Club 80-90 Forums

Hi all
I'm trying to fit a high level brake light in the rear window. I'e threaded the wire through the tailgate to the top but I can't seem to feed it anywhere in the bodywork.
Does anyone know if there is a hole through the pillers that wiring can go down?
Is it a matter of "fishing" until I find the hole or is there a cheat?
Any help would be gratefully received as i'm getting somewhat p~~@** off

I have fitted a 'high level' brake light to my camper.

I ran a wire down the nearside pillar interior via a sleeve, drilled a small hole into the engine compartment, connected to the brake light wire, and looped it into the tailgate corner. From there I ran the wire to the tailgate centre, where I fitted the lamp, remembering to use the the earth wire supplied.

It does make the fact that you are braking 100% easier to see from behind, and therefore, much safer (but it doesn't stop truck drivers tailgating)

If you send me your email address I'll send you a couple of pics to help you.

Tex Ritter

Hi Tex
Did you run the sleeve inside the vehicle or outside?

Inside.

TR

Sorry if I sound a bit thick.
How did you get the wire from where it comes out of the tailgate at the top, into the interior? or did you just hang it loose?

See my first post re, your email address.

TR

missed that, no wonder i can't find any holes.....says me with 4 kids

andkat@btinternet.com

It does make the fact that you are braking 100% easier to see from behind, and therefore, much safer (but it doesn't stop truck drivers tailgating)

Yes it does, and it also blinds drivers behind who aren't blind already if they're too bright, which 90% of them are.
These sort of rear brake lights should only be allowed to be fitted if they have a day/night circuit to reduce their intensity and ridiculous annoying glare at night - for one thing, they stop you reading the road ahead due to glare, particularly on automatics with drivers who think they have to touch the brake pedal at every hint of a bend, rather than the odd occasion when they should need to if they were driving the car properly.

In short, ill-conceived so-called safety devices - that make it impossible to see up the road far enough ahead to drive properly, basically dumbing down yet again - taken to the limit, we'll soon all be blindly following a carnival float up the high street every night (er, we are already it seems to me).

What with those ridiculous blue xenon sharp-cut-off (till they hit the merest bump) headlights blinding you as well, time some bureacrats got real about setting properly engineered ergonomic standards of what is and what isn't sensible... but of course, they're aren't any thinking engineers left, they're all jobsworths, signing off all sort of ridiculous things that car manufacturers want to do - not in the name of progress, but in the name of sales gimmicks. Range Rover even make a point of their 'getting one of the opposition' with their crazy headlights in adverts! Those xenon headlights take the biscuit, but fit in well with the modern 'set' - selfish, me first, sod anybody else on the road... even in daylight some of them blind you, let alone at night.

Safe? Pah, frellin dangerous, what was wrong with good powerful headlights before, they didn't seem to trouble me and perfectly OK for driving behind at high speed.

Ahhh! That's better, Big rant over, you can relax now.

Truly hope you manage to run your wires succesfully

Thanks for your input...never had a problem with them myself.

If the're angled correctly so what?

Don't make the mistake of tarring me with the same brush as the drivers who constantly hit the brake pedal.

TR

Er, we talking heads or rear backup circus lights there Tex?

We're talking about the 'get back you w====r' rear brake light.

The fancy headlight brigade don't bother me either.

TR

Don't make the mistake of tarring me with the same brush as the drivers who constantly hit the brake pedal

I didn't as I very much doubt you have an auto, or can't judge a corner that requires braking when you see one - but those sort of rear led clusters are a right pain in the eyes on bendy country roads when one is wanting to see 'through' the car in front to read the road, as one has done for 40 odd years. This what we were taught by the Police and Advanced Driving instructors... and its second nature, now being made impossible.

To be fair, on a T25, the high position is lessa of a problem to following drivers. However, I maintain that a lot of these so-called safety improvements to cars are that in name only - and some authorities agree - they actually break the letter of the design and construction permits, and so I was told, some have been finangled through on a nod with a prototype design that is subsequently changed in production..

The rules used to be very strict and enforced (for good reason) but based on wattage, when itw as well know what equivalent light output a standard tungsten bulb would produce - that has ALL gone to the wall now with new technology, the manufacturers are cheating on legislation that was laid down for good ergoomic and safety reasons many years ago - gimmicks and sales and getting one over the opposition for a few model or series change.

Another thing I find very strange, if modern technology is really being sued for genuine progress, rather than cheap-skate sales-gimmicks, is this:
Why do so many brand new (say up to 3 years old) cars have headlights and tail-lights out? You pass one after another at times, and as an engineer, this strikes me as being just as bad as it was, if not worse (when drivers would check them before leaving on a journey), than 20 or 30 odd years ago...

Answers on a postcard please to... automobile technology disaster reporting, Dept of Transport

They're angled?

We were talking about T25s not cars, whilst I would agree with you that on some cars the high level brake light can be a bind, on my van, when travelling behind it with my car it is not a problem.

We are on a police driving instructors route here, you wouldn't believe the poor standard of driving we have witnessed over the years...driving in the centre of our narrow lanes , overtaking on a blind hill/corner, the list goes on, I only wish I had my camera to hand at times.

TR

It sounds like you've never actually seen an after market high level light. Yes, they can be angled to any degree, the one on my van can be pointing up into the stars or down into the engine pit or any-where in between. But rest assured mine is angled to ensure it causes no distress to following road users

TR