V90 Reversing Lights....Aaagghh!!

crashbarrier · Oct 15th, 2020, 19:49

Does anyone know of a way to improve the reversing lights on a V90?

The light they emit is the equivalent of waving a photo of a candle out of the window. They are useless and seem to serve no purpose. I presume they are LED so bulb upgrades are not an option or possibly they are.
I did do a quick search of this section of the forum and couldn't find any other discussions on this subject.

Many thanks.

Philip Fisher · Oct 15th, 2020, 20:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by crashbarrier

Does anyone know of a way to improve the reversing lights on a V90?

The light they emit is the equivalent of waving a photo of a candle out of the window. They are useless and seem to serve no purpose. I presume they are LED so bulb upgrades are not an option or possibly they are.
I did do a quick search of this section of the forum and couldn't find any other discussions on this subject.

Many thanks.

Long time ago there was a thread on this. Think the guy might have been out of the UK, maybe Norway. He installed strip LEDs under the bumper and hooked into the reversing lights.

Snoodini · Oct 15th, 2020, 20:36

The reverse lights on the V90 are not LED (well okay, the MY2021 onwards has LED), it was the 60 series which first got full LED rear lights.

I guess you could look at a bulb upgrade but probably risk breaking the law in doing so.

Davebbass · Oct 15th, 2020, 20:45

I tried sticking LEDs in mine and just got bulb failure on the dash board all the time

But yes, they're useless!

Philip Fisher · Oct 15th, 2020, 20:59

Here's the thread.....

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showt...=278993&page=3

Unfortunately the pictures are no longer on there.

If there are issues with possibly getting bulb warnings then hook it through a relay.

crashbarrier · Oct 16th, 2020, 08:14

Adding some discrete LED strips sounds like a good idea but having been lectured about the effect on the car's electrical and CAN Bus systems if I was to have my dashcam hardwired to the centre console power socket I have my concerns about tapping into the reversing lights and powering some LED strips.

If anyone kept the photos from that original post I would greatly appreciate them or at least the details of the lights themselves?

I think that this is turning into a case of 'just tolerate it'.

bornmiddleaged · Oct 16th, 2020, 08:51

I have a 2018 V60 (not sure if this has ful LED rear lights) and I would agree the reversing lights are not great, although only really noticeable when I am reversing into our drive as there are no streetlights on our road.

I tend to have my foot on the brake pedal just enough so that the brake lights come on as these are much brigther than the reversing lights.

ian.stone · Feb 24th, 2021, 08:43

I had the same problem with My S60, LED backup warning lights. Looking for a solution I initially went down the contact less CAN Bus connector route. COVID-19 and Brexit put a stop to this as the supplier had resource problems.
After more investigating I discovered the backend lighting ECU which lives in the RH rear light enclosure together with the light cluster also supplies the LH cluster with real wires. I tapped the backing up warning feed orange-yellow wire and connected it to a solid-state relay via a 2KΩ resistor to limit the current to 1.9mA, I guessed this would be safe. The output side or the relay derives its battery feed from the back of the boot auxiliary power socket.

The relay and resistor were housed in a standard IP67 box.

If you are copying this installation, make sure you get the right orange-yellow wire as there is one going to the front of the car and one to the towbar connector which is dead. Also, the 2KΩ resistor is dependent on the make of relay so check the value to use from the data sheet. As a precaution use 2 separate earth connections to prevent a back-door circuit if one fails. Make sure you use a decent reversing light bar. There is plenty of rubbish coming out of China on eBay. I used a Maypole 36w, 2520lm which has an IP67 rating.
I tried posting an article with photos on this site but was blocked right at the end. Give me your Email address and I will send it to you.

Tony H · Nov 28th, 2021, 20:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by crashbarrier

Does anyone know of a way to improve the reversing lights on a V90?

The light they emit is the equivalent of waving a photo of a candle out of the window. They are useless and seem to serve no purpose. I presume they are LED so bulb upgrades are not an option or possibly they are.
I did do a quick search of this section of the forum and couldn't find any other discussions on this subject.

Many thanks.

Legally reverse lights are just indicators to let other road user know you are reversing, they aren't for lighting the way for you.

crashbarrier · Nov 29th, 2021, 09:10

Sorry, but I have to disagree with that, TonyH.
The Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations 1989 quite clearly state that the 'reversing lamps' are:-

A lamp used to illuminate the road to the rear of a vehicle for the purpose of reversing and to warn other road users that the vehicle is reversing or about to reverse.

So the bulbs, or lamps, have two purposes but I think most owners of V90s would agree that the lamps as fitted don't do a very good job of the illumination bit. Strangely enough, my current BMW and VW(and all the other cars we have possessed) had no problems with being bright enough to be of use without having to resort to 60s/70s style bolt-on bumper lamps.

Oct 15th, 2020, 19:49	#1
crashbarrier Member Last Online: Apr 11th, 2024 09:43 Join Date: Jan 2019 Location: Horsham, West Sussex	V90 Reversing Lights....Aaagghh!! Does anyone know of a way to improve the reversing lights on a V90? The light they emit is the equivalent of waving a photo of a candle out of the window. They are useless and seem to serve no purpose. I presume they are LED so bulb upgrades are not an option or possibly they are. I did do a quick search of this section of the forum and couldn't find any other discussions on this subject. Many thanks. __________________ V90 CC Pro D4 MY19 Electric Silver (lots of extras courtesy of Volvo UK)

Oct 15th, 2020, 20:45	#4
Davebbass Member Last Online: Apr 16th, 2024 00:19 Join Date: Jun 2019 Location: Holmfirth	I tried sticking LEDs in mine and just got bulb failure on the dash board all the time But yes, they're useless! __________________ V90 D4 R Design Pro - Savile Grey

Oct 15th, 2020, 20:59	#5
Philip Fisher Premier Member Last Online: Today 19:19 Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Sheffield	Here's the thread..... https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showt...=278993&page=3 Unfortunately the pictures are no longer on there. If there are issues with possibly getting bulb warnings then hook it through a relay. __________________ Currently:- MY16 XC90 T8 Momentum, Magic Blue 174k miles. MY17 V60 T4 Power Blue. Previously:- 1997 V70 T5 exPolice; 2005 V50 2.0D; 2013 XC70 D5

Oct 16th, 2020, 08:14	#6
crashbarrier Member Last Online: Apr 11th, 2024 09:43 Join Date: Jan 2019 Location: Horsham, West Sussex	Adding some discrete LED strips sounds like a good idea but having been lectured about the effect on the car's electrical and CAN Bus systems if I was to have my dashcam hardwired to the centre console power socket I have my concerns about tapping into the reversing lights and powering some LED strips. If anyone kept the photos from that original post I would greatly appreciate them or at least the details of the lights themselves? I think that this is turning into a case of 'just tolerate it'. __________________ V90 CC Pro D4 MY19 Electric Silver (lots of extras courtesy of Volvo UK)

Nov 29th, 2021, 09:10	#10
crashbarrier Member Last Online: Apr 11th, 2024 09:43 Join Date: Jan 2019 Location: Horsham, West Sussex	Sorry, but I have to disagree with that, TonyH. The Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations 1989 quite clearly state that the 'reversing lamps' are:- A lamp used to illuminate the road to the rear of a vehicle for the purpose of reversing and to warn other road users that the vehicle is reversing or about to reverse. So the bulbs, or lamps, have two purposes but I think most owners of V90s would agree that the lamps as fitted don't do a very good job of the illumination bit. Strangely enough, my current BMW and VW(and all the other cars we have possessed) had no problems with being bright enough to be of use without having to resort to 60s/70s style bolt-on bumper lamps. __________________ V90 CC Pro D4 MY19 Electric Silver (lots of extras courtesy of Volvo UK) Last edited by crashbarrier; Nov 29th, 2021 at 11:51.

Oct 15th, 2020, 20:36	#3
Snoodini Member Last Online: Jul 20th, 2021 08:47 Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Gothenburg	The reverse lights on the V90 are not LED (well okay, the MY2021 onwards has LED), it was the 60 series which first got full LED rear lights. I guess you could look at a bulb upgrade but probably risk breaking the law in doing so.

Oct 16th, 2020, 08:51	#7
bornmiddleaged :-) Last Online: Yesterday 15:43 Join Date: Mar 2020 Location: Hants	I have a 2018 V60 (not sure if this has ful LED rear lights) and I would agree the reversing lights are not great, although only really noticeable when I am reversing into our drive as there are no streetlights on our road. I tend to have my foot on the brake pedal just enough so that the brake lights come on as these are much brigther than the reversing lights.

Feb 24th, 2021, 08:43	#8
ian.stone Junior Member Last Online: Mar 14th, 2024 10:48 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Ludlow	I had the same problem with My S60, LED backup warning lights. Looking for a solution I initially went down the contact less CAN Bus connector route. COVID-19 and Brexit put a stop to this as the supplier had resource problems. After more investigating I discovered the backend lighting ECU which lives in the RH rear light enclosure together with the light cluster also supplies the LH cluster with real wires. I tapped the backing up warning feed orange-yellow wire and connected it to a solid-state relay via a 2KΩ resistor to limit the current to 1.9mA, I guessed this would be safe. The output side or the relay derives its battery feed from the back of the boot auxiliary power socket. The relay and resistor were housed in a standard IP67 box. If you are copying this installation, make sure you get the right orange-yellow wire as there is one going to the front of the car and one to the towbar connector which is dead. Also, the 2KΩ resistor is dependent on the make of relay so check the value to use from the data sheet. As a precaution use 2 separate earth connections to prevent a back-door circuit if one fails. Make sure you use a decent reversing light bar. There is plenty of rubbish coming out of China on eBay. I used a Maypole 36w, 2520lm which has an IP67 rating. I tried posting an article with photos on this site but was blocked right at the end. Give me your Email address and I will send it to you.

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