Damn DRL's, Burnt Out Again!!!

[BowTieBandit]

The DRL on the driver side burnt out on my Denali. :cuss: I just went to Pep Boys and bought some new 4114's. I was using some 3157's Chrome covered Super/Hyper White, I just can't stand yellowish light. I was looking into some multi LED bulbs like I got for my Back Up Lights. But those suckers aren't cheap, and I don't wanna have those blow like the rest. When I removed my old bulbs, the sockets were half black and burnt looking.

I know this is a common issue, but has anyone found a fix for these?

 

[Rollin Thunder]

mine have been half black and burnt looking for ever, but i have never changed a bulb. i think its just your bulbs.

 

[Hoebag03]

i bought some cheapo APC blue covered DRLs today at the Zone...
ill let you know how it turns out

 

[BowTieBandit]

I changed them out in Sept 07, only one side was burnt out. The bulbs did seem a lil cheesy, when I was removing them the bulbs wiggled like a son of a gun. We'll see, I might just spring the $25 for the 19 LED bulbs cause I hates yella!!! :bur2:

 

[Hoebag03]

i got the bulbs with the "oilslick" coating for my turns, i love those because the arent amber until lit(i hate amber also!) but since its required by law and most of my driving is at night, i also just mounted up the clear with black housings to match my projectors so i think it looks pretty slick

 

[Trend Setta]

I'm rockin the orange

 

[road1will]

why is it that people like putting orange bulbs in their DRLs so bad??

 

[Rollin Thunder]

people around here do that and i really dont like it as i think its their turn signals. but otherwise they look really cool.

 

[road1will]

ya im not a fan. all the work trucks like bellsouth, georgia power, etc put those orange bulbs in the DRLs. so anytime i see that it just looks cheap to me, i guess.

 

[GTO2050]

Cuz the Vette has orange DRL's!

 

[Rollin Thunder]

yea but those double as the parking and turn signals. that makes sense to keep the sleek look. the tahoe does not need that. :umn:

 

[oneradride]

Sorry for the length of this post but I’m hoping someone can shed some light on this for me.
I have read every thread I can find on the subject and I have yet to find a valid reason/ fix for the DRL issue on these trucks. Some say (quote) if your alternator is working right, you should get 15.4 to 15.6 volts briefly after a hard start or if the battery has been rundown a little (like listening to the sound system or using lights) before the most recent start. Within a minute, the voltage should settle in between 14.2 to 14.7 volts, dependent on ambient temperatures. After several minutes should settle in about 13.5 to 13.8 volts.there is a voltage spike after starting…He didn't specify whether he meant voltage or current spikes. In any case, apparently the present LEDs are not hardy enough to tolerate these higher voltages.
Others say: (quote) Some GM vehicles apply a pulsed voltage to the Daytime Running Lights (DRL), this pulsed voltage causes LED bulbs to fail quickly, just as the stock filament bulbs also fail quickly in these DRL installations. Use in these applications voids the warranty.

**I have a 2001 Yukon and I tried these bulbs I bought from eBay because they have LED’s in the sides and actually use the housing reflector as they were intended.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...&viewitem=&item=320220708591#ebayphotohosting
They looked AWESOME…. for 2 days :cuss: after the second day some were burnt out and others were flashing and just acting bizarre. I loved the look and I want to use them in this application again but I can’t afford to replace the bulbs every 2 days. .
Is it possible to make the voltage here 12 volts ONLY, ALL the time with no pulsing? I have thought about using a regulator for an old 70’s type application or using the DRL B+ for a trigger in a relay to just to close the circuit and run 12 volts form the fuse box, but the seams like a heck of a lot of work.
Does anyone know the true story about the fluctuation in volts/current in these trucks? Please help. :confused2:

 

[greengumby]

Daytime running light
4114LL

Thats the bulb you should be using ..anything else is considered aftermarket and you take a chance every time they may last for a day or even a month or so

 

[oneradride]

That’s what I'm running now but I really liked the look of the LED's. There has to be some way to make them work.......

When I figure it out I’ll post the ‘How To’ I was just hoping someone might have already done it.

 

[NJ04HOE]

I'm rockin the orange

Are those "regular" amber bulbs or are those LED?
I tried to replace mine with amber LED's but when I ordered them they sent me red bulbs so now i'm pissed because the bulbs look good but they are RED!

These are the ones that I ordered from ebay and the seller will not respond to my emails so stay away from them......
http://cgi.ebay.com/3157-20-LED-Lig...ryZ33713QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[unlukky]

Problematic

I have never seen anyone 'officially' state that these trucks have a problem here. However, My GF's Tahoe burns through the 'driver's' side DRL every 6 months or so. On top of that, I have been paying real close attention and it seems that a tremendous number of Tahoes and Yukons I see on the road have the "DRIVER'S SIDE DRL INOP". Seems awful coincidental to me. Anyone have any background on why it would be this lamp 'ALL' the time?

 

[oneradride]

In my extensive (yet uneventful as far as a resolution goes) research on this subject I ran across this posting from http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=43420&st=30

That reads - On the GMT 800's there is a voltage difference from the right and left DRL which causes one bulb to burn out faster. Then you get into the cycle of replacing the burned out bulb only and then the older bulb then burns out more quickly (bulbs should be replaced in pairs, this is true of headlights as well
I understand that you can buy balanced bulbs at the dealer that compensates for the voltage diff from L and R DRL's.

// I find it hard to believe that so many people are having an issue with these things and GM is doing nothing about it. There is post after post about messed up DRL’s and no fix that I can find besides using the 14 volt band-aid bulb. (I made that up )

 

[Design]

I guess that another option is to rewire the DRLs. Splice into the harness before the plugs and use it to drive a relay that is wired to a 12V+ source (battery or other). My DRLs have been burnt out since I bought the truck about a month ago. I haven’t replaced them yet because I wanted a better light but after reading this thread didn’t want them to burn out fast.

 

[Caddis]

I'd also be interested in knowing if we can put some sort of LED in the DRLs. I am also rockin the orange, haven't had one burn out yet.

 

[oneradride]

The weather here in Omaha is not too bad today so I decided to get to the bottom of this issue and found some supersizing revelations. The DRL circuit does in fact pump out a whopping 14.78 Volts :crazy: after the truck is started and put into drive.

Because relays are much more resilient than led’s I decided to use the power wire from the DRL circuit for a trigger lead (just to close the relay) and pull 12 volts from somewhere else. This is the bad part….
There is nowhere else!! :cuss: The entire truck is running above 14 volts after startup. I tried at the battery, fuse panel, both inside and out. These things pump out some juice trying to get the battery recharged.
Bottom line is, a relay is not going to cut it. I’m either going to have to add an external voltage regulator or run some diodes ‘in line’ that will drop the voltage going to the DRL’s by about 3 volts all the time. This is not the best case scenario because after the battery is recharged and the alternator starts running in the 13’s the DRL circuit will be in the 10s and you are not going to get the full effect of the LED’s. You may also lesson the effectiveness of the safety features that the DRL’s where indented for in the first place. Time to start experimenting with external regulators I guess. Anyone done this? Any better suggestions?.