Interior LED project

[nes85er]

just last week i had an idea to add some LEDs to my e30. My friend just bought a 2000 328i with a nice package including that LED stuff...well anywayz, as i sat in the drivers seet to take it for a drive i placed my hand on the shift knob and i was delighted to see the shiftting area and some part of the console being illuminated with some amber color...for a second there i couldnt figure out where the light was coming from lol...so i just kept on lifting my hand to see where it would end up...so yeah it ended up being in the center near the rear view mirror...so im like..hmm...perhaps i can make a little set up like these with some LEDs.

where do you guys think the best place would be to place em? so they wont be visible but have the desired effect.

[Majikal]

Im surprised I didnt see this thread earlier, so Ill bring it back from the dead kinda. Im a moderator on a Ford Focus board, and one of our sponsors is Oznium.com. They sell LED's (regular and pre-wired with resistors) for the best price ANYWHERE, as well as other things like underbody kits, cold cathode tubes, wheels well kits, switches, etc etc. They're literally the best place to get things like this.
I just got in a bunch of Orange LED's and rocker switches that I plan on putting in my e30. Hopefully, the orange LED will match the factory Amber stuff pretty well.
Hopefully Ill get around to it sometime this week, I plan to put a couple in the coin tray under the radio and above the ash tray, just as some accent light, and then maybe some in the b-pillars to act as a dome light, so when I need some light, just flip the switch.
But for what its worth, Oznium.com has the best pieces and prices around!

[WillisE30]

Not to bust anyone's bubble but the majority of the ambiance lighting in these newer cars is actually fiber optic. The e38 7 series was one of the first BMW vehicles to do this, and it has made it's way into the X5 and many others. Makes taking a door panel off a more delicate task.

At any rate wiring up some LEDs is fairly easy and you really only need to put a resistor(I forget how many Ohms) in series with the led on the positive side of the circuit in order to reduce the voltage as others have discussed.

[Majikal]

At any rate wiring up some LEDs is fairly easy and you really only need to put a resistor(I forget how many Ohms) in series with the led on the positive side of the circuit in order to reduce the voltage as others have discussed.

very true. The size resistor you need is dependent on what size LED you're running as some of them need different voltage. At any rate, the site I posted, Oznium.com sells them ready to install with resistors already soldered in and heat shrunk for less than 2 dollars each.
And like you said, most of that ambient light in the newer cars is FO, and LED's are have very directional light pattern. However, I've found that if you shave down the tip of the LED with say a dremel or a file, the beam is much more soft and ambient. :p