Just finished installing engine bay LED's myself..

I did a search about LED's and most everyone had them installed instead of doing it themselves so I started doing research and planning from scratch and this is what I came up with and how I did it. I ordered one each of several different kinds from superbrightleds.com to decide which one gave the look I was after. I just ran a temporary wire from the battery back to decide which I liked best and the best location of each light. I wanted the entire bay lit evenly but more on the dim side than bright side and didn't want spot light/eyeball type of lighting which gave several different circles of light instead of the ambient look I liked. I ended up installing 4 of their FALM--CW4 cool whites. Each fixture has 4 SMD lights which light up 180 degrees instead of non SMD led's which are more a patterned light. The fixtures are black instead of the chrome the factory uses and is more stealth when you raise the bonnet. They cost a whopping $4.95 each. I tapped into the wire that runs to the right rear side marker light accessed through the rear right grill so they come on whenever I turn on the headlights (first pic). I then ran the wire inside the bay behind the right black plastic cladding and up behind the rubber hose that goes up to the bonnet and then after dropping the cover under the bonnet I ran the wires in it and drilled small holes at the fixture site. The front one looked best on the firewall instead of the bonnet cover so I took off the firewall cladding and ran that wire under it to mount that one. I located the front one between the V of the engine (not center of the engine bay) and the rear one between the air boxes (which are the Fabspeed CF covers and reflect the light nicely). They stick with double sided tape provided. They are flexible and very light and stuck extremely well. So far no problem with heat affecting them. I spliced all the wires from the 3 in the bonnet cover together with the main wire (second pic). I ran and tapped the firewall one into the main wire before I ran it up to the bonnet. The pictures look very blue but in person it is more white than that and has the typical blue white color of cool white led's and HID's. I believe they were 6000K color. If you prefer a little brighter and whiter look the AM-RB-CW6 would be for you and still $4.95. They had 6 SMD's instead of 4 and was whiter. I liked the slightly more bluish HID look. It took two weekends of planning and installing but achieved the exact look I was after and I have about $30 total in it. Cheapest mod I've ever done especially for the results!

looks cool! nice job.

looks great when the hood is closed. the engine is nicely showcased.

 

i wonder where the lp560 lights are located...

Looks nice!

Very nice! Thanks for the detailed post.

 

 

I like your bright white better than the orange/reddish ones i've been seeing on other cars.

That looks fantastic... Great job!

Very cool!!!

Nice!

 

Next goal should be to hook them up to the throttle. Let them change from white to RED (full throttle)!

Looking good! great job and good idea

 

looks great when the hood is closed. the engine is nicely showcased.

 

i wonder where the lp560 lights are located...

 

After seeing this thread earlier I went and looked for pics of the optional factory setup on a 560 and couldn't find any. I know we've posted them or had pics of a few member's cars with it, but it's tough to search.

That looks awesome! Great work! Might even look better than the OEM lighting system!

For those who asked, here is a pic of the factory locations of the LED's, how they look lit, and a close up of factory and mine. The factory ones are LED instead of SMD LED and so have more a patterned light instead of the diffuse light mine does and that's why I only needed one in the rear instead of their 2 and mine is much better lit from the front of the engine since factory has none in the front. The factory is also mostly white without the bluish HID look.

I like the way yours look over factory, now clean up that wiring with loom.

Looks awesome. nicely done

HBlambo: There are no wires showing to do anything to. The picture of where I tapped into the side marker is behind the R rear grill and not visible unless you look through the grill up close with a flashlight-just like the original wire I tapped into is only visible then.

Ahh I see, great job; again love the results.

 

Ahh I see, great job; again love the results.

 

I love it! The LEDs make a huge difference.

Fast and Furious

nice

Looks great, nice DIY.

Nice!

 

Next goal should be to hook them up to the throttle. Let them change from white to RED (full throttle)!

 

 

I had the same idea- change from white to orange to red. And have some of the (diffused) light also show thru the rear plastic grill-work. Can you imagine being behind a Gallardo watching the engine compartment and muffler area "glow" from the inside as the throttle is applied?

 

Could be really awesome- or very cheesey. And you'd need to make sure the lights did not look like /interfere with the brake lights.

nice

 

 

Please report back and let us know how they handle with the high heat, if it holds up I want to do!

 

Cool!!!

thanks for sharing, would be great to get a little more info on the wiring

Classy and elegant. I love the fact that you did the work yourself too. Nice job!