Load Resistor to Correct Cruise Control Malfunction with LED Lights Installed
Question:
I have an old 1994 diesel motorhome. I tried replacing the regular incandescent bulbs in the rear parking/brake/turn with LED bulbs. When I did this, the third brake light would light up dimly with just the ignition on, and the cruise control stopped working. After doing some research, I find out this is common with older cruise control units because they use the path to ground through the tail light bulbs to sense whether the brake pedal is being pressed or not. As soon as I put incandescent bulbs back into even just one of the sockets, the cruise begins to work again. Apparently LED bulbs act like a directional diode and do not allow the path to ground when they are not lit... and of course when they are lit, the cruise control senses the voltage heading to the bulb and disengages. My questions is this... is it safe to assume that these bargman LED replacements will work much like the 1157 replacement LED bulbs and thus will give me the same result? Is there such a thing as a combination incandescent/LED light for this application so I can retain the functionality of the cruise control. I suppose I could wire an incandescent bulb in parallel with one of the tail lights somewhere hidden so that the system works? I have heard of adding resistors to help with the flashers not working correctly, but I am not sure if this applies here? Thanks in advance.
asked by: Duane P
Expert Reply:
A load resistor is your best bet for trying to correct the cruise control issue on your diesel pusher.
The load resistors used along with LEDs absorb power so that the wiring will sense what appears to be the higher power draw from incandescent lights. Based on what you mentioned you may need to do this on only one of the lights useing part # DI34ZR.
Products Referenced in This Question
Load Resistor Kit for LED Turn Signals - 50 Watts - 6 Ohm - Qty 2
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