Has anyone put or considered putting a third central brake light in the rear 'window'? Any advice welcome, donor lamp, IVA issues,....
Keith
Keith
Third, Centre Brake Light
- Thread starter Stavros
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Renato
Lifetime Supporter
Hi Keith,
Been looking for the same thing for few weeks now. Found few universal LED lights on EBay that look decent. I want something complete with cover to screw just above the rear deck window.
Audi TT looks promising, but couldn't find any good pictures to verify fit.
I'm finding myself going really slow through parking lots lately. :laugh:
BTW, congratulations on you purchase and happy building!
Regards,
Renato
Been looking for the same thing for few weeks now. Found few universal LED lights on EBay that look decent. I want something complete with cover to screw just above the rear deck window.
Audi TT looks promising, but couldn't find any good pictures to verify fit.
I'm finding myself going really slow through parking lots lately. :laugh:
BTW, congratulations on you purchase and happy building!
Regards,
Renato
Dimi Terleckyj
Lifetime Supporter
Hi Guys
I did exactly this with mine using a Narva spoiler LED brake light strip.
I cut an opening in the top section under the window and fit it into the recess.
Dimi
Thanks guys.
Andy, need to read your log more carefully,... missed that. Also like your repeaters on the front. Re. the fog and reverse are you leaving them in the vent position, or is this just to get you through IVA, then move later?
Keith
Andy, need to read your log more carefully,... missed that. Also like your repeaters on the front. Re. the fog and reverse are you leaving them in the vent position, or is this just to get you through IVA, then move later?
Keith
Hi Keith,
Regarding the fog & reverse light, they are currently positioned for the IVA. The brackets they are mounted on have a second set of holes drilled which allows them to be moved backwards (i.e. moved forward to the front of the car). The hole is then cut out and then an open mesh used to cover the area. Effectively the lights will be behind the mesh, so aren’t obtrusive when not in use.
Regards,
Andy
Regarding the fog & reverse light, they are currently positioned for the IVA. The brackets they are mounted on have a second set of holes drilled which allows them to be moved backwards (i.e. moved forward to the front of the car). The hole is then cut out and then an open mesh used to cover the area. Effectively the lights will be behind the mesh, so aren’t obtrusive when not in use.
Regards,
Andy
Hi Andy
Got my Vectra brake light today, but not attempted to 'hack' the bodywork,.... just yet, how did you make the hole for the light, did you grind it out from the front, that is, where the light will enter the body (actually to the rear of the car)? That part of the body is a 'c' shape in section.
the pic just shows the brake light sitting on the roof, the location of the hole will be in the black part below.
regards
keith
Got my Vectra brake light today, but not attempted to 'hack' the bodywork,.... just yet, how did you make the hole for the light, did you grind it out from the front, that is, where the light will enter the body (actually to the rear of the car)? That part of the body is a 'c' shape in section.
the pic just shows the brake light sitting on the roof, the location of the hole will be in the black part below.
regards
keith
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Hi Keith,
I opened the hole from the outside until the light unit would just fit. If I remember correctly I had to take a couple of mm of the top edge of the lens to clear the rear screen
The following sketch shows how I retained the light. The M5 screw can glued onto the light unit using an epoxy adhesive, but I prefer to use a windscreen sealant such as Upol Tigerseal (available on Ebay), as it also great for glueing brackets direct to fibreglass.
When you make the retaining bracket, I would make it as longer than the light unit, as there is a loss of stiffness in this area when you cut the hole for the light. I actually added a foam beam to this area, about 600mm long. Without it, it was a 2 person job to open the rear clam, as the clam would distort if only lifted from one side. Now I can do it on my own.
Regards,
Andy
I opened the hole from the outside until the light unit would just fit. If I remember correctly I had to take a couple of mm of the top edge of the lens to clear the rear screen
The following sketch shows how I retained the light. The M5 screw can glued onto the light unit using an epoxy adhesive, but I prefer to use a windscreen sealant such as Upol Tigerseal (available on Ebay), as it also great for glueing brackets direct to fibreglass.
When you make the retaining bracket, I would make it as longer than the light unit, as there is a loss of stiffness in this area when you cut the hole for the light. I actually added a foam beam to this area, about 600mm long. Without it, it was a 2 person job to open the rear clam, as the clam would distort if only lifted from one side. Now I can do it on my own.
Regards,
Andy
Thanks Andy
I had twigged-on that there may be a stiffness issue as that C section would be relatively good re. bending moments when attempting to open the rear and it seems to be one of the stronger elements going across the body.
I had considered a C shaped Al strip, bonded into the body section, with the appropriate hole cut in it for the light. The light does have barbed retainer clips, but I think the body section (plus Al strip) may be too thick for it to click in and engage?
Your solution is simpler than mine. Part of the problem with being a novice is that you can easily do a little too much (over engineer) with each design issue and lose time. FWIW I believe that for engineering to be good it should be as simple as possible, the AK47 approach; so I might have to copy you!
Many thanks again
Keith
I had twigged-on that there may be a stiffness issue as that C section would be relatively good re. bending moments when attempting to open the rear and it seems to be one of the stronger elements going across the body.
I had considered a C shaped Al strip, bonded into the body section, with the appropriate hole cut in it for the light. The light does have barbed retainer clips, but I think the body section (plus Al strip) may be too thick for it to click in and engage?
Your solution is simpler than mine. Part of the problem with being a novice is that you can easily do a little too much (over engineer) with each design issue and lose time. FWIW I believe that for engineering to be good it should be as simple as possible, the AK47 approach; so I might have to copy you!
Many thanks again
Keith
