Surprise when changing instrument panel bulbs

[ekrampitzjr]

The 2011 Ford Ranger (North American–spec) pickup I recently bought needed an instrument panel lamp replaced. This is a common older–Ford repair, and my previous Fords used the 194 minibulb in a socket that twists out of the instrument cluster to remove it. The bulb simply pushed into the socket. You reused the socket with a new bulb.

My replacements were 194LL, the long-life version, to avoid having to replace them again.

A Ranger forum said this truck also used the 194. I bought 194LLs. I ripped apart the panel, and surprise! On the later Rangers the 194 was no longer used. Long story short: the part number needed is Toshiba V-2, which is a smaller socket with a non-replaceable bulb. The manufacturer and part number are molded into the socket. These remove from the instrument cluster in the same way, but they don't interchange with the older 194 socket.

Had to order the V-2 online as the local auto parts stores don't carry these. Ordered 10 to replace them all, including the turn signal and high-beam indicators. They finally arrived and I installed them last week. Some V-2 sockets online are pictured using a replaceable bulb, but those I ordered were identical to the ones in the Ranger and the bulb could not be removed.

Found out that there are several such bulb-socket units in use in various vehicles, not just the V-2. Be aware of this if you need to replace your gauge bulbs. For Rangers it looks as if 2004–on use the Toshiba units.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

That Toshiba V-2 seems to be a 74 bulb with the socket aka PC74

 

[ekrampitzjr]

That Toshiba V-2 seems to be a 74 bulb with the socket aka PC74

Some versions in pictures online appear to be. Maybe they are older versions. The captive bulbs in the ones in the Ranger were physically smaller than the 74. They were fixed and absolutely could not be removed from the sockets. They would have broken.

If I had received V-2 sockets with replaceable 74 bulbs, I would have changed them with new 74 bulbs before installing them.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Some versions in pictures online appear to be. Maybe they are older versions. The captive bulbs in the ones in the Ranger were physically smaller than the 74. They were fixed and absolutely could not be removed from the sockets. They would have broken.

If I had received V-2 sockets with replaceable 74 bulbs, I would have changed them with new 74 bulbs before installing them.

hmmmmmmmmmmm

Even 74 is difficult to remove from the socket, and I have broken a few of them! And in other cases, the socket was burnt, so I still had to replace the socket anyway. (This wasn't on a Ranger, but I can attest to how small 74 bulbs are, so something smaller would be impossible to remove even if they could be)

Do you know how wide the fixed bulbs in the V-2 socket are? The 74 bulbs are 5mm wide and 18mm long.

It's also possible that a generic PC74 socket, the entire socket, will fit where the V-2 goes.

 

[ekrampitzjr]

I didn't measure the fixed bulbs, but would guess they are no more than 4 mm in diameter. Definitely smaller than the 74 minibulb, and you can't see the base because the socket covers it. All you see is the glass disappearing into the socket.

 

[mk378]

2011 should have been well past the incandescent era. But alas some manufacturers hold on.

Try pulling one of the burnt ones apart. Everything I'm seeing suggests it is a removable wedge-base bulb. Though V-2 describes the interface between the twist out socket and the panel, not anything about the bulb.

 

[meep]

Ive gotten lucky soldering LED-resistor pairs into these before, when something like green or yellow lighting is correct. Sometimes these sockets can be pesky enough to warrant the extra effort.