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My 1995 Corolla Dx needs a new bulb for the heater/ac control panel in center dash.

3.8K views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  Eastman51  
#1 · (Edited)
I have had this car since 2013 and this bulb has burnt out twice. The original was incandescent and gets hot. It melts the prism plastic and leaves a dark brown spot there. My dash prism was broken in two from the heat melting the plastic. A repair job for Super Glue and wet sanding to clear the cavity of the prism up in the middle. I would like a cool-burning long-life white LED equivalent for replacement. At night, my heater control panel did formerly emit a dim brownish-yellow/orange light tone from prism discoloration.


Here is the video on how to do it but the man does not provide the bulb specs. I don’t want to go to the dealer on this one. There should be a standard automotive number code for this. I know the extra 194 bulb I have fits the dome light (I think) but it is way too big to fit this instrument panel in the center.

 
#2 ·
Looks like a Slyvania #74 or the lower watt #73
More than one thread in archives but here's one.
 
#3 ·
Thank you. I just ordered Nanpoku T5 LED Bulbs 74 73 37 2721 LED Bulb Canbus Error Free for Auto Car Dashboard Dash Instrument Panel Gauge Cluster Indicator Lights Lamp(White) from amazon. O'Reilly only has Sylvania 74 in incadescent. No more brown melted prisms and burned out heater panel bulbs for me. Hello to a brighter, whiter heater panel at night, I hope. There are probably other bulbs in the instrument panel of the same size so I will have a number of these in a pack.
 
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#4 ·
I usually use Brishine 74 bulbs. They are bright and work very well. Not had any issues with longevity and used them in 4 of my cars for about a year now.

I always use Sylvania LED for 194/168 and for turn signals/brake lights when applicable; but not all exterior light housings are created equal so I have had to compromise for other brands before. Still not had issues with reliability though.
 
owns 1994 Toyota Estima
#6 ·
LED will still run the battery down, but over a slightly longer period of time; no guarantee you'd still have enough voltage to crank if it sat for a few hours. The wattage will be the same, the main difference is the amp draw. Most of the time, an identical sized bulb will have at least half the amp draw of an equivalent incandescent bulb.

I just swap basically every bulb with LED these days. It looks much nicer and crisper, and the reduced amp draw is nice because it reduces load on the alternator.
 
owns 1994 Toyota Estima
#9 ·
I believe the LED in the dome light would use significantly less power, so you will be able to accidentally leave it on overnight and still start the car int he morning. It should use much less than half the power.

Another advantage to LED brake lights is they light up right away, like 1/4+ second faster than incandescent bulbs, so a car behind you has that extra time to slow down which might make a difference in avoiding a crash.
 
#12 ·
The LEDs I use seem to dim appropriately, though not on the same full sweep of the dial. They usually turn off about a quarter from the lowest setting. However this is just experience from one car. Most of my older cars have broken rheostats so the dash lights are stuck on full brightness, which I can't be bothered to fix since I run full brightness all the time anyway. It's only been in my modern cars that the dash lights get bright enough to glare off the windshield or be bright enough to affect my vision at night.
 
owns 1994 Toyota Estima