Issues with Raxiom Gen5?

[88_50]

Hey gents, got an issue that I wanted to see if anyone else has had...

I installed a set of Raxiom Gen5 taillights on my daughter's '08 GT while I was home on R&R. After I left, she told me her battery keeps dying. I told her there must be a constant power draw when the car is off. She noticed one night that the taillights are dimly lit, as well as her interior light. I had her take it to a shop to check the headlight/dimmer switch. They said it was fine, but then told her its the LED taillights doing it. They said they "read" on the internet there is a harness with circuit board they could order to fix it. I called them up and found they were talking about a harness that replaces the bulb harness, which in this case would defeat the purpose of the Gen5.

Has anyone had any troubles with the Gen5s? Im sure they have a built in resistor(s). Unfortunately Im in Afghanistan and cant check it out myself. Raxiom's website doesn't work, nor have they responded to my FB post on their page. I will probably send her to my friends stereo shop to see if he can figure it out. Just thought I would bounce it off the community for any thoughts...

Thanks

 

[GT E UPP]

Nope...no problems with Raxiom Gen5's here. And, they've been in for about
7 months now.

 

[FastDarkHorse]

I've had mine since the week they came out. After you turn them off they have an afterglow for just a bit then go dark. I have not had any issues.
My son just got a set two weeks ago and his have no afterglow at all. My car is an 07 and his is an 09. We have not seen any issues with his set either.
Hope this helps in the troubleshooting.

 

[stkjock]

Have one of the first sets and no issues. The LEDs will still glow some after use, the reverse whites in particular, it's normal as they require such little power that the lines have enough to produce some light.

I would think its the interior light.

 

[1bad99]

i had led interior lights and back up lights on stock rear lights and they always stayed lightly dimmed for days

 

[69Mach1-409]

Sorry, my car sits for weeks at a time and I've had mine installed since March with no issues.

 

[99horsey]

No issues with mine. Are her interior lights LED also? I have the Raxiom map lights too and no problems. I would think a dim LED glow uses so little power it would have a hard time draining the battery. Is the battery original?

 

[88_50]

Im not sure what bulb is in the interior. It might be LED because I noticed last time I was home its blue. She is on her second battery, so its definitely a real drain issue. I realize the LEDs take very little power, but I didnt know that some peoples glow afterwards. Thats good to know.

Im sending her to my friends shop to see if he can figure it out. She is complaining the speakers pop when she turns on the key. Maybe its related as well.

 

[Rasmus]

While I don't have the Raxiom tail lights, I do have LEDs practically everywhere inside and out; I haven't experienced any issues with the battery being drained.

 

[danzcool]

How old is the battery? If it's the one that came with the car then it's at the end of it's life anyway.

 

[irishpwr46]

Im not sure what bulb is in the interior. It might be LED because I noticed last time I was home its blue. She is on her second battery, so its definitely a real drain issue. I realize the LEDs take very little power, but I didnt know that some peoples glow afterwards. Thats good to know.

Im sending her to my friends shop to see if he can figure it out. She is complaining the speakers pop when she turns on the key. Maybe its related as well.

was an aftermarket radio installed recently?

 

[one eyed willy]

My driver side only would stay lit up, passenger side was fine. For some reason we have 2 separate wires going to our reverse lights, one for each side. Seems like they would have used just one wire, but whatever, I cut the wire going to the driver side, soldered a wire over to the passenger side and now neither of my lights stay on after I turn the car off. I also have a early set.

 

[GallopingFord]

IIRC they have a 2 year warranty on them. Probably isn't an issue with the lights through, probably alternator or battery.

 

[sdleo29]

was an aftermarket radio installed recently?

If one was, then the pop is coming from head unit driving OEM amp. The aftermarket head units drive amp at 12v, amp from Ford wants too see 5v... put 1.50 voltage regulator on and pop goes away.

 

[07Bandit]

You can do a "parasitic draw test" to see which circuit is the culprit. Here is a youtube video on how to do it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KF1gijj03_0

 

[88_50]

Thanks 07Bandit for the video. After the parasitic draw test, it was determined that the stock Shaker amp wasnt shutting off. I'm not sure who installed the head unit, but obviously they were using the factory amp to run the stock speakers, and an aftermarket amp for the sub. It was all garage. My friend is installing a 5 channel amp to run the stereo, all new wiring, and of course unhook the factory amp. That should solve all the issues.

Definitely want to thank all of you for chiming in. Now we all know that Raxiom's have an after glow effect which doesnt bother me. Gives me a peace of mind that her car isnt the only one. I bought the lights on this forum, and didnt want to believe they were bad.

 

[stkjock]

glad it got figured out. The shakers were an issue on the 06/07s with draw, but since it was a 08 I didn't think to mention it.

 

[07Bandit]

Glad it helped 88_50. Hope your daughter enjoys her mustang.

 

[88_50]

Yeah she absolutely loves her car. Its her second one. First was a silver '04 V6 that I did some work on. Then she went to a Jeep Liberty for a little while until she got the bug again and had to have a Mustang. She bought it with her own money, even installed the Raxiom taillights with my guidance. I still have a few things to do to it, but its still a nice car. Thanks again for all of your inputs. This is why I love this forum.