OK, the cops gave me a warning for my tail lights not being bright enough from behind the car. I'm trying to correct the problem. I've run into a aesthetics issue and I need some help. Let me give you some background first.

I got my chrome altezza tail lights from MajikTib. I removed the cover and painted them to match the car. The covers broke when trying to put them back on so I sealed up the individual lights and ran them with no covers for a year. I switched to full LED lighting. I did not like the rocket ship look they provided, so I put a korean tinted cover over them. The brake lights are too dim and I got a warning from an officer.

Here's the thing. Those LEDs are bright as heck, and provide ample coverage to indicate that I am stopping, but if you look at them dead on during the daytime, you cannot see them because of a mix of ambient lighting and the dispersion pattern from the reflector. It looks like a dark spot.

From the side


from directly on, you can see how the reflector dims the LED light.



So, I brainstormed up some soloutions and here's what I've come up with. All soloutions would provide an acceptable ammount of light even during the day. I've tested it with single LEDs. The viewing angle on these LEDs is small so it is very directed and noticable.


A. add extra LEDs on the side

B. add extra LEDs on the bottom

C. Remove the reflector lens.



I've got all night to work on these and on my agenda is A. shave the edges down on the covers so they perfectly mold into and match the edges of my car and don't hang off slightly because they are covers not replacement lenses. B. polish the inside and outside of the covers. C. find a better soloution for the illumination



Please post your input. If you have another idea, let me know. Of course If I added extra LEDs, then they would be on the inside of the cover. What do you think would look best?

 

A + C

 

i would go with B. great job on the lens. nothing you can do about it though. i'm not sure i like the look because i hate circles that are on every single car. well, maybe the ferraris are ok. i would go to the next level and sand down those hideous circles, mold my own housing and light reflector to something really cool looking using fiberglass, chrome paint and LED's. something that would look futuristic with its own attitude anything but circles hehe.

 

So do you have these over another lense and then the tinted piece as a cover? I always thought these were a replacement lense.

I like A or C the best.

 

I don't know, those LED's look super rice! I would just get a lighter cover or just nightshade them lighter.

 

These are a lense cover so the actual cover tint cant be changed I think.

 

I'd pull the covers off then, bottom line is I'd be pretty pissed off if I rear ended some ass hat that tinted his taillights too dark laugh.gif

 

why not take the red lense off, make a circuit board with led's in a round pattern and reinstall?

 

That would look hot. And I know DTNs got the skillz

 

Out of curiosity, does your 3rd brake light work?