Backlight of CC buttons - Honda Prelude Forum

PatrickC1026 · 12-29-2003, 05:52 PM

The backlight of rear defogger, REC and A/C is gone although individual button light still works if I press them. How do I replace the backlight bulb?

L-U-R-C-H · 12-29-2003, 11:23 PM

Same with me...although if I kinda tap the front of the unit, it will light them back up. I'm guessing the bulbs are just old/warn out and need replaced.

marshdoggg · 12-30-2003, 07:46 PM

they do need to be replaced. you can take out that part with the 3 switches on it by just pulling it out. then take each switch assembly off of the plastic brace. the bulbs go into the side of the switches. they are very very small, but they have a backing of plastic so they are easy to handle. they cost a little over 5 bucks from honda, so junkyard is the name of the game there..

PatrickC1026 · 12-31-2003, 12:25 AM

^^ Thanks for the tip.

yohan420 · 12-31-2003, 08:46 AM

ok hold up, are you saying that when you push teh button the green/amber light goes on to show that its the active selection?

if so then above is the way ..

If its the dash lights where it lights them all up so you can SEE them and the pictures on the buttons at night .. its a different story, you have to remove the CC unit I think .. might be able to get at it from underneath but theres 3 bulbs that illuminate the whole CC at night

PatrickC1026 · 12-31-2003, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by yohan420
ok hold up, are you saying that when you push teh button the green/amber light goes on to show that its the active selection?

if so then above is the way ..

If its the dash lights where it lights them all up so you can SEE them and the pictures on the buttons at night .. its a different story, you have to remove the CC unit I think .. might be able to get at it from underneath but theres 3 bulbs that illuminate the whole CC at night

Ummmmm maybe I didn't make myself clear???

Let me try again. At night, I can't see those 3 buttons which is located on the right side of CC. However, if I press one of those 3 buttons, the amber (I think green for A/C) light of that button comes on. So, the individual button lights are OK. I think that there is a separate bulb that backlight those 3 buttons.

JDMugenBB1 · 12-31-2003, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PatrickC1026

Ummmmm maybe I didn't make myself clear??? Let me try again. At night, I can't see those 3 buttons which is located on the right side of CC. However, if I press one of those 3 buttons, the amber (I think green for A/C) light of that button comes on. So, the individual button lights are OK. I think that there is a separate bulb that backlight those 3 buttons.

so you're saying that the idicator lights (light above the picture) are working but Not the back lights (lights that come on when you turn on your parking lights)??? if it's the back light (the one that lights up the pictures at night) then yes you do have to remove the CC unit to get to the bulb, unless you can get to it by removing your stereo, I can't remember. If it's only the right side that doesn't work.. then all you have to worry about is one bulb (the one on that side). This one blub shoots light thru a clear acrylic piece that disperses the light to each button (picture). The idicator lights use L.E.D.'s... & rarely every go out... the main reason they would go out would be a bad wiring harness connection.

Ceasar

PatrickC1026 · 12-31-2003, 02:19 PM

^^ That's exactly what I meant. I guess I will have to find out how to remove CC.

yohan420 · 12-31-2003, 02:31 PM

Undo the center console , remove the stereo, theres screws up under there, need to remove the temperature heater cable and unplug the CC from its wiring harness, the front vents will come out with the unit so no need to take them apart separately ...

theres a screw tucked under that you can't really see but I beleive that is for the most part all that is holding it in there..

bah, phew .. after some searching :::

Ongoing saga of my failing heater control

theres a loooooooooongass post I made a while ago about fixing it..

JDMugenBB1 · 12-31-2003, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PatrickC1026
^^ That's exactly what I meant. I guess I will have to find out how to remove CC.

It's a B*tch on the 4thgens.... I would try and see if you can access the bulb by removing you radio first... cuz if you remove your CC unit that would mean the you would have to disconnect it, & majority of the times (at least on 4thgens) when you disconnect the wiring harness, you get a pour reconnection.. I would highly suggest that you try the radio way first... then if you can't get to it, disconnect & remove the CC unit. Now that I think of it... I'm 90% sure you Can get to it (the bulb) by removing the radio... but first you have to remove the front console ( #14 on this diagram link )

Ceasar

JDMugenBB1 · 12-31-2003, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by yohan420
Undo the center console , remove the stereo, theres screws up under there, need to remove the temperature heater cable and unplug the CC from its wiring harness, the front vents will come out with the unit so no need to take them apart separately ...

theres a screw tucked under that you can't really see but I beleive that is for the most part all that is holding it in there..

bah, phew .. after some searching :::

Ongoing saga of my failing heater control

theres a loooooooooongass post I made a while ago about fixing it..

Hey I read your other post but I don't get how re-soldering the under side of the board would fix the problem..... I have the same problem that every one else had.... What I thought about doing was just placing a small strand of wire in side each little hole of the male side of the wiring harness, giving me a better connection.
When doing it your way, do you have to squeeze the female side of the connection to the board, to make prongs on the inside, longer????
Let me know if I'm getting the concept right... if so... this method sounds more reassuring than my little wire inserts. Thanks.

Ceasar

yohan420 · 12-31-2003, 03:04 PM

IIRC the light bulbs have to go in from the top ??
I'm going to search through honda automotive parts for a diagram proving this or not .. .

... that was fast ..

the 2 holes you see on the TOP of the unit are where the bulbs go in, they are the tiny ones with the white plastic trim around to screw into the circuit board of the CC ...

sorry man, looks like it has to come out ..

PatrickC1026 · 01-01-2004, 10:20 PM

Thanks a lot guys. I'm going to have to remove the center console anyway since I need to replace the stock shift boot. I might as well do them once.

JDMugenBB1 · 01-02-2004, 08:23 AM

Damn... I guess it's not from the bottom ... oh well... it's been a while sicne I've been in there so...hehe. Good luck !!

Ceasar

yohan420 · 01-02-2004, 08:33 AM

POH - on the above , where I re-soldered ...

There's a green plug that goes into the bottom of the CC unit, this sends out the command to the air mix motor for vents / defog / floor etc.

On the circuit board itself where all the wires are poking out, on the back side of this I touched all of the points with my soldering iron and melted the solder again ... when I plugged it back in, it went on firmer and solved the "flickering" problem - and as well solved the problem I was having where the vents wouldn't change.

As far as everything I wrote about soldering in new lights, I was too cheap buy them from honda at $7 CDN a pop.... Thinking back, I should have used LEDs ... then they would last forever and wouldnt need to pull that sh!t out again ..

^^ Patrick, you should use leds!

JDMugenBB1 · 01-05-2004, 07:52 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by yohan420
POH - on the above , where I re-soldered ...

There's a green plug that goes into the bottom of the CC unit, this sends out the command to the air mix motor for vents / defog / floor etc.

^^ Patrick, you should use leds!

Coo... I guess resoldering the CC board will make a stonger connection. The probs that I have are flickering temp/gas gauges, vents that don't swicth, & A/C that shuts off when running causing it not to cool. I hope doing this will fix the prob.

-- Patrick, you should use LED's, they're da sh*t and they light up great at night (they last longer too). Patrick (pIOUs on this board) helped me install my LEDs on my CC unit. We get great reviews at car shows.

Ceasar

yohan420 · 01-05-2004, 08:39 AM

POH, for those flickering lights uhm.. what I did was held the CC in my hand , just the curcuit board, and wiggled the cable.. I could see the lights on the unit flickering if I wiggled the harness going into it..

As for the gas/temp gauge.. that is somewhere else .. I just worked on the CC and it was fine .. pull out the helms and follow the wiring diagrams, maybe theres a plug somewhere else? ...

since we referenced leds do you have a URL to photo's / writeup of the CC leds ?

JDMugenBB1 · 01-20-2004, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by yohan420
POH, for those flickering lights uhm.. what I did was held the CC in my hand , just the curcuit board, and wiggled the cable.. I could see the lights on the unit flickering if I wiggled the harness going into it..

As for the gas/temp gauge.. that is somewhere else .. I just worked on the CC and it was fine .. pull out the helms and follow the wiring diagrams, maybe theres a plug somewhere else? ...

since we referenced leds do you have a URL to photo's / writeup of the CC leds ?

I was off yesterday (no work) and I decided to hit the CC unit with your soldering trick... & guess what.... IT WORKED. All my probs that I had with my CC unit are now gone.... Thanks so much Yohan. Now I don't have to panic when my front windshield
Fogs up and the vents don't want to change. Thanks again!

Ceasar

yohan420 · 01-20-2004, 03:12 PM

Sweet. I should re-do my post and have it nominated for faq.

JDMugenBB1 · 01-20-2004, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by yohan420
Sweet. I should re-do my post and have it nominated for faq.

Cool.. you should... I'll proudly Vouch for it.

Ceasar