I have hit upon a way to change the color of the gauges without sharpies or new LEDs!

First, I took apart my gauge cluster, without taking it out of the car:



Next, I dropped the speedo needle into the dash, so I had to pull the stereo and fish it out. That did not warrant a picture. I suggest skipping this step, and not being a spazz. At least I did this during the afternoon.

Using the handy (free) Lee Filters sample book (obtained here: http://www.leefilters.com/lighting/contact/ ), I cut up three strips about 5/8" wide or so of #075 "Evening Blue", and attached them to the plastic part of the gauge cluster that transmits the light across the face:


The filter I chose was pretty dark, and makes the lights rather dim. I am ok with this, as I usually keep my gauges pretty dim anyhow.

There is overage that kind of folds over when I popped the clear plastic piece back on. It doesn't interfere with anything, and it all went back together nicely.

Assembled and in the dark:

Not the best picture, but I don't have a tripod, and my camera uses a longish exposure in low light.

Also pictured: my new Oznium HVAC control LEDs (the C5 'vette ones, but swapped into the Toyota base). Not pictured: awesome Oznium dome light.

 

Good move.... Thanx for the tuit !

 

Not a bad idea. I may try this myself. Don't feel bad, i dropped the my speedo needle down the dash also, but couldnt' get it out. The dealer doesn't sell the individual needles, just the whole cluster. So I bought Randode's clear needles with the skulls.

 

Thanks, guys. The cool thing about doing it this way is that there's literally ~250 possible colors to choose from, so it's relatively easy to match whatever scheme you want. I probably could have done with a lighter blue, but it looks good, so I can't complain.

The best part, of course, is that it was free, so I couldn't go wrong.

 

How did you get your swatches? Looked on the site but didn't see where to request...

Thanx !

 

At the link in my original post, http://www.leefilters.com/lighting/contact/, you fill out the required information, and at the bottom are checkboxes to get a brochure and the swatch book. I think it took around a week and a half to show up. Still, the price is right!

 

DONE !!!
Thanx !

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Got 'em ! Now to remove the gauge needles, just pull them out ???
What did you use to not damage them ?

Thanx !