Reverse LEDs causing radio interference, any solutions?

WilR · 03-12-2013, 09:22 AM

I replaced my reverse lights with these LEDs based on a recommendation from a friend.

http://pages.ebay.com/motors/link/?n...d=300678078623

Now when I put the car in reverse the radio is overtaken with static. I'm not very electrically inclined but I'm guessing the LEDs are causing noise because of the decreased load.

I plan on returning to the stock bulbs tonight but can anyone offer any solutions to keep the LED bulbs or enlighten me on what is actually happening to cause the radio static?

If the LEDs are interfering with the radio, could they be interfering with other electrical components that I do not know about?

Thanks in advance!

dothatshht · 03-12-2013, 10:42 AM

put the stock bulbs back in 1st and confirm it is indeed the LED's. I have LED's in my reverse and have no issues. same year and model

WilR · 03-12-2013, 07:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dothatshht

put the stock bulbs back in 1st and confirm it is indeed the LED's. I have LED's in my reverse and have no issues. same year and model

confirmed. I removed the bulbs one at a time hoping 1 may be defective. Same result for both bulbs in by themselves.

Cougar4 · 03-12-2013, 10:50 AM

This is the first time I have heard of an LED causing RFI on the radio. If you are sure it is the LED causing the trouble then you might be able to install a .1 microfarad @100vdc capacitor across the LED connections to see if that kills the RFI. Diodes are non-linear devices and are sometimes used to generate signals. I assume the trouble is being heard on the AM band which is more suseptable to impulse noise than the FM band is.

dothatshht · 03-12-2013, 10:53 AM

^wow, that was broken down to the science

WilR · 03-12-2013, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dothatshht

put the stock bulbs back in 1st and confirm it is indeed the LED's. I have LED's in my reverse and have no issues. same year and model

I plan to change back to stock tonight to confirm. I am pretty sure the LEDs are the root cause because it only happened after I changed them and only occurs when the car is in reverse with the LEDs on.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cougar4

This is the fir time I have heard of an LED causing RFI on the radio. If you are sure it is the LED causing the trouble then you might be able to install a .1 microfarad @100vdc capacitor across the LED connections to see if that kills the RFI. Diodes are non-linear devices and are sometimes used to generate signals. I assume the trouble is being heard on the AM band which is more suseptable to impulse noise than the FM band is.

Nope, it is on FM and completely takes it over. No audible recognition. Tonight I will confirm it is the bulbs and if it is I will be back to discuss your capacitor idea. Although I'm not really sure it is worth all the trouble.

WilR · 03-12-2013, 11:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dothatshht

put the stock bulbs back in 1st and confirm it is indeed the LED's. I have LED's in my reverse and have no issues. same year and model

Which LEDs are you using? I need an upgrade over the stock because of my tint.

dothatshht · 03-12-2013, 11:09 AM

i don't remember the site. It was a website that was an ad on here that I happen to notice one day. I bought the interior kit they sold along with the reverse.

I know a guy who bought from superbrightledsDOTcom and his are good too (2013 hatch)

Mulder · 03-12-2013, 11:53 AM

It's not the load, the LED bulbs use pulse width modulation and have a circuit on them that can radiate RF noise. This noise can get into the wiring directly or through inductive pickup, and if it's strong enough it can wipe out radio reception.
Cheaper bulbs (i.e. Ebay specials) are more likely to be manufactured to lower standards and thus radiate more EMI/RFI than higher quality ones, although this can happen with any LED bulbs to some degree.

WilR · 03-12-2013, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mulder

It's not the load, the LED bulbs use pulse width modulation and have a circuit on them that can radiate RF noise. This noise can get into the wiring directly or through inductive pickup, and if it's strong enough it can wipe out radio reception.
Cheaper bulbs (i.e. Ebay specials) are more likely to be manufactured to lower standards and thus radiate more EMI/RFI than higher quality ones, although this can happen with any LED bulbs to some degree.

Ahh ok thanks for the input. Any chance the pulse width modulation is causing interference with any thing else that isn't as noticeable? Are there solutions to get rid of the interference? Is there a "better" reverse light I can look into?

Cougar4 · 03-12-2013, 12:05 PM

That's pretty amazing it is killing the whole FM band and not effecting the AM band. You have a doozy there. A bad ground could possibly cause the trouble. You might try running a temporary ground jumper wire from the negative battery terminal to a good chassis ground spot at the rear of the car to see if that changes things.

flippymcbean · 03-12-2013, 02:33 PM

V-LEDs dot com offer awesome LEDs. My car has all LEDs. As far RFI...I don't is the radio. So I can't tell you if it will solve your problem.

WilR · 03-12-2013, 02:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cougar4

That's pretty amazing it is killing the whole FM band and not effecting the AM band. You have a doozy there. A bad ground could possibly cause the trouble. You might try running a temporary ground jumper wire from the negative battery terminal to a good chassis ground spot at the rear of the car to see if that changes things.

Well I don't know about killing the am. I have not tried that yet. I assume since it's killing the FM it would do the same to the AM. Will test it tonight. Should be a bad ground though, car is barely a month old. Thanks for the input.

WilR · 03-12-2013, 07:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WilR

Well I don't know about killing the am. I have not tried that yet. I assume since it's killing the FM it would do the same to the AM. Will test it tonight. Shouldn't be a bad ground though, car is barely a month old. Thanks for the input.

My assumption was completely wrong

.

The LEDs only kill the FM...

WilR · 03-12-2013, 02:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flippymcbean

V-LEDs dot com offer awesome LEDs. My car has all LEDs. As far RFI...I don't is the radio. So I can't tell you if it will solve your problem.

Could you test it out for me? Just put the car in reverse and turn the radio on. Would like to know before I put down 80$ on vleds. Thanks!

flippymcbean · 03-12-2013, 02:56 PM

$80? Haha!! I don't know what your talking about...I'll go check right now.

flippymcbean · 03-12-2013, 02:59 PM

Just tested it like 30 seconds ago and it seemed to work. Radio was solid and interrupted on an fm station

WilR · 03-12-2013, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flippymcbean

$80? Haha!! I don't know what your talking about...I'll go check right now.

Haha I thought I saw a thread yesterday where someone spent $80 on vleds. Haha maybe I'm thinking of something else. I'll have to look at then tonight. How is the light output? I need something pretty bright that I can see through my tint.

flippymcbean · 03-12-2013, 03:18 PM

YouTube (Short URL)

YouTube (Short URL)

That's all I got for now...

flippymcbean · 03-12-2013, 08:10 PM

Vleds!!!!

Cougar4 · 03-13-2013, 10:44 AM

Are the LEDs wiping out the whole FM band or just part of it?

WilR · 03-13-2013, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cougar4

Are the LEDs wiping out the whole FM band or just part of it?

Not sure. I only had it on one station near the upper portion of the band. (104.9)

I'm curious though if it is powerful enough to wipe out FM , why does it no effect AM?

03-12-2013, 09:22 AM	#1
WilR Scooby Newbie Member#: 343078 Join Date: Jan 2013 Chapter/Region: South East Vehicle: 2013 WRX Hatchback SWP	Reverse LEDs causing radio interference, any solutions? I replaced my reverse lights with these LEDs based on a recommendation from a friend. http://pages.ebay.com/motors/link/?n...d=300678078623 Now when I put the car in reverse the radio is overtaken with static. I'm not very electrically inclined but I'm guessing the LEDs are causing noise because of the decreased load. I plan on returning to the stock bulbs tonight but can anyone offer any solutions to keep the LED bulbs or enlighten me on what is actually happening to cause the radio static? If the LEDs are interfering with the radio, could they be interfering with other electrical components that I do not know about? Thanks in advance!

03-12-2013, 10:42 AM	#2
dothatshht Scooby Newbie Member#: 335243 Join Date: Oct 2012 Chapter/Region: Tri-State Location: Nyack, NY Vehicle: 13 WRX SWP	put the stock bulbs back in 1st and confirm it is indeed the LED's. I have LED's in my reverse and have no issues. same year and model Last edited by dothatshht; 03-12-2013 at 10:52 AM.

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03-12-2013, 10:50 AM	#4
Cougar4 Scooby Guru Member#: 53443 Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Anchorage, AK Vehicle: 2001 LL Bean Outback Winestone	This is the first time I have heard of an LED causing RFI on the radio. If you are sure it is the LED causing the trouble then you might be able to install a .1 microfarad @100vdc capacitor across the LED connections to see if that kills the RFI. Diodes are non-linear devices and are sometimes used to generate signals. I assume the trouble is being heard on the AM band which is more suseptable to impulse noise than the FM band is.

03-12-2013, 10:53 AM	#5
dothatshht Scooby Newbie Member#: 335243 Join Date: Oct 2012 Chapter/Region: Tri-State Location: Nyack, NY Vehicle: 13 WRX SWP	^wow, that was broken down to the science

03-12-2013, 11:09 AM	#8
dothatshht Scooby Newbie Member#: 335243 Join Date: Oct 2012 Chapter/Region: Tri-State Location: Nyack, NY Vehicle: 13 WRX SWP	i don't remember the site. It was a website that was an ad on here that I happen to notice one day. I bought the interior kit they sold along with the reverse. I know a guy who bought from superbrightledsDOTcom and his are good too (2013 hatch)

03-12-2013, 11:53 AM	#9
Mulder Trust no one Moderator Member#: 11170 Join Date: Oct 2001 Chapter/Region: Tri-State Location: NYC Vehicle: 02 RAV4 MT 15 WRX/11 CRZ	It's not the load, the LED bulbs use pulse width modulation and have a circuit on them that can radiate RF noise. This noise can get into the wiring directly or through inductive pickup, and if it's strong enough it can wipe out radio reception. Cheaper bulbs (i.e. Ebay specials) are more likely to be manufactured to lower standards and thus radiate more EMI/RFI than higher quality ones, although this can happen with any LED bulbs to some degree.

03-12-2013, 12:05 PM	#11
Cougar4 Scooby Guru Member#: 53443 Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Anchorage, AK Vehicle: 2001 LL Bean Outback Winestone	That's pretty amazing it is killing the whole FM band and not effecting the AM band. You have a doozy there. A bad ground could possibly cause the trouble. You might try running a temporary ground jumper wire from the negative battery terminal to a good chassis ground spot at the rear of the car to see if that changes things.

03-12-2013, 02:33 PM	#12
flippymcbean Scooby Specialist Member#: 198546 Join Date: Dec 2008 Chapter/Region: South East Location: Beaufort, South Carolina Vehicle: 2003 Evolution VIII Lightning Yellow	V-LEDs dot com offer awesome LEDs. My car has all LEDs. As far RFI...I don't is the radio. So I can't tell you if it will solve your problem.

03-12-2013, 02:56 PM	#16
flippymcbean Scooby Specialist Member#: 198546 Join Date: Dec 2008 Chapter/Region: South East Location: Beaufort, South Carolina Vehicle: 2003 Evolution VIII Lightning Yellow	$80? Haha!! I don't know what your talking about...I'll go check right now.

03-12-2013, 02:59 PM	#17
flippymcbean Scooby Specialist Member#: 198546 Join Date: Dec 2008 Chapter/Region: South East Location: Beaufort, South Carolina Vehicle: 2003 Evolution VIII Lightning Yellow	Just tested it like 30 seconds ago and it seemed to work. Radio was solid and interrupted on an fm station

03-12-2013, 08:10 PM	#20
flippymcbean Scooby Specialist Member#: 198546 Join Date: Dec 2008 Chapter/Region: South East Location: Beaufort, South Carolina Vehicle: 2003 Evolution VIII Lightning Yellow	Vleds!!!!

03-13-2013, 10:44 AM	#21
Cougar4 Scooby Guru Member#: 53443 Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Anchorage, AK Vehicle: 2001 LL Bean Outback Winestone	Are the LEDs wiping out the whole FM band or just part of it?