[fosley]

I originally posted this on the other board that shall not be named, but you might read through it just to see what some other people are doing. For instance, some people suggested sanding each of the LED bulbs down so they are flat to reduce hotspots. I tried this for my friend's Mustang (aftermarket bulbs), but while it made it brighter, it also focused the light more towards one spot, as I expected. However, those were cheap ($20) gauges, and didn't have the fancy light-spreading plate behind them, so I don't know for the MR2. You can view the original thread by clicking here, then adding "oc" after "mr2" in the address bar. You have to be a member at that site to see anything, but some of that info might be useful.

Also, here's some info about other lights in the car:

Originally Posted by fosley

What's Next?
Now that your gauges look really cool, you want to do all the other lights, right?

Without going into exact details (yet!), here are the ones that are easy:

To change the keyring, remove the center console surround, pull the knee-panel off from below the steering wheel (4 screws, you took one off in Step 4), then remove the screw on the right lower right side of the ring. Pull the keyring out, then you can see the wires leading to the bulb. Twist the socket 90 degrees or so, then pull straight out. Remove the old bulb, replace with a new 74-type bulb of your choosing. I used the "74 Wedge Base LED bulb" from superbrightleds.com.

(Automatic Only) To change the shift "boot" light inside the shifter assembly: remove the center hump cover (four screws near the back, remove the shifter surround, two screws at the front connecting to the ashtray tray), then unscrew the 3 screws holding the cover in place. You can lift the cover a little (but the shifter is in the way, preventing you from pulling it all the way off), then reach up and grab the socket. Twist 90 degrees, pull it straight out, then replace the 74-type bulb. Warning: I used the same bulb as in my keyring, and it was *bright*. I'm going to re-paint all the black to cover the cracks and see how it works then. Otherwise, it would be best to use a dimmer bulb.

(Automatic Only) I haven't done it yet, but the shift indicator on the gauge cluster has a colored film painted onto it; I think you can get that sort of thing from an arts store, then sand off the old, paint on the new, and have those lights colored. You could try changing the bulbs (they are just 5mm bulbs with two wire leads--pay attention when pulling the old bulb off the socket, because the new ones will have to go back in the same way), but they will always be tinted green.

The clock is colored slightly green, but is mostly white, so putting a filter on it changes the color easily. I chopped a flashlight filter apart, which works pretty well. HalfSpec used some colored acrylics that look good also. I tried some transparent colored paints on clear plastic, which had good color, but the surface wasn't smooth, and made the digits look funny.

To get to the ashtray light, remove the center hump cover (four screws near the back, remove the shifter surround, two screws at the front connecting to the ashtray tray), ashtray, and center dash surround, then pull the ashtray tray out of the hole. This socket doesn't twist; it just pulls out. Replace with a 74-type bulb and put everything back together.

I don't know of any DIY walkthrough for the other components, but HalfSpec has done a lot of work on them. [Edit 10 Jan 2007] He is no longer modding them for people, but you can check out his website for pictures and diagrams and this thread for some other info.

Since this forum is probably still editing my links to the other forum, click here, then add the "oc" after "mr2" in the URL again to get to the last link in that quote.

Anyhow, I live about 7 hours from my MR2's right now and haven't touched them in a while, so I hadn't really put a lot of effort into the lights since I don't drive them and am even considering selling everything MR2 related. They're a lot of fun, but life has changed and I don't know if I can afford more than one sports car right now. So anyhow, have fun with it, and I might pop in occasionally to answer questions, but don't expect it. Cheers!