Guide 2nd Generation CX-9: Reverse light bulb replacement/upgrade

Thanks for the write up I'm going to be doing this today, I'll let you know how it goes. I'm terrible at these types of things but I was able to replace every light in my 2017 CX5 with LEDs including the license plate bulbs so I should be able to figure it out
 
Same story - On the 16-18, the license plate bulbs are halogen, but on the 19-20 I think they may be LED.
The 2020 has LED's for the license plate bulbs and the interior rear cargo bay. Still halogen bulbs for the reverse lights and the rear turn signals ... kind of ridiculous since everything else in the rear is LED.
 
My '19 - CX-9 has the halogen reverse lights...and in our dark parking garage...they have got to go. @sm1ke two years in for yours and still going strong after those prairie winters & summers? Your original LED suggestion still seem to command solid reviews.

Will be ordering tomorrow! Thanks sm1ke!
 
My '19 - CX-9 has the halogen reverse lights...and in our dark parking garage...they have got to go. @sm1ke two years in for yours and still going strong after those prairie winters & summers? Your original LED suggestion still seem to command solid reviews.

Will be ordering tomorrow! Thanks sm1ke!

Yessir, two years in for the reverse lights and the LED rear turn signal bulbs, zero issues whatsoever.

The license plate bulbs from Amazon lasted almost a year before they started flickering, but they were replaced under warranty (1 year) and have been fine since.
 
Great lil' mod for our 2019 CX-9. Undertook this today thanks to @sm1ke - Ordered the same LEDs from Amazon🇨🇦 via his links.

We have a dark parkade and back into our parking spot, having these LEDs over the stock halogens makes a difference with the rather lousy camera resolution.

They also just look sharp! Thanks again 🙏

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Thanks a ton, sm1ke, for such a great write-up. Just replaced the halogen bulbs with LED bulbs for reverse lights on my 19' CX-9 GT. The only thing I wasn't sure was which 'face' of the bulbs face outward... If that makes sense... Or if it even mattered. Frankly I don't know if I inserted the bulbs the same way for each side but they both seemed to work, at least for now. Plus - you were right - needed a little bit of elbow grease to get them in there. Now I don't know if they will come out lol. Thanks again!!!
 
Thanks a ton, sm1ke, for such a great write-up. Just replaced the halogen bulbs with LED bulbs for reverse lights on my 19' CX-9 GT. The only thing I wasn't sure was which 'face' of the bulbs face outward... If that makes sense... Or if it even mattered. Frankly I don't know if I inserted the bulbs the same way for each side but they both seemed to work, at least for now. Plus - you were right - needed a little bit of elbow grease to get them in there. Now I don't know if they will come out lol. Thanks again!!!

No problem, I'm glad to hear the writeup helped you out. I'm still on the same pair of bulbs I first installed :)

The way the bulbs "face" is going to depend on the bulb, some of them have LEDs on all sides, and some only have them on one side of a flat board. In the future, for any other bulb replacements/upgrades, I would advise that you test the bulbs after putting them back in the housings, but before you start putting everything back together. This way you can make sure everything is working and is lined up correctly, instead of putting everything back together and then testing - only to find out that a bulb was defective. That happened to me on a previous car.. very annoying, to say the least :LOL:
 
Reverse bulbs ordered. The value seems clear. Thoughts on rear (and front) turn signals? those bulbs are more than twice the price of the reverse and seem harder to install.
 
I didn't
Reverse bulbs ordered. The value seems clear. Thoughts on rear (and front) turn signals? those bulbs are more than twice the price of the reverse and seem harder to install.
I didn't think you could replace just the bulbs for turn signals... I think you'd have to replace the whole housing... Besides, aren't those LED already anyways?
 
I didn't

I didn't think you could replace just the bulbs for turn signals... I think you'd have to replace the whole housing... Besides, aren't those LED already anyways?

 

Rear turn signal bulbs are definitely a little harder to install, but no more difficult than most other bulb replacements on other cars I've worked on. The turn signal bulbs used in the guide I wrote above are pricey, but IMO, worth it. Because the resistor is built into the bulb, you don't have to worry about extra wiring or mounting extra components. Just plug and play. They also seem to be quite durable - I haven't had any issues with them, and they also come with a 1 year warranty.

I didn't bother with the fronts at all since those are already LED.

Ophio86, in the guide inanimate posted above, there is a video in the 3rd post that explains how to spot the difference between a halogen bulb and an LED bulb just by looking at the output.
 
Dang I am starting to think you all are trying to get me to keep spending money lol! Will definitely consider replacing rear turn signals; only concern at this time is reports saying they are too bright and that they may not be safe (for others on the road). Also, I didn't know the front ones were LED...strange that Mazda decided to make those LED but not the rear ones...

BTW the video definitely helps a lot! Thanks again, sm1ke!
 
Lol, not at all! The goal is just to provide my own experience so you can make an informed decision for yourself.

I also think it's strange.. another weird example, Mazda put LEDs in the map light housings, but the cargo light is a standard incandescent bulb. Strange..
 
I also think it's strange.. another weird example, Mazda put LEDs in the map light housings, but the cargo light is a standard incandescent bulb. Strange..

Well, thanks to your post on the cargo light, already replaced that (actually my first mod :D) So no problem there.

Bulbs arrived today and got swapped in within minutes. Super easy! Even simpler than I expected. The instructions from @sm1ke made it a breeze. Looks great. Thanks for the tips!

Sweet! Which bulbs did you go for the turn signal lights? This is probably next on my stuff to do.

Also want to do my license plate lights but I read on another post that Mazda changed to LED bulbs for 2019+. On another post I read that you have to go through the rear panel on the liftgate (i.e. cannot just pry open the outer light casing with a flathead). So now I don't know which is which. Wondering where I can get confirmation. If they are already LED, I don't think there is any need to change them. However, if not, would love to do it. I did look at my license plate and the light appears to be white...but that doesn't necessarily mean they are LED bulbs...
 
Also want to do my license plate lights but I read on another post that Mazda changed to LED bulbs for 2019+. On another post I read that you have to go through the rear panel on the liftgate (i.e. cannot just pry open the outer light casing with a flathead). So now I don't know which is which. Wondering where I can get confirmation. If they are already LED, I don't think there is any need to change them. However, if not, would love to do it. I did look at my license plate and the light appears to be white...but that doesn't necessarily mean they are LED bulbs...

Can you take a picture of the license plate light lenses, from the outside of the car? I think if the license plate lights are LED, the covers/lenses will look different because you won't be able to open them from the outside.

They are likely LED though. The license plate bulbs on my 2018 were the same colour temperature as my cargo light, and none of those lights were LED. I think it's safe to say that yours are already LED.
 
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