Date:         Wed, 9 Mar 2011 15:54:58 -0500
Reply-To:     David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Subject:      Re: Looking for LED Equivalent High Beam Indicator Bulb
Comments: To: Robert Stewart <robertmstewart@MAC.COM>
In-Reply-To:  <B1FCD2BC-18C7-4B7F-9056-94E587316B49@mac.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

At 02:49 PM 3/9/2011, Robert Stewart wrote:
>I ordered the bulb from the VW dealer. It was around $7.50 and looks
>nothing like the stock bulb. I am not sure if it an LED or Not but
>it is totally clear and has a flat top.
>
>I have posted some photos of it so you can see the difference
>between what I had and what they are now providing from VW.

You had a frosted one, now you have a clear one.  I very much doubt
you'll be able to tell the difference through the blue cover.  FWIW -
I wouldn't want to be held to this but I believe that's the first
frosted one I've ever seen.  P'raps someone stuck in something lying
around in a parts box?  Maybe that's why it's burnt out?  Dunno.  But
I've been inside three panels recently and all three had clear bulbs.

Yours,
David
ps - absolutely no question it's an incandescent lamp.  An LED will
have a stamped usually cup-shaped substrate with a little cube of
silicon on it and a tiny gold or aluminum wire extending over to the
other terminal.  If it's a white LED the whole thing will be covered
with a greenish coat of phosphor.  All the above will be encased in
clear or colored epoxy or some other plastic, not a hollow glass
envelope like an incandescent.  Look at yours with a magnifying glass
and you'll see the filament.