tail light and license plate light bulbs now for about 3 years and they all work just as perfectly as they did when I got them!

I have these for my tail light bulbs: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00P2D415K/ref=pe_386430_199231140_TE_3p_dp_1

EDIT - These are the right size for your Mazda5 if you wanted to go with a reputable brand: https://www.pepboys.com/philips-7443-vision-led-stop-tail-light-red-2-pack/product/1164574

You might be able to find them online elsewhere.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > VincentMalamute-Kim
07/11/2020 at 14:58

Kinja'd!!!

I was planning on purchasing from a place near me (superbrightleds.com) that I’ve done business with before rather than something cheap off of FleaBay; the image I used was just a generic one found via GIS. I consider brake lights to be too important to trust the the cheap stuff, and I've had good luck with this vendor in the past.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > bob and john
07/11/2020 at 14:59

It was just a generic image, but I shall take your advice.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > dogisbadob
07/11/2020 at 15:00

It was just a generic image. I was planning on purchasing from a reputable vendor I've used before.

VincentMalamute-Kim > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/11/2020 at 15:03

oh yeah, I’ve bought from them. They seem quality.

ah, CK is just wiring differences. To me “signal” implied logic circuitry decoding which light to turn on.

Thanks.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > DipodomysDeserti
07/11/2020 at 15:08

My plan was to purchase from a local vendor that specializes in LEDs as opposed to buying the cheap crap from FleaBay. I was using a generic image, and hope that whatever I get looks better than the illustration I used in the post.

Years ago I converted a lot of the bulbs in my car, mostly interior, to LEDS, but those were in non-critical areas. One over the license plate has been a little flaky but functional (half of the bulb goes out but a slap of the tailgate makes it fully functional) , however I don’t want to trust something as important as brake lights to the cheap stuff.