The latest tech is supposed to be miles better than the old stuff. But it isn’t always. And even experienced mechanics can get burned by aftermarket upgrades.
According to one mechanic, sometimes the old-school solution really is the better one.
In a TikTok, mechanic Eric (@ericthecarguy) shares a cautionary tale about LED replacement bulbs.
Eric explains that when his daughter visited him in her Honda Element, he noticed something alarming—her brake lights weren't working at all. The aftermarket LED bulbs had completely failed.
"These are the taillight bulbs. Well, I don't really wanna call them that because they're like LED things that were in my daughter's Honda Element," Eric says, holding up the failed components.
He explains that while traditional filament bulbs can certainly burn out too, his experience with LED replacements has left him increasingly disappointed. The failure rate and reliability issues have pushed him to make a change.
"The more I've used these type of LED replacement things in place of just regular filament bulbs, the less I tend to like them," he says.
Eric then announces he's taking action across his entire fleet.
"I'm gonna be removing these from all of my vehicles and just going back to regular bulbs,” he says.
Eric acknowledges this is just his personal experience but made it clear the results simply haven't lived up to expectations.
Why LED Replacement Bulbs Fail
Eric's experience reflects a growing problem with aftermarket LED bulbs.
According to Rick's Free Auto Repair Advice, LED turn signal and stop light bulbs can trigger all kinds of electrical issues beyond just failing completely. Many modern vehicles use body control modules to monitor bulb status, and LED replacements confuse these systems.
The site explains that vehicles conduct continuity tests to check if filaments are intact. When you swap an incandescent bulb with an LED, you can get false "bulb out" warnings. Or worse, create electrical problems, including dead batteries and no-start conditions. Some manufacturers even add resistors to trick the system, but that eliminates the energy-saving benefits entirely.
Heat management is another killer for LEDs. While people expect LED bulbs to last 50,000 hours, reality is very different, Per-Accurate notes.
LED bulbs are electronic components that wear out, often failing gradually by dimming rather than burning out completely. Poor-quality components and inadequate heat dissipation cause premature failures, especially in cheap aftermarket options.
The safety stakes are high when brake lights fail.
According to safety statistics, approximately 264,000 car accidents happen yearly in the U.S. due to brake-related malfunctions. While that includes mechanical brake failures, non-functioning brake lights create serious rear-end collision risks.
The LED Bulb Divide
In comments on Eric’s post, people took both sides of the debate over whether LED bulbs are better.
“The major bulb brands are making LED replacements that are just fine. The junk from China that Amazon sells is hit or miss, usually miss,” one wrote.
A second disagreed, writing, “I'd never replace dual filament bulbs with LEDs because I find there isn't enough of a difference between dim and bright with the LEDs.”
A third took the middle ground. “I like them for reverse lights, but I'm not crazy about them for lights that stay on continuously like tail lights,” they said.
Motor1 reached out to Eric via Instagram and TikTok direct message. We’ll update this if he responds.
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