I probably won't be able to give you the whole process I did in one post.:D
First off I'll answer the bulb swap brake/tail socket problem.
The LED's don't use different filaments like standard bulbs so socket changing wasn't necessary.
Most LED's bulbs use a resistor to limit the voltage to them making a dimmer light for the tail light and bypassing the resistor for a brake or turn, so bridging the contacts on the socket end of the bulb with a spot of solder makes them work at full brightness all the time in the single contact socket (for adding brake and turn lights only)
I needed to shave one of the posts on the side of the bulb base to get it to fit in the socket where there was a bulb with equal posts (1157's have one higher than the other)
This way all I had to do to connect them in the system is wire that socket to the brake/turn wire on each side inside the trunk.
Second problem.
The bulbs in those housings are at an angle and LED's are usually very directional so I wanted them facing straight back at the lenses.
Using the plastic LED bulb that plugs directly into the OEM socket, I separated the LED panel from the bulb socket and soldered a couple of inches of wire from each of the two contacts on the socket to each on the back of the 12 LED panel.
This way I could plug the bulb base into the socket and mount the LED panel facing straight back at the center of the lenses. (bend your wires accordingly and 1/2 dab of RTV right in the center of the housing to mount the LED panel.)
Third problem:D
Like I said most LED's are very directional so 9 of them facing straight back wanted to just make a spot in the center of the lenses so I clear contact cemented one of those credit card style magnifiers at the four corners inside each lens to spread the beam (and it did very well).
Just an FYI all four of those lenses can be swapped to any other location but there is a left and a right as to the taper of them following the bumper line.
It's easy to not notice unless you know what you are looking for, so swapping a backup lens out for a brake/tail/turn lens is just that easy as long as you use a left on the left and a right on the right.
Heck even if you got them backwards it's not easy to notice, but the edge of the lens has about 1/4 different taper to it than the bumper line.
My method was before the LED market was so wide spread, so there are direct replacement LED bulbs now.
One criteria for me was to not mod the lenses and housing to where they couldn't be put back stock easily, so I went a little above and beyond to try and follow that.
Right now I am working on assembling a much bigger panel that fills the lenses.
I'm not paying hundreds of dollars for 2 bucks worth of materials as in the Digitails LED panels when I can build them myself.:D
I'll post some pics later, as I have company over that just arrived.
All in all I think I might just recommend decent LED bulbs instead of going through all this over it.
Just stopped raining so here ya go.
First pic of the car is tail lights and the second is brakelights.
Signals, well you get the idea.:D
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