Prototype 3rd Brake Light

[Oiluj]

Attached are some pics of my 1st prototype 3rd brake light. I figure trucks and SUV's won't easily see my brake lights below their hood line.

The housing is polycarbonate made on a 3D printer. I tried to mimic a vinyl surface finish by dabbing the wet paint with a paper towel.

It uses 12 red, high intensity LED's, (3300 mcd, 25 degree). To limit current and save the LED's I used a 150 ohm resistor for each block of six LED's.

In the pics I show the light temporarily mounted using double sided tape. It appears to be bright enough in daylight powered w/ a 12 VDC battery charger.

The housing shape is a bit crude / "blocky", so I've decided to design a new housing with angled sides. Also I plan to make it a about 1/4" shallower, so it's not visible to the driver in the rear view mirror. One of the pics shows the driver's view though the rear view mirror and you can see it's just visible.

[cygnusx1]

I agree, this should be a MUST for all you guys and gals that drive their S30's in traffic. Nice work. I just used a simple stick on strip of LED lights. Not as bright as yours but better then nothing. Too bad I thought of it AFTER my Z was rear ended by an SUV.

[Zs-ondabrain]

Great work Julio,

I don't know if you knew of this but I too did this a while back.

See post #8 and #19

Good stuff. Safety is key in these cars and the more we're seen, the safer we are.

Dave

[Oiluj]

I really like your approach, (better than mine). Now I have to re-think my design! Without a housing do you get any visible glare in your rear view mirror at night?

[Bruce Palmer]

I added a Subaru third brake light to the deck lid of my wagon which would be a totally different deal than a Z BUT the single biggest thing I wired into that circuit was a BACK OFF module from a motor cycle shop. It goes steady for a bit, then flashes three of 4 times and does that over and over til I let off the brakes. I can see nummies come up behind me with their heads in the "up and locked position" and watch the nose of their vehicle dive as soon as the flashing light finally registers. I know it's saved me more than once. Food for thought....

[Oiluj]

Good idea Bruce. I have two blocks of six LEDs in series and could do that by making one of them a "flashing" LED. I'll have to give that a try.

[cygnusx1]

I dont get any glare, but I can tell the light turns on by the faint red glow.

[TomoHawk]

I like the L.E.D. idea, especially for the fast on-time of the L.E.D.s but I'd add an enclosure of some kind, to keep the glare minimized. Probably a tube-like thing with rounded ends, like a squashed pipe. and the angled opening to match the window. Also, I would like to keep the whole thing no lower than the moulding for the cabin light, to keep the entire rear window clear.

[cygnusx1]

I like the L.E.D. idea, especially for the fast on-time of the L.E.D.s but I'd add an enclosure of some kind, to keep the glare minimized. Probably a tube-like thing with rounded ends, like a squashed pipe. and the angled opening to match the window. Also, I would like to keep the whole thing no lower than the moulding for the cabin light, to keep the entire rear window clear.

With my setup, you really have to look hard to notice any light in the hatch. I would say it's about 99% invisible to you in the rear view, when the brakes are applied. When the brakes are off, 99% of the onlookers never ever notice it.

[TomoHawk]

Can you see the enclosure (the box) in the mirror?

I think I will not use the tube-like enclosure because it might be too directional, and only a car directly behind would see it. I would have to make a mock-up and check that.

I've noticed certain cars have taillights that flash quickly, then go on steady. Is there a name for that?

Edited October 11, 2010 by TomoHawk

[sblake01]

I've noticed certain cars have taillights that flash quickly, then go on steady. Is there a name for that?

Isn't that what Bruce described in his post?

the single biggest thing I wired into that circuit was a BACK OFF module from a motor cycle shop. It goes steady for a bit, then flashes three of 4 times and does that over and over til I let off the brakes

.

[TomoHawk]

It was the other way around. It flashed quickly once then on steady. It made me think the brake switch was glitchy until you fully pressed the pedal..