[tpcmngr]

ok first off im new so hello to all. Ok that out of the way i have a 2008 escape i switched my interior lamps to led festoon bulbs and now they come on with the dimmer and the doors but u cant turn them on at all from the switch or buttons does antone have any ideas.

 

[tang]

That is unique. How did you get festoons into the center console? (I have a moonroof and perhaps a different ceiling center console). I had the problem of my LEDs not shutting off completely but I realized that I had my trunk light set on 'off' and not 'auto', and switching that back to 'auto' made the LEDs shut off completely.

 

[tpcmngr]

i havent had any issue with them not shutting off and yes i think its different roofs i dont have a ceiling console at all its just a light if i could figure out how to post pics id would have one up

 

[Colleen]

if i could figure out how to post pics id would have one up

Here is a thread on how to post pics.

http://www.escape-city.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=171

 

[sleeve]

I'm not exactly sure the operation of the Escape computer [how the interior lights are controlled] but could it be that the LED's do not power on because the voltage requirement is so low that the computer isn't registaring door switch activation?

Not totally sure - just a W.A.G. really.

 

[tpcmngr]

see the issue with the lights is not that they dont come on with the doors and dimmer but u cannont use the switch on the light itself

and thank u for the link on how to post pics

 

[tpcmngr]

 

[tang]

why does that switch look like it's in the off position?

 

[tpcmngr]

because at the time of the pic i had just hung the fabric and it was being put back together and it was off

 

[jpark]

Here's what's probably happening, from what I can see.

LEDs are far more efficient than regular light bulbs in producing light, which is why they draw so little current to produce the same amount of light. The interior light circuit is controlled by solid-state devices called high-side FETs, which are basically transistors. Ford "dims" the interior lights by pulsing the circuit, not by decreasing voltage. It seems that even with the lights in the "off" position, the circuit still produces small pulses (probably because HSFETs can sense low current), and those pulses are enough to light the LEDs. The circuit was designed for light bulbs and their higher current draw.

But when you put enough lamps in parallel by turning more of them on, the pulsing disappears because the current draw increases.

Just my .02.