High intensity rear led lights

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steve2286w

steve2286w

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monkeyangerland
I’ve just bought a pair of red led lights (thanks rob for eBay link)
The idea is to ensure you can be seen at night and not get rear ended by sleepy truckers
I’m unsure whether to wire them in to rear side lights or a separate switch so I can turn on when doing night time driving on fast roads/ motorways
Peoples do get irate sometimes when having the bright fogs on when not foggy
Any views please
 
Me thinks there a law on where to position bright red light as you would effect the driver vision behind. You can be picked up for leaving rear fog lights on when night or day driving is clear. Sleepy trucker will still rear end you regardless as they look up from theIR mobile phone or while watching Ice Road Truckers on TV. Foreigners are the worst according to police telly shows as they drive in and out of the country.
 
Having looked at quite a lot of Series (images search on google is good) and read and re-read the Contruction and use lighting sections it seems:
Series LandRover pre-date a lot of the current regs and most (not all) are not retrospective so we have more leeway.
High up on the rear seems the agreed best place. High level brake lights are now the norm and seem to reduce rear ends.
Mine are wired in to the rear lights, and so far in 3 years and 2 MOTs (now exempt) no problems. You could wire in via a switch, I have front ELD running lights like that, if you do it must have a warning/tell tale light on the dash.
I freind who used to commute round the M25 in a Series 1 at 45mph had a pair of rear fogs high on the back - Police told him they expected to see them on!
So far with the extra rear lights I have had several compliments "ie we saw you, thanks" and no complaints.
 
remembering the high level brake light kits supplied by Hella for the golf MK1 one of the first of it type. when being stopped by Mr plod one night
and being told they were not legal and i should disconnect them before moving off .my reply being **** off you be wait here a long time before
I remove them ( put it down to the arse hole wearing the uniform).after taking the trouble to visit Birmingham Central Police station where Mr plod behind the desk could not confirm
whether mine were legal or not after studying the paper work supplied with the Hella kit.
there was an article published in the evening mail about the use of fog lights being used as brake lights and the same time stating that the legal high level brake lights were to be mounted at a certain height and distance between them and constructed to comply as high level brake lights, and the use of rear fog lights mounted at high level or mounted on parcel shelves were not legal
this was also confirmed with the paper work supplied with the Hella kits
 
I have no problem with more lights the same as your using but I cant accept dazzling drivers behind you is a good idea.
I have seen plenty of series with additional side lights above the rear door but they are usually the same dome type.

When I went with rear stop/tail bulbs in LED flavour I glued a ten pence piece inside the center of the lens as I found the glare unacceptable.
 
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Job done wired to side lights, brighter than the side lights so we,ll see how it goes anyone behind who thinks it’s a bit bright can always drop back a bit
8761120D-953A-4AB9-9814-7EF6D73DAAD1.jpeg
 
That's just about identical to my set up, as I said earlier, a few compliments and not a single complaint. Before I'd fitted them I was dirving at night in the Surrey forests, very dark twisty lanes, and got "pulled over" (nearly ran off the road..) by a very angry woman in a BMW who wanted to tell my I only had one rear light, what she didn't mention was that the was belting along and nearly crashed into me. I explained we predated bulb failure light (by at least a decade) and I had (I really had) checked them before we set off. But she had a point, we were nearly invisible with a single standard rear light, What really pee'd me off was that I dropped and broke the spare (in the dark) but OK as we were going to a vintage rally with an autojumble, Surely there would be loads of 5/21 bulbs for pennies? No, I wasted a hour searching (bored child in tow) then gave up and paid £7 for a trailer lamp unit just to get one bulb. I think they are visible at about twice the distance of the standard lights.
 
Ooh expensive , I got 2 white and 2 red for about a tenner .... bargain, I’ve been rear ended twice in car in last 5 years once while sitting at traffic lights and someone went into a car about 4 behind and shunted them alll along and once waiting on slip lane to get off A1 by a woman more interested in lighting a fag Than stopping so at least it should help the few drivers who actually look ahead when driving
 
steve2286w said:
I’ve just bought a pair of red led lights (thanks rob for eBay link)
The idea is to ensure you can be seen at night and not get rear ended by sleepy truckers
I’m unsure whether to wire them in to rear side lights or a separate switch so I can turn on when doing night time driving on fast roads/ motorways
Peoples do get irate sometimes when having the bright fogs on when not foggy
Any views please
Click to expand...
Tbh I’m not sure they are needed. Defenders used essentially the same rear lamps until the end of production. Just put some good led bulbs in the stock rear lights. And make sure you have reflectors fitted. I think being driven into due to lack of high intensity lights is probably more remote than winning the lottery.
 
steve2286w said:
Ooh expensive , I got 2 white and 2 red for about a tenner .... bargain, I’ve been rear ended twice in car in last 5 years once while sitting at traffic lights and someone went into a car about 4 behind and shunted them alll along and once waiting on slip lane to get off A1 by a woman more interested in lighting a fag Than stopping so at least it should help the few drivers who actually look ahead when driving
Click to expand...
Sorry for your misfortune. But I doubt brighter red lights would make much difference. If you are really fussed for a flashing orange beacon on the roof and activate it in such situations.
 
steve2286w said:
Job done wired to side lights, brighter than the side lights so we,ll see how it goes anyone behind who thinks it’s a bit bright can always drop back a bit View attachment 173496
Click to expand...
They actually look pretty cool. But if I’m honest they do look a bit glaring.Trouble is with small lights, even bright ones. They are less likely to be seen at distance. So only serve a purpose up close. Sort of defeating your intended purpose.

Standard rear fog light units mounted in the same place and wired to the brake light circuit would work better. Much larger lens area. No need for them to be too bright to be seen at distance and would only be active with your foot on the brake pedal, ie ideal for queuing in traffic on a slip road.

I guess a good test would be once dark. Turn the lights on and walk 100-150 yards away from it and see how obvious they are from directly behind. And from and angle eg 2 cars over at the same distance.
 
Yes I’ve not had it out in the dark as yet but I’ll see how it compares at a distance there’s some impressive bicycle lights out there you can see for hundreds of yards which will be much brigher
 
I've just re-read the Road Verhicles Lighting Regs 1989 (it would be nice to have something more intersting to do...) and some intersting things are buried in the detail:
The requirments for "approved" lights under "filiament lamps" (they did not foresee LEDs) only apply to vehicles made after Oct 85, Before that it seems a lamp is a lamp.
The rear light requirments for hieght are up to 2.1 m for pre-85 and up to 1.8 M after that "unless the structure prevents it in which case 2.1 m" but this is for the first set of rear lights on a vehicle that must have at least 2. For the second set it seems to be 2.1m but the second set does not have a laterial limit - ie there is no specified distance from the edges.
What is also intersting is that the angle of visiblity that applies to the first set does not apply to the second set, the only requirment is that they must be "visible to the rear"
There is a catch all requirment "not to dazzle".
My reading of all this is that the set up in the picture is fully compliant.
Its not a great read but here it is:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1989/1796/made
 
My Series has an extra set of standard series stop/tail and indicator lights in the top corners of the roof like busses have, I am even thinking to do it on my Defender as I don't often go above 60mph due to the tyres it runs
 
rob1miles said:
I've just re-read the Road Verhicles Lighting Regs 1989 (it would be nice to have something more intersting to do...) and some intersting things are buried in the detail:
The requirments for "approved" lights under "filiament lamps" (they did not foresee LEDs) only apply to vehicles made after Oct 85, Before that it seems a lamp is a lamp.
The rear light requirments for hieght are up to 2.1 m for pre-85 and up to 1.8 M after that "unless the structure prevents it in which case 2.1 m" but this is for the first set of rear lights on a vehicle that must have at least 2. For the second set it seems to be 2.1m but the second set does not have a laterial limit - ie there is no specified distance from the edges.
What is also intersting is that the angle of visiblity that applies to the first set does not apply to the second set, the only requirment is that they must be "visible to the rear"
There is a catch all requirment "not to dazzle".
My reading of all this is that the set up in the picture is fully compliant.
Its not a great read but here it is:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1989/1796/made
Click to expand...

It also differs for optional lamps- which any added lamps come under. In that case, a tail lamp that is just a tail lamp only has to be a red lamp, with no other requirements. But sensibly, it should be easily distinguishable from a brake lamp.
 
When peering into the night looking for people at bus stops a few very considerately hold out the illuminated screen on their phone.
I would say the iPhone screensaver can be seen at around half a mile with ease. That’s usually the point you see them still lighting up their faces.
 
Bobsticle said:
When peering into the night looking for people at bus stops a few very considerately hold out the illuminated screen on their phone.
I would say the iPhone screensaver can be seen at around half a mile with ease. That’s usually the point you see them still lighting up their faces.
Click to expand...

Bloody things are like searchlights.
 
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