First off, I had purchased two red led bulbs from DDM Tuning to replace the brake light bulbs on my '03 Cav. After I had gotten the bulbs, I tried to install the first into the left rear brake socket. I turn the parking lights on and see it light up. Then I step on the brake and..... nothing. I pull the bulb out and flip it 180 degrees in the socket. Hit the brake, it works. Hit the lights, nothing. As I was testing the other bulb with the brakes, I saw a bit of smoke, let off the brake and then hit again and didn't see any smoke. After pulling the second bulb out I began to inspect both and notice that the bulbs had both somewhat melted on the same point on both bulbs. I checked the socket and it was untouched.

Has anyone else had the same issues with their bulbs? Any suggestions on better quality bulbs? I am considering getting a refund and getting another brand.


"United by Individuality"
"If life is a joke, why aren't we laughing?"
"Normality depends on one's perception of reality."
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3820803

You probably bought the wrong bulbs. You need duel filament bulbs. Your probably bought 3156s which are single filament when you really needed 3157. They may not be the exact bulb numbers you need that I mentioned. I was using them as an example. Or you got a cheap/ defective set.




On the inside my car looks like a fighter jet.

http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/3156-3157LED

That is the listing that I actually had bought. The one's I got were the 60x3528. They are listed for both 3156 and 3157. Below are pics I sent to DDM of the burned areas, you can see that they are wired for 3157 sockets.






"United by Individuality"
"If life is a joke, why aren't we laughing?"
"Normality depends on one's perception of reality."
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3820803

good luck, DDM Tuning is a scam company. They refused to warranty my HID relay harness and even paid extra for the extra wiring. Everything fried just getting WET..barely moist, they fried.
DDM says they dont warranty against 'environmental hazards'. Um hello, its a failed assembly part that was not properly sealed! They were even hidden from direct contact with water.

F DDM. F them to hell. Worst $93 ever spent.


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

I have copied below what has been exchanged in the support area of DDM's site.

"James MacKenzie
Posted On: 14 Oct 2012 10:51 PM
Okay, after I first received my two red 3156/3157 60x3528 4.2W LED lights that I had ordered I had installed one on the left rear brake/tail light on my 2003 Chevrolet Cavalier and tested it with first the tail lights, works fine. Then went to hit the brakes, nothing. I pulled the bulb out and flipped it 180 degrees and reinstalled it. Hit the brakes, it works, hit the lights, nothing. Then I tried the other bulb in the same socket, hit the brakes, saw the bulb light up and also saw a little smoke. Let off the brake and hit it again and saw it light up with no smoke. I pulled the bulb and looked at it and saw that it had melted around one terminal. Checked my socket and it was unharmed. I then inspected the other bulb and saw that it had melted in the same exact spot. Photos of the bulbs current condition are attached to this ticket.

I don't understand how I have to flip the bulb 180 degrees to get the bulb to work with either circuit when I should have to. Also it concerns me about the quality of the bulbs when they partially melt on first light up. This is especially disconcerting considering I am a first time buyer of your products. I would like to get a new pair of bulbs under warranty but would like the new pair checked out by your team for complete quality control before having them sent to me. This is to guaranty that I won't have issues when I install them.

Any help with any of this will be greatly appreciated.

Attachments 100_2830.JPG (1.68 MB)
100_2831.JPG (1.43 MB)
100_2832.JPG (1.37 MB)
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Xxxxxxxxxxxx
Posted On: 17 Oct 2012 6:06 PM
Hello James,

Thank you for your email and your DDM Tuning purchase.

It's surprising that you encountered the problems that you did.

We have heard of some sockets having different power-ground wiring assignments, which may be the situation here. If that's the case, for the bulbs to be compatible, the socket would have to be re-wired. Do you have a way to test the ground-power positions of your socket?

We could replace the bulbs if you'd like to try the installation again. Or, we can process a refund for you.

Please advise.

Thank you,

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

To reply to this email, please be sure to first log in to the DDM Tuning Support Center which is found at https://www.ddmtuning.com/support/ . Replying from your "regular" email will not be successful. Thank you.

DDM Tuning
Customer Support
(858) 633-2020, Option 1
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James MacKenzie
Posted On: 18 Oct 2012 10:41 AM
I honestly would like a refund and there really isn't a way I can rewire the bulb socket since it is a complete removable socket. At this time I am going to research things again and work out a different plan.

I appreciate the business. I like your products and ideas. Just wish things worked out better than they did.
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Xxxxxxxxxxxx
Posted On: 19 Oct 2012 5:57 PM
Hello James,

Thank you for the email.

I will process a refund for you. I need to check with my supervisors as to the refund amount.

Thank you for your patience,

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

To reply to this email, please be sure to first log in to the DDM Tuning Support Center which is found at https://www.ddmtuning.com/support/ . Replying from your "regular" email will not be successful. Thank you.

DDM Tuning
Customer Support
(858) 633-2020, Option 1"

As I last told them, I like their ideas, but the quality of my first purchase has me second guessing things. As for other options, I'm looking at Superbrightled.com and from the info they have, I may have a suspicion as to why things didn't work right. But I have to verify things with a little DVOM time. I'll keep people informed with my findings.


"United by Individuality"
"If life is a joke, why aren't we laughing?"
"Normality depends on one's perception of reality."
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3820803

Poor quality. Probably have better luck with ebay knockoffs. I bought all my leds for my car for under $30 to do the entire interior and exterior. I even bough switchback bulbs.




On the inside my car looks like a fighter jet.

Look, you can get two of those same bulbs for a dollar and if you have any problems later its only a dollar to get another set.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-3157-3457-4157-White-Amber-60-SMD-LED-Front-Rear-Tail-Turn-Light-Lamp-Bulb-12V-/150920330689?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item23238d7dc1&vxp=mtr




On the inside my car looks like a fighter jet.

you need what is called a 'CK' style bulb for cavaliers/sunfires. gm has a weird power and grounding system for the marker lights. i ordered mine from v-leds.com(for some reason they dont carry the red for the tail lights anymore) and they worked perfect in my girls cav with out a hitch. although youll have "hyper flash" when you use the turn signal with out the proper resistor or relay. the resistors are the cheaper band-aid to fix it. the relay is the proper way.
here is a link to one that should work





simple minds talk about other people.
average minds talk about events.
great minds discuss ideas

[quote=Carbon TRD�]you need what is called a 'CK' style bulb for cavaliers/sunfires. gm has a weird power and grounding system for the marker lights. i ordered mine from v-leds.com(for some reason they dont carry the red for the tail lights anymore) and they worked perfect in my girls cav with out a hitch. although youll have "hyper flash" when you use the turn signal with out the proper resistor or relay. the resistors are the cheaper band-aid to fix it. the relay is the proper way.
here is a link to one that should work

That's what I found out on Superbrightleds.com and I had pulled an empty socket off my LSS and checked it with a DVOM and yeah it was the same as they said. I'm just wondering which locations I should get the CK bulbs for and which I could just use a regular one for?


"United by Individuality"
"If life is a joke, why aren't we laughing?"
"Normality depends on one's perception of reality."
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3820803

the reverse lights you can use any 3156/3157 led bulb. but the other sockets that require 3157 bulbs(front markers, rear tail lights)for multiple functions will need the 'CK' bulb. anything else(194/168) you can buy any available led bulb. the HVAC requires a size 74 led and the gauges depending on what year you own varies on how you can put leds in it, 95-99 dont require soldering, 2000+ need soldered in.



simple minds talk about other people.
average minds talk about events.
great minds discuss ideas

[quote=Carbon TRD�]the reverse lights you can use any 3156/3157 led bulb. but the other sockets that require 3157 bulbs(front markers, rear tail lights)for multiple functions will need the 'CK' bulb. anything else(194/168) you can buy any available led bulb. the HVAC requires a size 74 led and the gauges depending on what year you own varies on how you can put leds in it, 95-99 dont require soldering, 2000+ need soldered in.

Thanks, that's all I need to know. I know that the HVAC for me is a bit of a pain to even pull out all together.


"United by Individuality"
"If life is a joke, why aren't we laughing?"
"Normality depends on one's perception of reality."
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3820803

macktruck84 wrote:[quote=Carbon TRD�]you need what is called a 'CK' style bulb for cavaliers/sunfires. gm has a weird power and grounding system for the marker lights. i ordered mine from v-leds.com(for some reason they dont carry the red for the tail lights anymore) and they worked perfect in my girls cav with out a hitch. although youll have "hyper flash" when you use the turn signal with out the proper resistor or relay. the resistors are the cheaper band-aid to fix it. the relay is the proper way.
here is a link to one that should work

That's what I found out on Superbrightleds.com and I had pulled an empty socket off my LSS and checked it with a DVOM and yeah it was the same as they said. I'm just wondering which locations I should get the CK bulbs for and which I could just use a regular one for?

Since I'm going to be swapping like all of my interior and exterior bulbs to LED...
Let me get this straight.

CK3157 bulbs for blinkers, tails, and markers? Regular 3157 for reverse lights? 194 for license plate? Superbrightleds tells you what bulbs you need but for a few they offer CK and regular. For tails and markers I want colored and not white, yeah?

And what's this about a relay for blinkers?

since LEDs require less of an electrical draw, they make the car think that the bulb is burned out and cause "hyper flashing". to solve this they make a relay that replaces the one under the dash that regulates the voltage and eliminates the hyper flash. you can also get an inline resistor to fix the hyper flash problem which is usually cheaper but the give off an EXTREME amount of heat and if they arent positioned correctly can cause melting or even a fire. you will need one resistor for each bulb you replace that has a multiple function(running/turnsignal) so 4 total or if you find the right relay just replace that.
as far as the bulbs, the front markers(assuming the 2000 in your signature is yours) are 3157ck and the rears are 3157ck. anything with a "peanut" sized(194/168) bulb is just plug and play with any matching sized LED.



simple minds talk about other people.
average minds talk about events.
great minds discuss ideas

Kody LaGreca wrote:Since I'm going to be swapping like all of my interior and exterior bulbs to LED...
Let me get this straight.

CK3157 bulbs for blinkers, tails, and markers? Regular 3157 for reverse lights? 194 for license plate? Superbrightleds tells you what bulbs you need but for a few they offer CK and regular. For tails and markers I want colored and not white, yeah?

And what's this about a relay for blinkers?

Superbrightleds do not have any CK bulbs in white, but if you read some of their info you can see why doing a similar colored bulb to the lens is the best, but yes, brake lights you have to do red but depending on your local ordinance, you can run white or amber for turn signals. Also depending on ordinance, you may only can run any 194 bulb as white and no other color.

As for flasher(not a relay), unless you want to wire in the resistors, it is best to put in an ELECTRONIC flasher because it does not require a certain load to flash the lights while a standard flasher does.


"United by Individuality"
"If life is a joke, why aren't we laughing?"
"Normality depends on one's perception of reality."
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3820803

macktruck84 wrote:

Kody LaGreca wrote:Since I'm going to be swapping like all of my interior and exterior bulbs to LED...
Let me get this straight.

CK3157 bulbs for blinkers, tails, and markers? Regular 3157 for reverse lights? 194 for license plate? Superbrightleds tells you what bulbs you need but for a few they offer CK and regular. For tails and markers I want colored and not white, yeah?

And what's this about a relay for blinkers?

Superbrightleds do not have any CK bulbs in white, but if you read some of their info you can see why doing a similar colored bulb to the lens is the best, but yes, brake lights you have to do red but depending on your local ordinance, you can run white or amber for turn signals. Also depending on ordinance, you may only can run any 194 bulb as white and no other color.

As for flasher(not a relay), unless you want to wire in the resistors, it is best to put in an ELECTRONIC flasher because it does not require a certain load to flash the lights while a standard flasher does.

They have multiple flashers on SuperBrightLEDS. Which pin layout is ours? I'm hoping that it doesn't have some stupidly annoying sound when you turn the blinkers on. I like the stock, mellow quiet click.