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LED question

2K views 8 replies 7 participants last post by  7om 
#1 ·
I want to change my front turn signals to LED. Can hyper-flashing be turned off by dealer software or do I need to add resistors?
 
#4 ·
There are also replacement flashers available specifically for LED turn signals. A little spendy compared to regular flashers. The resistors create a lot of heat, and you will need one for the right, and one for the left. They can typically be mounted anywhere between the turn switch and the turn bulbs. The LED flasher will be simpler and easier.
 
#5 ·
It depends on the year of your vehicle.

On my 2011 Limited, the turn blinkers are powered directly from the Smart Junction Box (SJB). There is no flasher relay. The output from the SJB is powered by a Field Effect Transistor (FET). The SJB uses the FET to monitor current load on the output. If a short circuit occurs, there is no fuse, the SJB will use the FET to detect the short and turn off the output. The SJB will log the error and try the output again later. Each failure puts strain on the FET. After a fixed number of failures, the SJB program will determine that the FET has been over stressed and will turn the output off permanently. The SJB will have to be replaced to regain function.
 
#7 ·
It depends on the year of your vehicle.

On my 2011 Limited, the turn blinkers are powered directly from the Smart Junction Box (SJB). There is no flasher relay. The output from the SJB is powered by a Field Effect Transistor (FET). The SJB uses the FET to monitor current load on the output. If a short circuit occurs, there is no fuse, the SJB will use the FET to detect the short and turn off the output. The SJB will log the error and try the output again later. Each failure puts strain on the FET. After a fixed number of failures, the SJB program will determine that the FET has been over stressed and will turn the output off permanently. The SJB will have to be replaced to regain function.
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I also have a 2011 limited. So ur basically telling me that there really isn't a way to bypass hyper flash? Will the load resistors work? Or will that screw the SJB also? Let me know what u think. Or ur opinion..
Thanks
 
#9 ·
Hyper flash is occurs when too little current is flowing in the turn blinker circuit. The old style turn blinker circuit had a flasher relay. This flasher relay had inside it a bimetallic strip which would bend when it was heated by the current flowing through it. On one end of this strip was a one half of a set of switch contacts. When the strip was heated it would bend and the switch contacts would open, interrupting the circuit. When the contacts opened, the current would stop flowing and the strip would cool. When the strip had cooled enough the strip would return to its original shape and the contacts would close completing the circuit. When not enough current is flowing through the bimetallic (as when one of the incandescent bulbs have burned out or LED bulbs are installed) the bimetallic strip doesn't heat up enough and the frequency of the flasher cycle would increase resulting in hyper flash.

In the old style systems, hyper flash caused by LED bulbs could be resolved by adding a resistor. This resistor would draw additional current so that the circuit would draw enough current to cause the bimetallic strip bend properly and the turn blinkers would flash at the correct frequency.

Our 2011 Tauruses do not have a flasher relay, but the electronics may be smart enough to mimic hyper flash. These electronics also are smart enough to protect the circuit against short circuits.

The bottom line here is this: Installing LED bulbs in the turn blinker circuit MAY trigger the protection system in the SJB. If too many errors occur on the SJB, it will shutdown the circuit and the SJB will have to be replaced. I don't know, but for me, it was not worth the risk. The protection system in the SJB can only detect current flow. It can not determine whether the current flow is from an incandescent bulb or a load resistor. So a load resistor may fool the SJB so that no errors occur. Or maybe an LED bulb will satisfy the the SJB and the LED bulbs will not cause an issue. Just beware.
 
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