Is there a way to replace number plate lighting bulbs?

[renat2]

Hello! Has anyone tried to replace the number plate lighting bulbs? They are LED, but just not enough bright for me, as I have really good and bright Osram W5W LEDs from my previous Sportage. The manual says "these bulbs are a part of vehicle's lighting system so don't touch it, in order to replace them go to KIA dealer blah blah blah". On Sportage the "thing that holds the bulbs inside" (I don't know the correct translation for this kind of thing) was completely different and could be easily removed with proper flat screwdriver. Here on Stinger that thing does not seem to be easily removed by any method, it is "level" with the trunk surface. So maybe there is a point in what the manual says. Anyway, maybe there is someone here who tried that and succeeded? Thanks!

 

[Callum]

The Stinger uses COB (Chip On Board) plates, non-serviceable units. The only way to get brighter units is to take them apart and replace the board with brighter panels.

I'd assume the size of these are standard units, so you may be able to retrofit some from another vehicle, however the CANBUS unit on the Stinger may notice the change and throw a warning lamp on the dash.

 

[eflyguy]

Just took a look at mine, looks like only accessible from the inside.

However, got me thinking - on motorcycles, it's very common to use aftermarket lighting for a license plate because you want to get rid of some ugly rear mudguard or similar. They make a number of solution, I've used a couple similar to these - small lights that replace the mount bolts and illuminate from there, or small LED strips that can be mounted directly above the plate.

You'd need to tap into a circuit to power them and figure out how to get the wires "inside". but as they are really low power, I doubt it would harm, say, the tail light circuit.