LED headlights

[Ricoflan]

Giving some thought to installing halo LEDs on my ‘62 Coupe. Anyone have any advice/experience they’d like to share?

TIA

Rico

[Ducksface]

Check bulb dimensions. Most won't fit the stock bucket.
Consider lighting the grill instead.

[GeorgeG]

I just had Octane Lighting headlights, taillights, etc. installed. Very few issues. Photos below.

[Giantrider]

Looks good. I have a plug in play rear tailight for my Harley - would think that would also work.

No large ballast to it.

The LED Headlights look sick.

Any electrical issues on load

[GeorgeG]

I wasn't sure about load, so I replaced the generator with a Powergen Powermaster altenator. I wanted to keep the look of the stock generator.

[Rusty57]

Typically LED lights do not require a separate ballast or transformer. Those are needed with HID (High Intensity Discharge) headlamps.

The other advantage of LED's is that they draw significantly less amperage than traditional filament bulbs for the same lumens output. Unless you are adding a lot of lights or some really high power ones you normally do not need to upgrade the generator.

[GeorgeG]

Rusty: I agree I didn't need the alternator conversion but a) my generator was iffy and b) just thinking ahead in case I decide to do future upgrades.

[Rusty57]

Thanks for that clarification. One other advantage of the alternator is higher output at lower engine speeds than a generator.

[aa010175]

What is an Octane Lighting headlight kit? Thinking of going LED headlights. Dave

[GeorgeG]

You can read all about it at octanelighting.com. My 'Bird shown in the earlier photos on this thread has both exterior and interior Octane lighting. Works great. I had it professionally installed because I don't do electrical.

[Mvs62bulletbird]

Here is my version of LED tail lights that are Circut Board controlled during the day as my driving lights you should see them at night.now that looks like the business end of a turbine. do not use a drill use a screwdriver only by hand gently easily. If and out you could put a little drop of blue medium thread lock on the old screw hold it in place so it’s snug.

I am very well seen and on the front and they’re high output circuit board LEDs fit perfectly in the round Grills no problem. The first LED headlight took an hour and a half to put in the second one to 25 minutes. Make sure you have two magnetic cups on hand and you do everything my hand and take pictures cause it’s a very very tight fit. A sippy cup is nice too have a comfortable seat. You’re gonna need it. Also, all of your electric connect & extensions need to be spray cleaned and polished fine when I have everything apart.

Do yourself a favor now the time to check the power that’s going to each individual light turn the car on measure the voltage. Write it down. This will come in handy later when you need to start counting voltage against your generator and protect the car circuits.

Two new factory seashell horns high/low make it like a freight train. Wow

Last is the 1962 Ford Thunderbird Shop manual as a licensed PDF from Ford of the manual. Very very helpful to download print and read 300 and some pages or put it on your tablet.

Enjoy & don’t lose your head over all this. You’ll get it and get some really good. Wesley‘s white wall cleaner rinse the tires down spray the cleaner on clean one tire at a time scrub it with a brass brush, stiff bristle and get those white walls just white.


Always have your phone camera ready and take a picture literally of every screw that comes out as you take it out and then put it in one of the two metal cups so you can trace it to one side at a time do it by hand this plastic is 62 years old & if you’re extremely fortunate every screw & every pieces original if it’s not save it anyway and then get the pieces you can that are original and then put those on. You don’t get the opportunity to clean these very often so really good metal polish is ideal. Also make sure that it doesn’t have any harsh compounds or ammonia that can hurt the plastic buff. All the metal polish the connections clean all the plastic. let it dry and then put it back, screw by screw by screw if you need the number the screws on a piece of tape on some whiteboard to it, but you should have every screw every step document so when you go back, you’ve got your plan manual is it always right but it will get you there about 90% of the way most of the time.
I probably have well over 1700 documented Thunderbird pictures of work on the car and a three ring binder with my printouts of what I’m doing step-by-step and my Shop manual open.

Best Michael

[Mvs62bulletbird]

I wanted to make a point that it’s very valid point is that you’re 62 year old Ford alternator starts out idling at 15 A turning at cruising speed 30 A max OK if you have it in park run the engine up and make it 40 A out of it You have a 50 amp breaker for the top of that car and a 10 amp breaker for the switch it is well respecting the money to get a power alternator that looks just like the original but the specs are far different when you’re idling. You’re turning out 35 to 40 A when you’re cruising you’re at 60 to 70 A and max output is 90 A with an in-line fuse of 100 A going from the new alternator to the battery through an in-line fuse again that sat at 100 A for a spike you’re protecting your whole electrical system.

You don’t want to try to put up the top on the car turning 15 A from your existing generator or even 30 A from your existing generator, you’re going to do severe damage to the electrical components and this is how it gets stud. The power jet alternator is a $400 or $500 investment. Yes that’s a lot of money But you put a new grounding strap on it. It’s a one wire generator and it has an alternator light lean off of it also, it’s wired directly to the positive terminal of the battery or you can go to the starter solenoid your choice but you’re out risking your whole top mechanism of your electrical system. All the fuses throughout the car that are hidden under the dash, but make sure you say that generator you can have it rebuilt if you want if you don’t want to take my advice on this. You’re gonna pay through the nose where you can’t get the top of the car up or your whole electrical system is blown out because you were trying to start it run it Used to starter on 15 A. It’s just nuts I think is 62 years old and worn out and corroded if you take apart, it’s pretty disgusting.


It’s extremely important to start counting apps at maximum drawn on everything you put in that car everything that’s in that car and there’s electrical system chart you can find with the electrical manual that has all the details but you’ve gotta do it and you’ve gotta know what your new Alternator is putting out and you also need to know what your old generator was putting out if you don’t do it, you’re gonna destroy your electrical system. I’ll attach that hook up pictures for you.