Need to dim a 194 equiv.

[guy48065]

Both license plate lights are burned out in my truck and that's a particularly nasty environment there on the back bumper so I decided to put in LED equivalants. They're too bright. Is there a paint dip to mute some of the brightness?

 

[thermal guy]

Is there a clear shield plastic or something over the bulb?

 

[Nicholas9876]

I have seen LED 194 with a difuser - Philips?

Also, there are plug-and-play license plate light assemblies - Morimoto XB and others.

 

[lightfooted]

Could make a diffuser out of a plastic milk jug then spray on some Plasti-Dip smoke color which is intended for darkening tail-lights and stuff on cars. I just dont see how a stock auto lamp could be too bright. It's supposed to make your license plate visible at night.

 

[guy48065]

Everyone wants brighter bulbs, right? The OEM license plate lamps are pretty dim--they don't need to be beacons. The amped-up 194 LED replacements just look wrong.

Back in the day there was paint dip for incandescent bulbs. I'm sure that would work fine on LEDs that run much cooler.
I might try to just spritz some window tint paint on the plastic bulb to see if that works.

I really don't want to do anything to modify the little housings.

 

[Nicholas9876]

Everyone wants brighter bulbs, right? The OEM license plate lamps are pretty dim--they don't need to be beacons. The amped-up 194 LED replacements just look wrong.

Back in the day there was paint dip for incandescent bulbs. I'm sure that would work fine on LEDs that run much cooler.
I might try to just spritz some window tint paint on the plastic bulb to see if that works.

I really don't want to do anything to modify the little housings.

What bulb are you using?

 

[guy48065]

Sylvania 194led from Walmart.

 

[guy48065]

So I poked the bases into a piece of foam & misted the plastic bulb with black paint.
I wasn't especially careful, figuring I could wipe it off with thinner or a scotch brite.
The paint had the desired effect. The bulbs now dimly light the license without turning it into a billboard.