Buggy tail lights

[Westbandit]

[cdnltded]

i think they are early 30's Ford tailights with 4 1" rounds dual LED in the engine cage

[slalombuggy]

39 Ford and Lucas bullets

brad

[oprn]

Westbandit, your Buggy is very unique! I looked up your build thread and the quality is second to none! Not sure what the taillight originated from but I like the size. Should be very visible.

[oprn]

It looks like the stock Beetle tail lights are the most popular but there are some really nice other choices too. The early Ford ones are attractive for sure!

[cdnltded]

[Glasser]

AMC Matador

_________________
Brent
My build up http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=265364&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
Project#2. Neighbors build up. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=327008

[oprn]

Just thinking about this visibility issue. We have some great options shown in this thread but how many are reflective in the dark? Some factory tail lights already do that. I know that mine are not. If someone were to come up on our Buggies in the dark on the side of the road would they be able to see them?

I need to address that aspect too and the trick is to do it in such a way as to not spoil the authentics of the car. I for one don't want a bunch of junk hanging randomly off the back of the thing.

Something hopefully in good taste.

Maybe some reflective tape on the shocks? Mostly out of sight under the car but should catch the headlights at night?

[hillmotorsports]

The lack of reflective lenses on most aftermarket taillights has never sat well with me, can potentially have huge negative impact and consequences.

I have used silver or white 2" conspicuity tape like you see on transports. Either is not noticeable on aluminum or white until it is illuminated by headlights, then either are very prominent. I would think if you had a chrome or stainless rear bumper you could add a full silver strip facing the rear, another facing each side. Or add to the shocks as mentioned above, or any rear facing surface.

Some thought should be given to side exposure as well, perhaps along the outer edge of the chassis? The tape is available in multiple colors.

There is no such thing as being too safe on a dark night.

Paul
_________________
Rosemarie and Paul Hill
Morrisburg, Ontario

(With way more projects than spare time!)

[oprn]

What do you think of using 4 of these?

[heywebonya]

Are they bright?

What is the goal? My goal with taillights is safety 1st, then ease of replacement if broken, finally appearance. The LED truck lights meet these goals.

They do not have "historicity" that some of the fancy lights from 65 Impalas or other lights, but they are bright enough for sunny days that I mostly drive the buggy.

-Best regards, Jeffrey
_________________
If I knew what I was doing; I wouldn't be building a buggy!

[oprn]

The goal is visability first of all. These should address that. Authenticity would be nice but this Buggy fails on that regard from the rear view anyway in my view. Some day I would like to cut the engine over hang off and start fresh making it look more like the Manx style but for now I think these lights may fill in the back end better and make it a little less ugly.

Just an interm solution that doesn't involve a bunch of hole filling and trying to match up the gel coat.

[slalombuggy]

[EVfun]

[calebmelvin]

[oprn]

All good points!

And yes they seem pretty bright just sparking them up across the battery in the garage. I would say... 4 times brighter or more!

Out with the hole saw...

Just a point of interest that doesn't really effect the vast majority on this site especially our Buggies as they are fair weather cars. These LED lights do not produce any heat to speak of so in my view are not the a good choice for winter driving as they do not self clean on snowy roads like incandescent bulbs do. LEDs quickly become covered with snow and disappear from view. It has become a major concern to me since they have become popular on transport trucks. You can drive right into the back of a truck in on a snowy day and never even see it. I am actually surprised that they are still legal on transports.

However in reality the only time this Buggy will see snow is for ice racing and that will be in a controlled environment in the middle of the day so I have no qualms about using LEDs on it.

[oprn]

[EVfun]

[oprn]

Got the outside two done. Then started on the third one - oops - problem!

Air cleaner is in the way! Why doesn't someone build offset manifolds for a type 4 engine?

[manxdavid]

OEM Hella VW housings chrome plated locally.

Twisted and pulled wider slightly to suit the Manx's curves but not trimmed.